Golf prodigy Ndaruza makes his mark

Deputy Sports Editor

RORY MCLLROY’s swing has over the years become a thing of wonder both in his native home of Northern Ireland and the far shores of the globe.

From the way he unwinds his hips extremely late in his downswing, largely due to the immense force he puts into the ground with his legs as he starts down, to the speed he generates for a man of his size, Mcllroy’s swing has served him well over the years.

The 33-year-old is one of the most revered golfers of his era, with four PGA majors to his name.

These include the 2011 US Open, 2012 PGA Championship, 2014 Open Championship and 2014 PGA Championship.

He is one of three players, alongside Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods, to win four majors by the age of 25.

He also spent over 100 weeks as world number one on the official World Golf rankings. Among the many budding golfers Mcllroy has inspired is Zimbabwe’s own Munashe Ndaruza, who lists the Irishman as one of his idols, together with local ace Robson Chinhoi.

“When it comes to golfing idols, I would have to say Rory Mcllroy and Robson Chinhoi,” said the Harare-based golfer.

“I just love the way he (Mcllroy) swings, and Chinhoi motivates me a lot as he is a person who works very hard on his game,” he said. Much like his idols, he is one of the top amateur golfers in the country and recently made headlines when he won last weekend’s Roland Park Open.

It was his third straight open win after similar conquests in Zvishavane and Masvingo early this year.

However, the three straight wins are not what separates the 20-year-old from the rest of the chasing pack on the local amateur scene.

Golf is still relatively new to the young man after having taken it up in 2018.

Like many local athletes his age, Ndaruza dreamt of becoming a footballer.

That was until an ill-fated injury woke him up from that dream and ushered him to playing golf.

“Golf was not my first love and I only started playing it in 2018.

“I was a football player before and only stopped playing due to an injury.

“I got injured during a pick-up game when I got pushed by an opposing player and collided with the goalkeeper.

“I struggled to get up at first, but brushed it aside as a slight niggle,” he said.

It was only when he was taken to hospital that scans revealed a crack on his shin.

His leg had to be put in plaster for seven weeks, and it was during this period that he decided to give up on his football dream and try out golf.

As luck would have it, his father worked at Wingate Park Golf Club and helped him get some free lessons.

Ndaruza developed a liking for the sport and could have started playing earlier had it not been for the Covid-19 pandemic.

“Covid-19 was tough.

“We didn’t have any plans as to how I could get the money for me to play in tournaments, but the pandemic only made things worse.

“As golfers, we spend so much of our time playing and practicing, but everyone was asked to stay at home.

“I hoped that the pandemic would only last for a few months.”

This year brought with it a change in fortunes as the young golfer finally launched his amateur career.

At the beginning of the year, he set himself the target of winning at least five Opens.

And after successes in Masvingo, Zvishavane and most recently the Roland Park Open, Ndaruza looks to be a sure bet to achieve his target.

“I set myself the target of winning five Open championships, and now that I have three wins already, I hope to get the remaining two.

“Of the three wins, the most challenging one was in Masvingo, as it was cold and I was playing my first tournament.

“I did enjoy the Wingate tournament and hope to replicate that performance should I manage to play at the Hillside Masters next.”