Namilyango College team captain Milton Edimu is happy to carry a slim four-point advantage over the rest of the 14 schools after the first leg of the fifth Clash of the Titans Golf Championship last weekend.
Edimu and his old boys (OBs) of Namilyango (Ngo) garnered 356 points from their top 10 best players who competed in a 200-player field at Uganda Golf Club (UGC) in Kitante.
And the total earned them a small margin, ahead of King’s College Budo (KCB), who polled 352. ‘The team was relaxed going into the game, no pressure,’ remarked Edimu.
‘We take the event as a fun and banter filled day. It also helped I think that we had a mix of low, middle and high handicappers,’ he said.
Ngo’s best player was Mary Louise Simkins Memorial Club vice-captain Kenneth Tumusiime who returned 43 stableford points off handicap 24. Edimu too returned 40 points to give Ngo an advantage ahead of the final leg in Entebbe on October 10.
The Clash of the Titans tournament cluster golfers into teams pegged to their former secondary schools, irrespective of cohort years but the trick is in pulling up sizable numbers.
‘Raising the numbers is not a challenge especially for Namilyango, Smack and KCB. It is selecting the restricted number for the tournament due to the increased number of schools and course limits. So come Entebbe leg, we expect another mix of players hungry to contribute,’ Edimu stated.
The competition in the tournament is now tighter. The top three schools are separated by six points with Ntare School third on 350 points.
For the ladies’ schools alone, Bweranyangi Girls SS by Gloria Mbaguta, polled 157 points but Maryhill High is on their heels with 149 points while Gayaza High School (Giza) scored 101 points.
FIRST LEG RESULTS
TOP SCHOOLS – MIXED
1 Namilyango (Ngo) 356 points
2 King’s College Budo (KCB) 352 pts
3 Ntare School 350 pts
TOP SCHOOLS – LADIES ONLY
1 Bweranyangi Girls SS 157 pts
2 Maryhill HS 149 pts
3 Gayaza HS (Giza) 101 pts
GROUP WINNERS – MEN
GROUP A
Winner: Joel Nagaba (Chaapa) 41 pts
1st Runner-Up: Lawrence Walakira (Gongos) 38 pts
GROUP B
Winner: John Waigo (KCB) 42 pts
1st Runner-Up: Milton Edimu (Ngo) 40 pts (c/b)
GROUP WINNERS – LADIES
GROUP A
Winner: Josephine Njoroge 39 pts
1st Runner-Up: Gloria Mbaguta (Bwera) 35 pts
GROUP B
Winner: Sandra Komakech (Giza) 35 pts (c/b)
1st Runner-Up: Viola Ayebare (Maryhill) 35 pts
SENIORS WINNERS
Winner: Rose Azuba (Giza) 33 pts (c/b)
Runner-Up: Arthur Gakwandi (Ntare) 33 pts
NEAREST TO THE PIN
L: Maxi Byenkya (Gungas)
M: Charles Kalumuna (Ngo)
LONGEST DRIVE
M: Lawrence Walakira (Gongos)
L: Esther Birungi (Giza)