122nd Sri Lanka Amateur Golf C’ship:

Strong challenge from foreign golfers

Richard DWIGHT

There will be reputed golfers, four each from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and three lady golfers from Malaysia all of them as amateurs, pitting their might against each other and as well with the Sri Lankan amateurs, for championship honours, when the 122nd Sri Lanka Amateur Golf Championship tees off from Wednesday, November 11 and conclude on Saturday November 14 in the pleasant cool environment of the Nuwara Eliya Golf Club (NEGC).

This prestigious annual championship, which is considered the second oldest next to the British Amateur open, does enjoy the patronage of the NEGC and is being conducted by the Sri Lanka Golf Union.

The SLGU is the governing body for golf in Sri Lanka and is affiliated to the R and A in the UK, which is recognised as the controlling body of golf for 128 affiliated unions or federations round the world that encompasses about 26 million golfers worldwide.

Apart from the golfers from abroad, Sri Lanka will field as A and B team and there will be around 50 to 60 players participating besides the official teams.

This year’s contest as in he past two years will proceed on the stroke play format and not on the match play as accustomed to in earlier years. This deviation in resorted to with the sole purpose of saving on time and days, especially when competition of this nature involves foreign participation. Most heartening it is, that this golf nationals has earned a reputation through the years to be attractive enough to draw golfers from abroad, mostly from the sub continent.

It’s a pity that last year’s champion Mithun Perera will not be here to defend his title and much will depend on K. Prabakaran and Tissa Chandradasa doing well for Sri Lanka. The foreigners who did well last year were the Pakistani, M. Hali Hai, India’s A. Jegan and Shahib from Bangladesh.

Those who did well in the ladies championship were S. Ghei, M. Amn and Rasika from India, while Niloo Jayatilleke and Suwen Selvaratnam stood out for Sri Lanka.