TZ top golfer psyched up for 2018 Kenya Open

Dar es Salaam. Tanzania’s top seeded golfer, Victor Joseph, is bubbling with confidence ahead of this year’s Barclays Kenya Open Championship.

Joseph qualified for the Kenya Open – the biggest golf event in that East African country – after winning the recently-ended Muthaiga Open.

To ensure he maintains his stellar performance in international competitions, the golfer opted to camp in Nairobi ahead of the four-day championship.

Joseph said yesterday that he has been training seriously because he knows that he will be up against the crème de la crème of amateur golfers from around the East African region during the championship.

“I have resorted to serious training because the tournament features top golfers from various countries across East Africa,” he told The Citizen over the ’phone from Nairobi.

“I want to win it and, thus, add another title to my reputation as I see 2018 very rewarding in my golfing career,” he said – adding that this is despite expecting stiff opposition from a line-up of classy Kenyan golfers, including Edwin Mudanyi, Robinson Owiti, Taimur Maliki and Karanja Koino.

The Barclays Kenya Open will feature both amateur and professional golfers, including some who competed in the European Challenge Tour recently, according to the organizers.

Launched in 1967, the tournament marked its 50th anniversary as it kicked off with the ceremonial ‘Tee Off’ from the rooftop of the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC) building in Nairobi on Wednesday.

The event will also see the inaugural ‘Winner’s Jacket’ handed over in the style of the famous Master’s Green Jacket at Augusta in the US.