The Ladies European Tour (LET) has expressed their satisfaction with U.COM Event and Vipingo Ridge’s organisation of the inaugural 2019 Magical Kenya Ladies Open, saying the planning and execution of the event has lived up to expectation.
Speaking on the second day of the tournament, LET Tournament Director, Michael Wood, lauded the team’s ability to put together the event in the short time span, ensuring that all requirements were met to make the event a success.
“I have been very impressed from when I first came in. Naturally, it was going to be a busy project from the time the event was announced officially till where we are now; but I must say we have come a very long way in the very short time. Working here has been a real pleasure,” he said.
He added: “We have made a lot of progress through the hard work of everyone involved in the tournament. I am sure by the time we get to Sunday evening, we will crown a deserving winner.”
He said the entire LET team was excited on learning that a Tour event would be held in Kenya for the first time, adding that it provided an opportunity to interact and work in a new environment and with a new team:
“We were all very excited and optimistic in terms of seeing a different culture and working with different people from different backgrounds and I think it’s been a team effort; everyone you meet has been very enthusiastic,” he said.
Commenting on the suitability of the venue to host international events, Michael said Vipingo Ridge was a perfect fit as it provided convenience to both players, guests and tournament officials due to its ability to accommodate people on site.
“We have got every player staying on site so, from a logistics standpoint, it has been good to organise that with Vipingo who have been very accommodating to the players. In terms of inside the ropes, working with the local greenskeeper and our consultant agronomist, we have come a long way since the start of the year in terms of the golf course preparation and the playability of the course and the ladies have really enjoyed it. Hopefully the scores will reflect that with some outstanding golf. It is a fair and firm test but in terms of the pinnacle of women’s golf, it is an excellently presented golf course,” he said.
Commenting on the condition of the course, Roger Stillwell, consultant agronomist with the LET for the Magical Kenya Ladies Open said he was pleased with the progress that has been made to get it ready for the tournament, saying that a concerted effort has gone into ensuring that this is achieved.
“From the tee to the green, there is hardly a blade of grass out of place. The mixture of men and women (greenkeeping staff) on the course is a 50-50 ratio. Everyone has been pulling their weight to ensure a streamlined programme,” he said.
Speaking on the system they have in place to ensure the course is in top shape daily for the tournament, he said:
“The maintenance programme that we have put in place this year has been very intense and it has never been done before. The rough is mostly Crabgrass which is most erratic anyway. The fairways, greens, approaches and tees are all Bermuda grass with various cutting heights for the tournament. We are cutting three times a day and rolling in the morning as well. The fairways are all 10 millimetres, which is really good, they’re really good quality fairways, and we have worked very hard to get them on full grass cover and same with the greens.”
