THE Assuria General Insurance Inaugural 3-Hole Golf tournament came to a conclusion yesterday after being forced into an extra day’s play due to inclement weather and an extraordinary response by more than 200 persons who participated over the five days of activities.

The event featured lots of trophies, Hole-in-One and Nearest to Pin prizes provided by sponsors Assuria, Copa Airlines and Guyana Telephone and Telegraph (GTT).
The inaugural tournament ended with Richard Hanif taking top place in the Men’s professional category ahead of Captain Chen Deo.
Dr Joaan Deo won the women’s professional category ahead of 9-time women’s champion, Christine Sukhram.

The men’s amateur division was won by Laurent Pardigon with second place going to Colin France while the Women’s Amateur division was highly competitive and resulted in a first place tie between Charlise Adams and Serah Singh. There was also a strong showing from Aleiya Mohammed and Fiona Sooklall.
In the Under-21 category, first place was won by Ahesh Shivraj with second place going to Mohan Siwacharan. In the Under-12 division, Cummings emerged as the winner amidst stiff competition from the other junior players.

During the awards ceremony, General Manager of Assuria, Yogindra Arjune, thanked the Golf Association and Nexgen Golf Academy for the role they’re playing in opening the sport to so many new players.
“I also want to again thank past Prime Minister Sam Hinds for not only opening the tournament but actually participating and performing well. My special thanks to Aleem Hussain for a wonderful job as always in delivering a fantastic event with so many new players.”

Arjune went on to say that the game is now at a whole new level under the guidance of Hussain who has taken a different approach to teaching. He also mentioned, “it’s now fun to play golf as demonstrated by the hundreds of women and children who are now involved.”
Former Prime Minister, Hinds, was presented with a token of appreciation from the tournament organisers. “I have discovered a new passion, walking with a purpose, and my good friend Aleem is responsible for making me enjoy the game in a manner that is fun!”

Meanwhile, Hussain reiterated that golf will soon rival the other top recognised sports in Guyana and that the 3-Hole model and mini golf course design will revolutionise the game.
This is like the 20/20 cricket version of golf and we are creating a style of the game that suits our climate, people and their desire for a quick, fun result.”

With the Nexgen Golf Academy located in the heart of the city and a challenging course under construction on the West Coast, along with 42 schools already participating in the sport, it is almost certain that more people will be attracted to the game and the goal of 5 000 new players in a single year may be realised and even surpassed.