National team junior player Godfrey Nsubuga proved that consistency and hard work are the hallmarks of success as the 2022 golfing season raged on.

After leading Uganda’s junior team to a fifth-place finish out of 12 in the All-Africa Junior Golf Challenge at the Palm Hills Golf Course in Cairo in March, Nsubuga, 18, who finished 8^th overall in the individual rankings, followed that with outstanding displays on the local scene.

In Cairo Mehta Golf Club’s Nsubuga represented alongside Joseph Akena, Emmanuel Adrabo and Ibrahim Ssemakula while the girls’ team that had Frista Birabwa, Winnie Musuya and Vivian Achen finished 7^th out of nine countries.

But it's on the local scene that Nsubuga made a mark, especially the double victory in three days when he came in both the Kakira and Namulonge Equity opens in three days.

Mehta Golf Club's Godfrey Nsubuga. Photo by Michael Nsubuga

He accomplished the rare feat when he beat Michael Tumusiime by a stroke to win the one-round Kakira Open in Jinja before he switched his attention to the two-round Namulonge tournament played over two days which he also won after a sudden-death play-off against Namulonge’s Joseph Kasozi.

Nsubuga had tied with Kasozi on an aggregate score of 144 gross over 36-holes before he edged his nemesis on the play-off, par-4 hole 9 where the former scored a par with the latter bogeying the hole.

The scratch player had before the double victory also won the NCBA Junior Open, the Mbale, Lira, and the Coffee Cup-Mbale opens, before he finished second in the Kinyara and Mbale Opens to wrap up what has been an eventful season for him.

He also managed a fourth-place finish in the Tusker Malt Lager Uganda Open played at the Lake Victoria Serena Golf Resort where artisan Andrew Ssekibejja also defied the odds beating Michael Tumusiime and defending champion Joseph Cwinya-ai to the title.

Andrew Ssekibejja kisses the Uganda Open trophy after the tournament at the Lake Victoria Serena Golf Resort in October. Photo by Michael Nsubuga

He was also part of the team that lost to Kenya in both the Africa Region IV Golf Championship and the two-nation Victoria Cup in Limuru in what is one of the worst team performances for team Uganda.

Kenya beat Uganda 3-0 in the final played under the match-play format, to win their maiden Region IV trophy. Going into the final, Kenya had topped the classification 72-hole rounds with 11.5-10 points which gave them enough momentum and confidence to go for the kill.

Another team of US-based golfers also registered one of their worst performances in an African tournament in recent years after they finished tenth out of fifteen at the All-Africa Amateur Golf Championship at the El Gouna Golf Club in Egypt.

The Uganda Golf Union (UGU) had opted to field four of Uganda’s US-based golfers instead of the Uganda-based team that lost to Kenya in both the Africa Region IV Golf Championship and the Victoria Cup in August with the hope of getting better results, but the US-based golfers failed to perform to their expectations, failing to match the competition in Egypt.

Martha Babirye won the Uganda Ladies Open. Photo by Michael Nsubuga

Apart from Emmanuel Jakisa who showed a bit of consistency with his scores, the other team members; Ronald Otile, Collins Ajidra and Titus Okwong performed below par.

The other top-notch individual performances were registered by Cwinya-ai who after his disappointing Uganda Open outing where he finished third overall went on to claim back-to-back victories from the Kinyara and Mbale Opens.

He had also earlier in the year won the Rwenzori Equity Open at Tooro Club alongside Peace Kabasweka who toppled the lady’s category.

On her part, Kabasweka had also claimed the Entebbe Ladies Open formerly a preserve of Irene Nakalembe who had won it seven times in a row.

Zimbabwe's Chinhoi won the professional's open at Serena. Photo Michael Nsubuga

Martha Babirye also smiled the widest when she won the Uganda Ladies Open at Serena. Before John Muchiri and Edrae Kagombe had picked the Seniors' Championship while Zimbabwe's Robson Chinhoi topped the Professional's Open and pocketed the biggest cash prize of sh21m off the sh100m purse.

Another shining star in golf as the season ended was Michael Alunga who decided to vie for the Kenya Amateur Stroke Play Championship alongside Kenya’s top amateurs. Though he did not win the championship, only managing a sixth-place overall finish, he left a mark and set a new record for a Ugandan’s most wins in Kenya.

He won the Manchester Salver Golf Tournament at the Eldoret Club in November, which was his third victory in Kenya that follows the Tea Fields Trophy golf tournament that he won at Kericho Golf Club in October. In August he also won the 'Vasco da Gama Cup’ Malindi Open at the Malindi Golf and Country Club.

Alunga who missed playing in the Uganda Open and opted to stay in Kenya had before his last win finished second in the Coronation and Bendor Trophy Tournament in Nakuru; the Winston Churchill Cup at the Thika Sports Club, the Mount Kenya Amateur Championship at Nyeri Golf and at the Trans-Nzoia Championship in Kitale.

He also beat Kenyan professionals to the Kenya Golf Union (KGU) Chairman’s prize tournament top cash prize at Sigona Golf Club in June and got paid sh1.5m for it.

Uganda Seniors'Open winners John Muchiri (center) and Edrae Kagombe (right) pose with their trophies, Photo by Michael Nsubuga

Other standouts included Meron Kyomugisha who also won several ladies' events and longest drive side bets; while the best-performing professional and junior over the season were Ronald Rugumayo and Mackinon Masereka respectively.

In the same year, former Uganda Golf Union (UGU) president Johnson Omolo was elected to head the Africa Golf Confederation. Omolo who served a two-year term as UGU president in 2015-2016 has been vice president of the union before in 2013-2014, and has since then been vice president of the continental body under Zambia’s Joe Malanje and later on Mauritius’ Christophe Currie committee.

The busiest golf clubs in the country, Entebbe and the Uganda Golf Clubs ended the year with their Mug of Mugs tournaments which were won by James O’Sullivan and Bridget Basiima in Entebbe while Derrick Muhumuza and Wendy Angudeyo topped in Kampala.

The Uganda Golf Union also embarked on the revival of the Masaka Golf Course which was last in use about 40 years ago.