Uganda’s professional golfer Ronald Rugumayo will once again play in this year’s Magical Kenya Open after he made a second-place finish in the last Safari Tour event at the Karen Golf Club in Nairobi on Wednesday.

Despite not winning Rugumayo unleashed the best golf of his career in this leg and led by two strokes going into the last round; his career best-ever, a nine-under 63 coming in the second round that ensured he was on top of the 23-man field that entered the money bracket.

He picked 48 points from this leg, which shot him to a total of 112 points from the four out of six tournaments he has competed in this season’s tour displacing David Kamulindwa by a point.

Rugumayo only picked his first points (29) last month during the Limuru leg where he finished joint tenth with his compatriot Rodel Gaita before he added another 35 in the Muthaiga outing where Gaita and Phillip Kasozi also scored some points.

But he will now make his third consecutive Magical Kenya Open appearance as the second-best golfer among the non-Kenyans from the tour behind Zimbabwe’s Visitor Mapwanya who is on 154 points.

The top two non-Kenyans from the tour get automatic entry into the Kenya Open while there are eight slots for the Kenyan nationals; in the European tour event that attracts a galaxy of elite golfers from around the world.

“It wasn't easy after missing my Uganda open points but I have made one of the greatest comebacks to qualify,” Rugumayo noted

“It was a great experience and am happy with my game; coming into this I needed to win or finish second the worst to increase my chances of qualifying for the Kenya Open and I made it,” Rugumayo who finished with -12, stated.

He notched 21 birdies over the four rounds on the course where he notched a hole-in-one at the Kenya Open last year and was undone by the nine bogeys (five coming in the last round) that ensured he only pocketed sh2.3m.

It is instead veteran Kenyan professional golfer Dismas Indiza who topped the field by six strokes ahead of the Ugandan and took the lion’s share of sh3.5m out of the total prize money of sh24m.

Indiza notched 19 birdies, two eagles, and only five bogeys (-18) to win his third tour event this season to deny Rugumayo just like he did during the Uganda Open last year.

The qualified professionals will now sharpen their skills for the Magical Kenya Open due February 22-25.

Top ten at Karen

Dismas Indiza (KE) 68 66 69 67 270

Ronald Rugumayo (UG) 68 63 70 75 276

Greg Snow (KE) 73 69 69 66 277

Mutahi Kibugu (KE) 67 69 73 74 283

Samuel Njoroge (KE) 69 76 70 71 286

Celestine Nsanzuwera (RW) 73 73 70 71 287

Mohit Mediratta (KE) 72 71 69 76 288

Sunday Olapade (NIG) 75 73 71 70 289

Tony Omuli (KE) 73 74 70 72 289

Visitor Mapwanya (ZIM) 73 72 71 73 289

Safari Tour point standings

Dismas Indiza (KE) 294.5pts

Samuel Njoroge (KE) 251

Greg Snow (KE) 234.3

Daniel Nduva (KE) 172

Kibugu Njoroge (KE) 160.5

Visitor Mapwanya (ZIM) 154

Mike Kisia (KE) 153.8

Mohit Mediratta (KE) 153

Mutahi Kibugu (KE) 139

Ronald Rugumayo (UG) 112