The four-day 13th CNS Amateur Golf Championship 2019 will tee off today (Thursday) here at the Margalla Greens Golf Club.
Addressing a press conference, along with title sponsors here on Wednesday, Pakistan Navy Golf North President and Commander North Commodore Hamid Hussain said: “It will be the 13th edition of the mega championship, which is affiliated with the Pakistan Golf Federation (PGF). Total 140 national amateur golfers have sent their entries so far, while 30 ladies and a number of senior and junior players will also be seen in action. We are fortunate to have such a lush green golf club here for the golfers. The Dubai Trade Agency (DTA) is the title sponsor of the event, while Toyota is once again sponsoring a brand new corolla for the hole-in-one winner.”
He said: “The championship consists of four categories, which include amateurs over 54 holes from Nov 22 to 24 (amateurs with handicap of 12 and below will take part), seniors event over 36 holes (seniors over 55 years with handicap of 14 and below will take part), juniors category over 18 holes (juniors under the age of 16 with handicap of 24 and below will take part) and ladies category over 36 holes on Nov 23 (34 golfers with handicap of 30 and below will take part).
“In addition to the main categories, an invitational event will be played among the guests and sponsors over the 9 holes before the closing ceremony on Nov 24.
The concluding ceremony will be graced by Admiral Mohammad Asif Sandila as a chief guest. Navy has always promoted sports especially golf by organising events at major cities like Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad. We also hold professional categories in Karachi and Lahore. Weather is mainly clear for the next few days, while there is a slight chance of rain on Friday. But as you all know, golf can be played in rain as well,” he added.
When asked why the professional category is not included in the CNS Golf at Islamabad, despite the fact that it is a huge attraction for the top professional golfers from across the world, Hamid replied: “Well, the PGF allocates the events and issues golfing calendar. The amateur events are not easy ones, as top male and female golfers along with junior talent participate in the championships.
“We always distribute lucrative prizes to the golfers. Last year champion Adnan will defend his title among more than 200 golfers in the amateur category. The DTA has entered in a partnership with us for the first time, but we are hopeful that this will turn into a long-term partnership,” he said and added: “We will continue to sponsor other sports as well. The PGF is providing technical assistance to us, while Pakistan Navy is doing all other efforts and arrangements for the event.”
DTA’s Col Sohail said: “We have entered first time in Pakistan, as we deal in trade-in blue economy. We will definitely extend cooperation to other sports as well.”