Visitor Mapwanya flew under the radar to deliver a sucker punch in the final round as curtains came down on the Safari Tour 2022/23 season at Muthaiga Golf Club.
Mapwanya overcame a three shot deficit after carding three under par 68 to defeat 54-holes leader Greg Snow, Mutahi Kibugu and Jastas Madoya as the Kenyans finished one shot behind on two under 282 gross score in a hotly contested final round.
Playing in the third last group, Mapwanya capitalized on Snow’s slip on the front nine as he seized the leadership at the interval on one under par. Oblivious of the proceedings in the groups behind him, the Zimbabwean picked up a shot on no.4 as Snow endured a bad round dropping four shots on the front nine to drop to one over par for the day.
Mapwanya never looked back as a brace of birdies on no. 10 and 13 saw him increase the gap at the top by one with Kibugu in hot pursuit. The proceedings morphed into a see-saw battle as Jastas Madoya elbowed himself into contention with back-to-back birdies on no 10, 11 and 13 but soon dropped off the pace with a bogey on the 16th.
Mapwanya sunk a birdie on no.18 to head to the clubhouse with a slim lead and waited pensively for the final groups to finish. In the meantime, players in the last two flights were not relenting. Snow had recovered well with two birdies on no. 10 and 14 while Kibugu was also still in the mix after birdieing no. 16 extending the suspense to the final hole.
With tension palpable, Kibugu needed a birdie while Snow had to eagle no.18 to match Mapwanya’s score and extend the game to a playoff. It was not to be as Kibugu closed with a par as Snow picked up a birdie to hand the Zimbabwean his first win on Tour this season. Madoya’s one under 70 round was enough for him to join his countrymen on the podium in a three-way tie in second position.
Following the conclusion of today’s proceedings, the Zimbabwean trio of Robson Chinhoi, Nyasha Muyambo and Visitor Mapwanya completed a near clean sweep over the locals, registering four wins- Uganda, Limuru, Sigona and Muthaiga- in the six Safari Tour 2022/23 calendar. The locals only triumphed at Vipingo (Nduva) and Karen (Njoroge).
LEADERBOARD DAY 3
PLAYER SCORE
V Mapwanya -3
G Snow -2
M Kibugu -2
J Madoya -2
D Nduva -1
R Gaita -1
J Sandhu +4
A Nsabimana +5
D Indiza +7
N Muyambo +7
S Njoroge +8
R Rugumayo +8
E Ooko +9
C J Wangai +9
M Kisia +10
P Sombreiro +10
A Galgalo +12
M Mediratta +12
S Opio +12
T Omuli +14
F Matilo +15
S Ngige +16
