The second edition of the e-Tranzact Golf Classic has been scheduled for May 15 to 17 at the IBB International Golf and Country Club, Abuja, with competitors jostling for the N20 million on offer.
Organisers said the event, which debuted on the Professional Golf Development (PGD) Tour last year, aims to deepen its core objective of helping to discover and promote golf talent in Nigeria.
Managing Director and CEO of e-Tranzact, Niyi Toluwalope, said the sponsor has been on the path of pioneering projects, providing financial technology platforms for businesses to succeed, stressing that the e-Tranzact golf classic is an offshoot of this vision.
“We are very supportive of the design and the management objectives of the Professional Golf Development Tour and that is why we launched the classic on it last year. This year, we plan to introduce some changes around the event by staging it at the IBB course in Abuja for the flavour that the course brings to golf events,” Toluwalope said.
“The other aspect is to appeal to a broader audience across Africa who have been showing interest since the classic was first held last year, in addition to the fact that the prize money has been doubled,” he also said.
Meanwhile, the PGD Tour Commissioner, Femi Olagbenro, has said the innovation being introduced by the sponsor is in agreement with the Tour’s objectives.
“e-Tranzact brings a pioneering spirit to the Tour and the golf community at large and I can confirm that the additions are well received. Registrations have been on the high and entries are swelling,” Olagbenro said.
“Entries are also expected from Cameroun, Togo, Cote d’Ivoire other west and central African countries, an indication that the PGD Tour has made Nigeria a hub for professional golfers and the e-Tranzact Golf Classic is one of the key events on the Tour,” he added.
The 2024 event is supported by eTranzact’s top corporate and productivity solutions, SwitchIT and PayOutlet, as well as its payment gateway, Credo.
The classic’s maiden edition at the Lakowe Lakes Golf Course in Lagos was won by Nigeria’s No 1, Francis Epe, who leads the PGD Tour’s 2024 ranking with a marginal point difference from Olapade Sunday, whose win in the latest event might upstage the ranking order. There are also potential threats from Okoko Godwin, Kamalu Bako, Inalegwo George, Elisha Markus and Kabiru Habu Mohammed on the home front, while other top West African players like Ghana’s trio of Barry Yaw, Augustine Manasseh and Vincent Torgah are also expected to make a mark in Abuja.