Daily Times

KARACHI: The final leg of arrangements for the successful hosting of the UMA-CNS Open Golf Championship – Pakistan’s first Asian Tour event in 11 years – has received the thumbs up from the Asian body. In a recent visit to the Karachi Golf Club – the venue of the prestigious $300,000 tournament to be played from October 11-14 – a three-man Asian Tour team expressed its satisfaction on the arrangements being made by the event’s organisers. The Asian Tour officials inspected the sprawling 27-hole KGC course and gave it the green signal to host the UMA-CNS Open which will feature Asian stars alongside top Pakistani professionals. The Asian Tour officials met with top KGC and Pakistan Navy officials as well as Sohail Shams, CEO of United Marine Agencies (UMA) – the title sponsors of the UMA-CNS Open which will be one of the biggest sporting events in Pakistan’s history.

Rear Admiral Asif Khaliq, Commander Karachi and President KGC, is confident that the UMA-CNS Open will provide a boost to Pakistan golf. “Pakistan Navy is delighted that its premier golf event will be an Asian Tour tournament featuring international stars. The UMA-CNS Open Asian Tour tournament will be the highlight of our national golf calendar. This will herald the return of international golf to Pakistan after a gap of 11 years. The tournament should provide a boost to Pakistan golf. The UMA-CNS Open will provide us with a unique opportunity to showcase Pakistan positively and show the world that we are a sports-loving nation and are ready to host international sporting action again. We are lucky to have United Marine Agencies backing the CNS Open. This is the tenth year of our association with the UMA, who will once again be the title sponsors of the CNS Open. All the stakeholders of the UMA-CNS Open will leave no stone unturned in our efforts to make the tournament a resounding success,” the KGC President said.

The UMA, one of Pakistan’s top five shipping agencies, provides shipping, cargo and marine-related services in the country as well as the region. The company has always been deeply involved in sports. “It gives us great honour and pleasure to be the title sponsor of the CNS Open Golf Championship. We aim to sensitise the society, especially the business community, about the benefits of sports and we are thrilled to be able to do it via one of Pakistan’s most important golf tournaments,” commented Sohail Shams, CEO UMA. “We complete a decade of our association with the CNS Open this year and what better way to celebrate it than by giving Pakistan an Asian Tour tournament,” he added.

Published in Daily Times, September 16^th 2018.