Daily Times

LAHORE: The inaugural Rumanza Caddies Golf Tournament 2023 concluded at the world class Sir Nick Faldo designed Rumanza Golf Course, DHA Multan on Friday. This golf competition was contested over three rounds of intense golf rivalry among golf caddies who had converged to this superb golf playing arena of Pakistan after earning selection from the Provincial Golf Associations of Balochistan, Sindh, Khyber Paktunkhaw, Federal Area and Punjab based on their golfing expertise and performance in trials. Participating number of contenders added to 115 and the opportunity to engage in national level golf represented a unique chance to these spirited ones to crop up as professional golfers of recognized caliber.

In a golf tournament that was fought out with ardour and intensity, the winner and champion of the event turned out to be Shahid Khan of KP Golf Association (KP) and Peshawar Golf Club. His scores for the three rounds were 82, 74 and 77 and an aggregate of 233 and he emerged as the tournament champion fetching the first cash prize of Rs.381,000, perhaps the highest cash takings of his golf career. The runner-up was Ramzan Malik of Defence Raya who compiled an aggregate score of 236 and he lost to Shahid Khan by three strokes. His prize money earning was Rs.250,000. As regards the flow of play, Shahid Khan and Ramzan Malik exhibited an assortment of commendatory shot-making. And as things appear, one can expect them to join the leading ranks of good professional players in a year from now.

Besides Shahid Khan and Ramzan Malik, an outstanding one who looked competent enough was M Sultan of Mangla Golf Course. With an aggregate score of 237, he secured the third position and a cash prize of Rs 162,000. Other notable achievers were M Hanif (Royal Palm) 238, Abdul Majeed (Margalla Greens) 241, Zafar Iqbal (Gymkhana) 241, Adil Bashir (Sialkot) 243, Qaiser Nadeem (Rumanza)243, Shahzad Ali (Rumanza) 243 and M Yaseen (Rumanza) 244. And these future hopes admitted that they feel recognized and were contended with their performance earnings and considered themselves fortunate for competing at the Nick Faldo designed par 72 golf course. Besides these ten position holders, thirty others won cash prizes.

The occasion was a significant one for the caddies ranks as it opened a window of opportunity for them and helped them to get lauded. At the conclusion of the tournament, Brig Fayyaz Ahmed Khan Sial, Secretary of Rumanza Golf Club, was present personally to honour these participating caddies in a prize distribution ceremony attended by Salman Abbasi, chief referee, Sam Calyton, general manager, and participating players. And while the winners earned good money, he presented souvenirs to each participant as a token of gratitude to these deserving ones who serve golf so painstakingly.