SA defends All Africa Challenge Trophy in Abuja, Nigeria

Three top South African golfers, Tiffany Avern-Taplin, Henriëtte Frylinck and Lumien Orton, will represent South Africa at the All African Challenge Trophy (AACT) which celebrates its 10th anniversary this week in Abuja, Nigeria. South Africa won the previous championship when it was played in Cairo in 2008.

The team arrived in Abuja today and will practice tomorrow and Monday and play the championship from Tuesday 9 to Thursday 11 November. The three players and their Manager Erica Lefson will also participate in the Ladies Amateur Open Championship of Nigeria on Saturday 13 and Sunday 14 November and return home the following day.

This top African tournament is played every other year and rotates around the four geographical regions of the continent. South Africa will be presenting a bid to host the next event when it is due to played in the Southern Region in 2012.

The National teams of three play 54 holes of stroke play over three days, counting the scores of the best two players in each round to make the total. The Team competition has always been naturally dominated by South Africa (only once being overcome by Egypt), who has more golf clubs than the rest of Africa countries have players. However, the Individual Champion has come from many different countries over the years. Since 2006, there has also been a Junior Champion.

The AACT has been responsible for encouraging and helping many of the continent’s countries to set up sound golfing structures and affiliating them to the Ladies’ Golf Union in Great Britain. It has helped with the financing of golf coaching among lady golfers and more recently junior girls aided by the R&A who have since 1998 been great supporters of the AACT and its ambitions for lady golfers on the African Continent.

The AACT’s own structure is completely democratic and aided by the Regional Trustees whose responsibility it is to ensure that each AACT tournament takes place, in the next region by rotation and at the correct time.

Nigeria celebrates her own 50th year of Independence this year and the AACT’s 10th anniversary is expected to be special in full Nigerian tradition.

AACT HOSTS & PAST WINNERS

Zimbabwe 1992: Team Event: South Africa, Individual: Gillian Tebbutt (South Africa).

Kenya 1994: Team Event: South Africa, Individual: Wendy Warrington (South Africa).

Nigeria 1996: Team Event: South Africa, Individual: Michelle Burmester (Zimbabwe).

South Africa 1998: Team Event: South Africa, Individual: Joanne Norton (South Africa).

Uganda 2000: Team Event: South Africa, Individual: Natu Soro (Cote D’lvoire) play off from Nora Mbabazi (Uganda).

Cote D’lvoire 2002: Team Event: South Africa, Individual: Rose Naliaka (Kenya).

Namibia 2004: Team Event: South Africa, Individual: Lumien Lausberg (South Africa).

Zambia 2006: Team Event: Egypt, Individual: Naella El Attar (Egypt).

Junior Champion: Melissa Nawa (Zambia).

Egypt 2008: Team Event: South Africa, Individual: Monique Smit

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