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Kibugu grabs lead in Sunshine Tour opener at Thika Greens
Njoroge Kibugu follows his shot during round two of the East Africa Sunshine Development Tour East Africa Swing Qualifying School on April 1, 2025.
What you need to know:
- The Sunshine Tour—one of the world’s premier professional golf tours—expanded into Kenya and the East African region in March with the launch of the Sunshine Development Tour – East Africa Swing.
- The series aims to offer a professional platform for golfers in the region to compete in high-level events aligned with Sunshine Tour standards.
Windsor Golf Hotel and Country Club’s Njoroge Kibugu carded a flawless round of eight-under-par 64 to take an early lead as the Sunshine Development Tour’s East Africa Swing teed off at Thika Greens Golf Resort on Tuesday.
Kibugu’s round featured eight birdies—at the 1st, 4th, 6th, 9th, 11th, 12th, and 18th holes—earning him a commanding four-shot lead over his nearest challenger, Karen Country Club’s Edwin Mudanyi, who made a late surge up the leaderboard to finish at four-under-par 68.
“It was a brilliant round, everything worked well today, especially my putting,” Kibugu said after his round.
“This puts me in a great place heading into round two. I’ll try to keep doing what I’ve done today and see where that takes me," he added.
Kibugu, who had not played a competitive tournament in two months, credited his patience and preparation for the strong showing.
“I’ve been working on staying patient and didn’t come here with many expectations,” he added. “It was great to see all the work we’ve put in come into place. I’ll be happier if it continues working going into tomorrow.”
Mudanyi finished one stroke ahead of elite Kenyan amateur Michael Karanga, who sits in third place after a solid three-under-par 69. A five-way tie for fourth followed at two-under-par 70, featuring Tanzania’s Abdallah Dullah, Uganda’s Ronald Rugumayo, and Kenyans Dismas Indiza, Daniel Nduva, and Simon Ngige.
In total, 17 players from the 76-player field posted scores of par or better on what proved to be a generally low-scoring opening day.
Uganda’s Ronald Rugumayo expressed satisfaction with his performance.
“Two-under par for the round—I am happy with it, I’ll take it,” he said. “The leader has set the pace, I know what I have to work on so I can catch up.”
Rugumayo emphasised the significance of the tournament for regional professionals.
“Playing in such events is a dream come true for the East African region’s professionals. Personally, I flew from South Africa to play here. As a region, we haven’t been playing much golf previously, hence our performances at big stages such as the Kenya Open. I want to urge all the region’s pros to take advantage of this tour," he said.
Round two is scheduled to tee off at 8am on Wednesday, with players battling to make the cut and advance to the final round. A total prize fund of Sh2 million is up for grabs.
The Sunshine Tour—one of the world’s premier professional golf tours—expanded into Kenya and the East African region in March with the launch of the Sunshine Development Tour – East Africa Swing.
The series aims to offer a professional platform for golfers in the region to compete in high-level events aligned with Sunshine Tour standards.
In addition to Sunshine Development Tour points, players in the East Africa Swing events earn opportunities to participate in South Africa’s Big Easy Tour and accumulate Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) points. The expanded access is designed to help elevate local and regional talent on the global golfing stage.