71st Ghana Open Gold at Tema

The annual Ghana Amateur Gold Open championship, the biggest event on the country’s golfing calendar is here with us with the Tema Country Golf Course off the Tema-aflao international trunk road as the venue.

The four-day event the auspices of the Ghana Golf Association and sponsored by Silver Star Auto, local dealers in Mercedes Benz cars, trucks and accessories in association with others will tee off on Friday 18 April 2003.

A flag raising ceremony at 9.30 am to welcome all captains and participants, to be followed by an extraordinary meeting of the GGA and a cocktail party at the spacious club house of the club, all on Friday will kick-start the competition.

The annual golf extravaganza which is in its 71st edition has grown in participation in recent times and this year’s appears to be gearing for a record entry. The main event- the men and ladies 54-hole action (scratch and handicap) with the newly created youth championship for the under-16s will be action packed.

Five youthful golfers who have dominated the competition recently, Kojo Banini (Kumasi), J. Love (Tafo), Vincent Torgah and E. Gakpetor (Tema) and D. Aryeetey (Takoradi) who have been classified as pro-trainees are disqualified from participation.

Their absence however will not be felt as equally single their absence however will not be felt as equally single digit performers will take their place to do battle with their more tried, tested, seasoned senior campaigners from clubs like Awaso, Benso, Windy Bay, Obuasi, Tafo and Bok-Nam Kim clubs.

Of course, host club Tema, achimota, Kumasi, Takoradi and Celebrity will provide the core challengers in T.K. Agama, Lee Mensah (the gold evangelist), D. Atuwo, Mawuli Ababi9o, (Achimota), Kwadwo Kyei, A. Boatey, F. Owusu-Ansah Bassel Hage, Y.B. Otchere (Kumasi), George Osei, P. Korsah and S. Essuman (Takoradi), F.K. Asorgba, Frank Sogbordjor, E.K. Henaku, E.T. Mensah all from Tema.

The ladies action as usual will be a straight fight between the indomitable Mona Captan of Achimota immediate past lady captain of Tema and the scientific one Florence Etwi Barimah. Whiles Florence will have Grace Komladzei, Valentine Manteaw, Esther Afrakoma, Antwi, Esi Cobinna for support Mona will have the likes of Fracesca Vandyke, Elizabeth Quartey, Susie Abaloo, Rose Ayivor and others to give the event the hype.

It will be four days of golfing for the country’s golfing fraternity from all corners of the country with perhaps a few from neighbouring Togo joining in the fray.