BY DANIEL NHAKANISO IN NYANGA MONTCLAIR Hotel and Casino have promised a bigger edition of their invitational golf tournament following a successful inaugural competition at the Claremont Golf Club on Friday and Saturday.
A field of almost 50 players comprising amateur golfers from various corporates, junior golfers from Old Windsor Primary School and invited professionals took part in the golf tournament, which has plans to become a pro-am tournament.
In an interview with NewsDay Sport during the tournament, Montclair Hotel and Casino general manager Brian Nyakutombwa said they were pleased with the big turnout.
“We are very happy with the turnout, this is the inaugural edition of the Montclair Invitational and the theme behind the events is Bringing Brands Together so basically, we are inviting businesses that we do business with and those who we would like to do business with to come together and enjoy a round of golf, talk business, build networks, conclude some deals and form lasting relationships. We would like to make it an annual event and we are looking at a bigger and better event as we go forward,” Nyakutombwa said.
The organisers also extended an invitation to professional golfers with Sunshine Senior Tour player Davison Elijah and Zimbabwe Professional Golfers Association vice-president Jessie Nyakatawa, who both have a passion for grassroots golf development.
Elijah, who was fresh from finishing sixth in the Chevron Golf Tour’s Gokomere Open played at Chapman Golf Club earlier in the week conducted a coaching clinic for junior golfers from Windsor Primary School in Ruwa and a few locals.
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“This year we tried to bring in some professional golfers to get some professional advice which we had and it’s good that they are here. It also raises the profile of the tournament so we would like to see more professionals coming and probably with time we could turn this into a pro-am which is something we would like to see happening,” Nyakutombwa said.
“I’m also quite happy that we have brought in some junior golfers and this is something that we want to carry forward. We want to tie this tournament with the development of junior golf as well as giving back to charity.”
The nine-hole Claremont Golf Course, whose clubhouse sits high on the skyline above the scenic layout, provided a challenging but enjoyable experience for the players.
“We have put in a lot of effort to make sure the course is ready for this tournament and the comments I’m getting, show that the course is in good shape. We would like to make it even better, in terms of its condition,” Nyakutombwa said.
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