Chronicle Editor
Brandon Moyo, [email protected]
TANAKA Chatora and Batsirai Tilowakuti were crowned champions of the 2025 Dugmore Trophy, which concluded yesterday afternoon at its traditional venue, Bulawayo Golf Club.
Chatora, representing Royal Harare, clinched the men’s title with a gross score of 222, while Tilowakuti, from Borrowdale Brooke Golf Club, secured victory in the ladies’ category with a gross score of 244, marking the official start of the 2025 Zimbabwe Golf Association (ZGA) calendar.
The tournament attracted a star-studded field, including six ZGA national team players who are scheduled to compete in South Africa next week.
Borrowdale Brooke displayed outstanding golf to win the team event, finishing five points ahead of runners-up Royal Harare. Brooke scored 684 points, while Royal Harare ended with 689. Other participating clubs included Bulawayo Golf Club, Bulawayo Country Club, ZRP Golf Club, Roland Park Golf Club, Hwange Golf Club and Harry Allen Golf Club.
Chatora, who also triumphed in last year’s event, recorded round scores of 76, 69, and 77, finishing just one shot ahead of Kelvin Muchenje and Keegan Shutt, who tied for second place with gross scores of 223. Muchenje posted scores of 77, 72, and 74, while Shutt carded rounds of 79, 71, and 73.
In the ladies’ division, Tilowakuti recorded scores of 83, 77 and 84 to emerge victorious.
Reflecting on his win, Chatora expressed satisfaction with his performance.
“It feels good. I wasn’t really focused on defending the title; I was just taking it one shot at a time and trying to post some good scores. My second round was particularly good and helped me pull ahead of the field. Overall, it was a decent performance, especially considering how tough the course was this week.
“The rough was very punishing. It was crucial to hit the fairways; that was the only way to score low. I managed that well in the second round. The other rounds were more challenging, but I kept myself in contention, and I’m happy with the result,” said Chatora.
Tilowakuti was equally delighted to start 2025 on a high note.
“It’s very pleasing to win the first tournament of the year. The scores were better than I expected, given the challenging conditions. The course was perfect, but the rough was particularly demanding. Still, I’m very pleased with this result,” she said.
Matabeleland Golf Association president, Vincent Makamure, thanked Bulawayo Golf Club for their exceptional work on the course despite heavy rainfall and praised the strong attendance.
“Thank you to the team at Bulawayo Golf Club for maintaining the course under challenging conditions. The players had a fantastic few rounds despite the toughness of the course – but that’s golf. From such challenges, champions emerge.
“This year’s tournament was a great success, and I’m grateful to everyone who contributed. Attendance was noticeably higher than last year, which is very encouraging,” said Makamure.
Bulawayo Golf Club captain, Josh Laper, also expressed gratitude to the participants for persevering through the demanding conditions.
Tournament referee Victor Suerga noted that the event went smoothly, with no significant issues. He commended the championship-level course setup, which required precision and skill from all players. — @brandon_malvin
Online Reporter