Tournament Details:      

Event:       Magical Kenya Ladies Open 2023

Venue:      Vipingo Ridge

Dates:       February 1 – 5, 2023

Purse:       300,000 Euros

Four Kenyan golfers, Mercy Nyanchama, Naomi Wafula, Chanelle Wangari and Nancy Wairimu are tusstling it out against a field of 96 professional golfers from different countries around the world at 2023 Magical Kenya Ladies Open            

Naomi Wafula and Mercy Nyanchama are making their third appearance at Kenya’s biggest golf meet having featured in the 2019 and 2022 editions, 16-year-old Chanelle Wangari and Nancy Wairimu are making their debut.

The four amateur players want to leave a mark at the tournament that boasts as the only professional ladies golf tournament in the East African region.

Sixteen-year-old Chanelle Wangari, Kenya’s Amateur No.1 player, is the girl to watch. She describes herself as, “a junior golfer just doing my thing – playing in golf events around the world.”

She recently won the Kenya Ladies Open Amateur (Stroke Play and Match Play) tournaments in 2022 and notched six KLGU Ladies Open organized countrywide. She represented Kenya in 2018 at the All Africa Junior Challenge in Morocco. She successfully qualified for R&A Junior in England and is an Africa Junior Champion Winner. She was nominated to represent Kenya at Inaugural Ladies European Tour (LET) 2022- Magical Kenya Ladies Open at the age of 15.

Vipingo Ridge’s PGA Academy star Naomi Wafula finished last year’s edition with a 20 over par total of 164 gross to tie in the 90th place with France’s Marion Duvernay and Denmark’s Linette Littau. She is also hoping for a much robust outing.

VetLab Sports Club’s Mercy Nyanchama was the highest-ranked Kenyan at the 2022 edition having finished in the 74th position on a round total of a 14 over par 158 gross.

Kenya is hosting the opening round of the 2023 Ladies European Tour for the third time.  First held at the end of 2019 and a second time in February 2022 after a Covid-enforced break, the tournament features golfers from many different nationalities including a selection of home Kenyan players, at the invitation of the LET.

The Magical Kenya Ladies Open will be the first in a series of 39 events on the Ladies European Tour 2023 calendar – the most fixtures ever held on the Tour.

The 2023 Magical Kenya Ladies Open promises to be an exciting and thrilling event, featuring some of the world’s top female golfers competing for the coveted trophy. Fans can expect to see top-notch golfing action, beautiful scenery, and a great atmosphere.

The tournament is sponsored by among others, the Ministry of Youth Affairs, Sports and The Arts, U.COM , EABL through its Johnnie Walker brand, Magical Kenya, Safaricom’s Mpesa, Huawei, KCB Group and Visa.