Over 156 local and international professional golfers are expected to battle for N6.5 million in the maiden Kadinvest Pinnacle Communications Pro-Am Golf Tournament, billed to tee-off today at Kaduna Golf Club.
Captain of the Kaduna Golf Club, Col. Ibrahim Biu told sports reporters in Kaduna that the Kadinvest Pinnacle Pro-Am Golf Tournament, the first professional-amateur golf tournament to be hosted at the Kaduna Golf Club in 20 years, will see professional golfers from Togo, Cameroon, Ghana, Sierra Leone, Liberia and Benin Republic join Nigerian professionals and 250 to 280 amateur golfers in participation.
Col. Biu, who said he was the club competition secretary in 1998 when it last hosted a pro-am competition, noted that with 470 golfers expected altogether at the club today, it has never been this big, with a competition prize money of N6.5 million for the professionals and N10 million in all for the amateurs.
“Since 1998, there was no sponsor for pro-am golf, Pinnacle came in to sponsor this tournament with N7 million for the professionals and over N10 million for the amateur section. Pinnacle Communications is sponsoring because of someone who is trustworthy like Governor el-Rufai. The course and club house is looking different, that is the work of Pinnacle Communications. We are very grateful to the Chairman of Pinnacle Communications.
“He was here in Kadinvest and assured the Governor that he would sponsor a tourney. Instead of an amateur tourney, he sponsored a pro-am, that would feature players from all over Africa. He has assisted the club, when we needed him. He sponsored Pinnacle tournament last year and he is sponsoring more. This hall has been named after him, Sir Lucky O. Omoluwa,” he said.
He explained that the tourney will also serve as sports tourism. “He promised to sponsor the competition to grow tourism in the state and they are fulfilling the promise. I don’t want to preempt the number of visitors coming in on daily basis, but it would be huge. We hope in the future, the continuation of this tournament would continue to attract tourists.”
Representative of Pinnacle Communications, Engr. Tony Webber, said that they are sponsoring the tournament to keep their promise, carry out their corporate social responsibility and give back to the society through golf.
“Last year we were here to sponsor a tournament and we promised to return. So, this is a promise kept. We are contributing out quota to sports tourism. Golf helps people to grow and Sir Lucky is conscious of what golf has given him and is poised to giving it back to society. Next week, Kaduna Golf Club would be lit up,” he said.
The club captain further stated that, “commissioning of the digital switchover is beneficial to the state because you can get information at your finger tips through the free to air decoders. You gain from that and Pinnacle gains from the sales of the setup boxes. In terms of leveraging, people will also get to know them better and how they operate including security gadgets sales which they do.”
