Guardian

AS part of activities to mark this year’s Children’s Day celebrations, Kids Golf International (KGI), is putting in place a Children’s Day Classics at the Lakowe Lakes Golf and Country Estate, Lagos.

The event will see kids aged five to 17 take to the course to try their sublime skills on the Lakowe course.

The organisation, which is also spearheading a Collegiate Golf Programme in the country, is this time teaming up with Stanbic IBTC Bank Plc to stage the event.

According to organisers, this is the first in the series of regional tourneys that will be held all over the country this year, as well as, next.

In a release, the organisation, which maintained that details of the tourney would be published on its website www.kidsgolfinternational.org, added that “KGI would also implement an Order of Merit starting from this tourney and all through the season as part of qualifying requirements for the 2014 European and World Championships that the organisation (KGI) is affiliated to.

“At present KGI is sending an 11-member team (boys and girls) between the ages of eight and 17 to the US Kids European Championships starting in Gullane, Scotland on Monday, May 27,” the statement added.

Commenting on the bank’s involvement in the classics, Director of KGI Academy, Olori Susan Thompson described Stanbic IBTC as a bank with products to support the complete education of children and one committed to the development and growth in this sector as evidenced by their support for the event.

She added that KGI was doing something quite innovative in the country “and we are prepared for the long term to see KGI produce a world champion with our joint efforts.

KGI recently set the tone for collegiate golf in the country when it took what looked like the first practical step towards taking golf to schools.

The first in a series of golf clinics/skills challenge was aimed at providing a sustainable platform for grassroots golf development in schools.

Shools that signed up for the maiden programme were Day Waterman College, Greensprings School, Corona School, Lagos Preparatory School, Chrisland Schools, French International School and Standard Bearers School.

KGI as an institution is dedicated to developing the game of golf in Nigeria and West Africa through tournaments and training programmes for children aged 5-18years old ranking points on offer.