Njoroge Kibugu surged to the top of the leaderboard with a stellar second-round performance at the Sunshine Tour East Africa Swing Qualifying School, held at the Great Rift Valley Lodge and Golf Resort.
Representing Windsor Golf Hotel and Country Club, Njoroge fired an impressive three-under-par 68, climbing five places to claim the top spot with a two-round total of 139 (-3).
On a challenging day as players fought to make the cut, Njoroge, who started the day tied for fifth at even par, played steadily through the front nine, holding par for the first eight holes before birdieing the par-4 ninth.
He maintained his composure on the back nine, carding pars on the first three holes while the field around him struggled.
Njoroge then recorded back-to-back birdies at the par-4 13th and par-5 14th holes—both of which he had bogeyed in the first round—before navigating safely through the tricky last three holes, which proved costly for many players.
“I can’t complain about today’s round. I hit the ball the way I wanted and placed it where I needed to. Overall, I’m proud of how I played—it shows my consistency. I hit plenty of fairways and enough greens to make enough pars,” said Njoroge.
“I gave myself chances to make birdies on the front nine, but they just didn’t drop. I’m quite surprised I got more birdies on the back nine. My focus is to stay consistent in the next rounds, stick to my game plan, and trust the process. I’ve been here before, I know what I need to do, and hopefully, I’ll finish on top.”
Lejirma Drops to Second
Overnight leader John Lejirma (Royal Nairobi Golf Club) struggled in Round 2, posting a one-over-par 72 to slip to second place at 140 (-2).
Lejirma ran into trouble on the back nine, carding bogeys at the par-4 10th, par-3 15th, par-5 17th, and par-4 18th.
“Coming into today, my goal was to maintain my momentum. Unfortunately, I ran into some trouble on the back nine, especially on 17 and 18. The front nine went well, but I just couldn’t keep it together,” he said.
“I’m heading into tomorrow with my chin up. My focus will be on sticking to my game plan, staying present, and making smart decisions on the course.”
Snow Stays in Contention
Greg Snow (Muthaiga Golf Club) remains in contention, finishing the day in third at 141 (-1) after a steady round of 72.
Snow had a difficult start, with back-to-back bogeys on the first and second holes and another on the fifth.
A rally on the back nine was undone by a fourth bogey at the 18th, leaving him with a one-over-par round.
“I had a very slow start,” Snow admitted. “I bogeyed the first two holes and just couldn’t get anything going. It’s frustrating, but I’m still in the tournament. My goal now is to keep things steady over the next two days.”
“You have to stay patient on this course because it can bite you. I gave myself opportunities, but I couldn’t capitalize. Hopefully, I can do better in the coming rounds. There’s a lot of golf left. I just need to play a little better and give myself more chances.”
Other Notable Performances
Mike Kisia (Kenya Railway Golf Club) moved up the leaderboard with a strong round of 70, placing fourth at 142 (Par).
Edwin Mudanyi (Karen Country Club) completes the top five at 143 (+1).
It was a round to forget for first-round runner-up Isaiah Otuke, who posted an eight-over-par 79, dropping 14 places to 16th on the leaderboard with an overall score of 148 (+6).
Among the biggest movers, Golf Park’s Galgalo Abraham climbed 15 places to ninth after carding a one-under-par 70.
He is tied with Dismas Indiza, who moved up eight places, and Rwanda’s Celestin Nsanzuwera, who jumped nine places to sixth.
A total of 54 golfers made the cut, set at 18-over-par, to advance to rounds three and four.
The list includes 13 amateurs, among them Kellie Gachanga and Joyce Wanjiru.
The remaining 54 players will now compete for a share of the KSh1 million prize purse and, more importantly, the top 10 spots that will earn them a place in the Sunshine Tour Final Stage Qualifier, set for April 8–11, 2025, in Johannesburg, South Africa.
Round 3 Pairings
Round three action tees off at 7:30am, with Anthony Macharia and Irungu starting from the 10th tee, while Alfred Nandwa, William Odek, and Sammy Mulama get the round underway from the first tee.
The leading group of Greg Snow, John Lejirma, and Njoroge Kibugu will tee off at 8:42am from the first tee.