Chronicle Editor
Brandon Moyo
THERE was a hive of activity in the city over the weekend as golfers from Harry Allen Golf Club and Bulawayo Country Club took to the greens to determine the best golfers in their respective clubs during the 2023 Club Championships.
The Club Championships are a major highlight in the Zimbabwe Golf Association’s (ZGA) calendar, and this past weekend was reserved for games across the country. Bulawayo Golf Club held their championship last week.
From both clubs, the two reigning champions managed to defend their titles.
At Harry Allen, Mufaro Chivonivoni emerged as the champion in a field that had 29 golfers, while at Bulawayo Country Club, against 66 golfers, Barry Painting managed to make it five wins in a row.
Matthew Williams won the Bulawayo Golf Club edition.
Harry Allen Golf Club captain Jabulani Tshuma was impressed with the way things went in the two days, adding that the greens were good and high-quality golf was displayed by the members.
“I am happy most if not all of our club members took part in the tournament. The quality of golf displayed was very good and I am also happy with the way the course played out throughout the two days. It was really good,” said Tshuma.
The undisputed champion, Chivonivoni said his experience as a golfer played a part in defending the Harry Allen title. He was also impressed with the way the course played out, saying that it was not difficult to play on. Chivonivoni won with a gross total of 168 after identical round scores of 84 and 84 on Saturday and Sunday.
“If you win once, it becomes easier to win again,” he said.
Bulawayo Country Club captain Hazrine Hapazari was also impressed with the numbers over the weekend. His only worry was the lack of youngsters at such events as they are crucial to the growth of the game at any given time. There was growth in attendance at Bulawayo Country Club compared to last year.
“We managed to put up four divisions for men and four divisions for women. There were all possible scores, there were some good scores and there were some bad scores. The only thing that is worrying to me is that there is not much youth here.
“For any sport to develop you need the younger generation because the demographics don’t look okay for me, there is hardly anyone in their 20s here,” said Hapazari.
The champion, Painting said it’s an amazing thing to have such a winning streak and be part of the club’s history, adding that having played professional golf has been the secret to his dominance.
“I used to play professional golf and this (Bulawayo Country Club) is my home course, I am very comfortable here. It feels great (fifth consecutive win), it really does and the history involved and the names on the trophy, it’s so rewarding to be part of the history. I played really nicely this year,” said Painting.
After this past weekend, the best golfers from Clubs in Bulawayo have been determined and are set to compete at the Champions of Champions tournament to be held later this year.
– @brandon_malvin
Bongani Ndlovu