Kabasweka, Muhwezi win Katogo Series opener

Perez Muhwezi and Peace Kabasweka may have contrasting chapters but they toasted to similar delight on Saturday evening as overall winners of the first leg of the annual I&M Bank Katogo Golf Series in Entebbe.

Despite learning the game nearly two decades ago, Muhwezi took some time off the course but he has since bounced back.

At the weekend, the handicap 26 player wrestled down the tricky ‘In Regulation’ format of play to return the men’s best score of 71 nett on count-back. “It was a tough one,” Muhwezi reacted upon picking his trophy from I&M Bank and a dummy air ticket from RwandAir.

“The new format of play is of course something very new to everyone and it is very challenging. You had to push to the wall. You had to keep your head down, follow through and swing through well,” he added.

The format required a player to land on the green in regulation. If one did not, they would be penalized an extra stroke and a score of par or better after the hole would not result in a penalty.

Muhwezi had no birdie but he carded six pars and he remembers a vindictive double-bogey on par-4 Hole No.14. Meanwhile, scratch player Kabasweka continued her form by returning 78 nett on count-back.

Kabasweka, who won the Entebbe Ladies Open a week prior, made 14 pars but she was trapped by the rules for bogeys on par-3 Holes No.12 and No.16.

Whereas she had a birdie on par-3 Hole No.2, Kabasweka also made double-bogeys on par-4 Hole No.17 and on the par-5 18th green.

“For the bogeys, I arrived on regulation on par-3s and then three-putted,” she said. “For the double-bogeys, I didn’t arrive on the greens on regulation,” she stated.

Kabasweka also won the ladies’ nearest to the pin prize on a day new Katogo captain Elly Kibuka Mukasa and his vice-captain Andrew Kibaya met the weight of the exciting tournament.

The prize-giving ceremony emceed by Moses Ssebugwawo and Marvin Kagoro went long into the night as DJ Alisha spun her discs.

I&M KATOGO GOLF SERIES - LEG 1

TOURNAMENT RESULTS

Overall Winner (Lady): Peace Kabasweka 78 nett (c/b)

Overall Winner (Men): Perez Muhwezi 71 nett (c/b)

Gross Winner: Vincent Katutsi 81 gross

GROUP WINNERS

LADIES

A: Sarah Nduhukire 80 nett (c/b)

B: Shalom Kayenje 78 nett

MEN

A: Paul Habyarimana 76 nett

B: Brian Omeda 71 nett (c/b)

C: Omar Badreldin 74 nett

NEAREST TO THE PIN

L: Peace Kabasweka

M: Lino Anguzu

LONGEST DRIVE

L: Berna Musanabera

M: Darius Mugisha