By KPC Sports Reporter
Kakamega Sports Club professional Dismas Indiza surged into an early lead at the Absa Invitational after firing a five-under-par 66 in the opening round of the Sunshine Development Tour East Africa Swing at Thika Greens Golf Resort.
Indiza set the tone early with an eagle on the second hole, adding birdies on the fourth and sixth to complete a bogey-free front nine.
He maintained momentum on the back nine with further birdies on the 13th and 14th, dropping his only shot of the day on the 11th to finish atop the leaderboard.
“It was a good start for me today,” Indiza said after his round.
“The eagle early on really settled me and helped with confidence. I stayed patient, took the chances that came my way and managed my game well. There’s still a lot of golf to be played, so the focus is to keep the same approach.”
A three-way tie for second place at three-under-par saw Nyeri Golf Club’s Mutahi Kibugu, Limuru Country Club’s Taimur Malik and Uganda’s Willy Deus finish just two shots back.
Kibugu’s round included birdies on the first, fourth, 10th and 13th holes, with a lone bogey on the par-three 15th.
“My form is good and I’m playing really good golf at the moment,” he said.
“I carried confidence from last year into this season and now I just need to stick to my game plan and not shy away from winning.”
Malik carded four birdies against a single bogey, while Deus also posted a steady round despite challenging putting conditions.
“The greens were a bit bumpy, but we all played in the same conditions,” Deus said.
“I struck the ball really well today, which was important.”
Joint fifth on two-under-par were Muthaiga Golf Club’s Greg Snow, Zimbabwe’s Visitor Mapwanya and Mohit Mediratta.
A further group of four players — Nigeria’s Sunday Olapade, Royal Nairobi’s Njoroge Kibugu, Jacob Okello and David Wakhu — finished the day tied for eighth at one under par.
The Absa Invitational is offering a total prize purse of KSh 2 million, along with Official World Golf Ranking and World Amateur Golf Ranking points, as well as crucial Sunshine Development Tour Order of Merit points.
These are key in the race for promotion to the Sunshine Tour and qualification for the 2026 Magical Kenya Open.
Round two tees off on Thursday, January 15, with the first group scheduled to start at 7:30am at Thika Greens Golf Resort.
