By PHILLIP ORWA
Hope player Francis Epe capitalised on home advantage to win the Sunshine Development Tour – West Africa Qualifying School, after posting 7-under par 209 after three rounds at Lakowe Lakes Golf Estate in Lagos, Nigeria.
Epe, who entered the final round at the top of the leaderboard, sealed the victory after sinking 5-under par 67, underlining his consistency across the week to secure a dominant win on home soil.
Epe said “I’m really pleased with how I played this week. I stayed patient, trusted my game, and tried to keep things simple out there. Coming into the final round with the lead, the focus was just to stay composed and take it one shot at a time. To finish the way I did is very satisfying.
This means a lot, especially playing at home, and it gives me a lot of confidence going into the Tour season.”
Epe finished a remarkable nine shots clear of his closest challengers, with Ghana’s Barry Dzadey, Nigeria’s Bako Kamalu and Godwin Okoko sharing second place on 2-over par 218.
A further tie for fifth place on 3-over par 219 included Nigeria’s Andrew Odoh and Solomon Ideriah, rounding off a competitive leaderboard featuring players from across the region.
David Kihara, Tournament Director of the Sunshine Development Tour – East Africa Swing, commended the level of competition and highlighted the significance of the Tour.
“The level of competition we’ve seen this week has been very encouraging. There is clear depth of talent across this region, and platforms like this are exactly what is needed to help that talent grow.
The Sunshine Development Tour is about creating opportunity and giving players a structured, merit-based pathway to compete, earn world ranking points, and progress to the next level. Expanding into West Africa is an important step in building a truly continental platform for African golf.” said Kihara
The West Africa Qualifying School follows the successful East Africa edition held in Kenya, where Ali Wasim emerged winner.
With both regional qualifiers now complete, attention turns to the start of the Sunshine Development Tour season, with the first leg set to tee off this Sunday, 19th April, where players will compete for Order of Merit honours, Official World Golf Ranking points, and progression to the Sunshine Tour.
