Esther Henseleit leads strong field for 2023 Magical Kenya Ladies Open set for Vipingo
Two-time Magical Kenya Ladies Open winner Esther Henseleit of the Hamburger Golf club, Germany, will be looking to make it three wins in a row as she leads a strong field of 96 players, confirmed for the 2023 edition at the PGA Baobab Course at Vipingo Ridge between February 2 and 5.
The 24-year-old German will be joined by Marta Sanz Barrio of Spain, Linnea Strom of Sweden and Sophie Hausmann of Germany, who finished in the top five positions last year.
Defending champion Esther Henseleit spoke of her return: “I’m looking forward to returning to Kenya and defending my title. It’s a special place for me because it’s where I won my first professional tournament and I’ve always found there’s a great atmosphere with many friendly faces. A great way to start the season!”
The Magical Kenya Ladies Open will have a prize fund of €300,000, and will be the first in a series of 39 events on the Ladies European Tour 2023 calendar – the most fixtures ever held on the Tour. Spectators will be encouraged to attend the four-day event and cheer on the professional players.
The field will also feature five Kenyan golfers, led by Naomi Wafula and Mercy Nyanchama who will be playing in their third tournament, Nancy Wairimu will be making her second appearance at Vipingo with Chanelle Wangari and Jacqueline Walter making their debuts.
The action is set to kick off on Wednesday February 1 with a Pro-Am tournament, before the field of 96 takes on the Vipingo Ridge course over four rounds, to crown the winner on Sunday February 5.
Spectators can purchase tickets to the four-day tournament through the online platform www.ticketsasa.com which are retailing for Sh 500 per day.
Meanwhile, Spain’s Jon Rahm held off rookie Davis Thompson to win The American Express, his second PGA Tour title of the year.
Rahm and Thompson, 23, were tied with three holes to play but the European Ryder Cup player made a birdie and two pars to claim a one-stroke victory.
The 28-year-old finished with a four-under-par 68 as American Thompson shot a closing 69 at La Quinta, California.
Rahm now has four victories in his last six starts and has moved up to third in the world ranking.
