Uganda maintains third place at the All-Africa Golf Team Championships

The Uganda national golf team is on the verge of achieving their best finish ever in an African championship after maintaining third place through the third round at the Bulawayo Golf Club course in Zimbabwe.

After the first two rounds, Uganda was tied for third with Zimbabwe on 437 gross each, three strokes ahead of Mauritius.

However, top performer Reagan Akena struggled to replicate his earlier under-par rounds (68, 71), carding a three-over 75 yesterday. Team captain Joseph Cwinya-ai, who had played one-under over the first two rounds, also slipped with a six-over 78.

Despite the challenges, Akena remains the standout for the four-man team, holding fourth overall in the individual standings even after playing two-over 74 in the third round. Cwinya-ai highlighted the team's resilience despite windy conditions and the imbalance due to having two juniors on the team, including Elton Thembo, who is experiencing his first national event outside Uganda.

Thembo has contributed with a 233 gross over the three rounds, while the other team member, Ibrahim Ssemakula, has struggled with a non-scoring 237. The best three scores count per round.

“Our performance isn’t bad; however, we had a long and tough day due to windy conditions on the course. There's also team imbalance because of the two juniors, with Elton Thembo playing his first national event outside Uganda,” Cwinya-ai noted.

Coach Flavia Namakula acknowledged the tough conditions but expressed optimism. “It is good so far, though it could have been better. The conditions are really tough, with wind speeds at 22mph. But I expect the boys to perform much better tomorrow,” Namakula said, praising Akena’s composure and course management.

Akena mentioned that the team is fighting hard to secure a decent finish at the dry course, which he noted is similar to the Entebbe course but more challenging.

South Africa, led by Ivan Verster and Jordan Burnand, maintained the top spot, 33 strokes ahead of second-placed Zimbabwe and Mauritius, who are tied on 665 with one round to go. The South Africans lead the individual standings with 8 and 7 under, respectively, while Arthur Astin is their other scorer with a gross of 266 over the three rounds.

Leaderboard after 3 rounds

South Africa 633

Zimbabwe 665

Mauritius 665

Uganda 668

Zambia 669

Zambia 669

Egypt 670

Kenya 685

Malawi 685

Eswatini 710

Gabon 712

Botswana 718