The Professional Golfers of Kenya (PGK) have made significant strides in growing professional golf locally. One of its major boosts came through sponsorship from NCBA Bank, a longtime supporter of golf and other sports in Kenya. Last Saturday at Limuru Golf Club, we had the opportunity to interview NCBA’s Nelly Wainaina and get more insights into the partnership.
Be my guest and let’s enjoy this very insightful interview.
Please introduce yourself and the NCBA’s PGK sponsorship.
My name is Nelly Wainaina – Group Director – Marketing, Communication and Citizenship at NCBA Bank.
We are here to witness our pros play at the PGK tour which is part of the investment we have made as NCBA, as part of developing professional golf in Kenya. Golf is the eighth biggest sport globally and when we look at the ecosystem in Kenya, we have gaps in pros because we have highly invested in juniors, amateurs and even our own golf series.
How does this sponsorship align with NCBA’s broader corporate social responsibility initiatives and its “Change The Story” platform?
Our golf sponsorship is largely entrenched into our sustainability platform ‘Change The Story’. We have made 15 commitments as NCBA to ensure that we are empowering communities, and golf is one of them. It’s not about just developing the players but also giving back to communities.
We are also looking at golf as an economic activity. If you look at the amateurs, most of them win about 1000 Euros every weekend and now the pros will also be earning money through the PGK Equator tour. We are seeing a lot of opportunities for us to expose the players to platforms to earn money and for them to also spend time with their families. If you look at the junior golf tournaments there are a lot of opportunities for families to engage on the course, from mums and dad caddies.
Beyond financial support, what other resources or expertise is NCBA contributing to the PGK Player Development Program?
The money we have invested in player development for PGK is not only for the tours. A lot of the gaps among the pro players are on how to develop and to become better golfers. Our big vision is to develop the next Tiger Woods from Kenya and to become a Tiger Woods you need to practice every day and to become fit mentally and physically. You also have to have great discipline and endurance.
So, the development program is not just the tours. We have players going to the gym every day and their games are being tracked. We have Computech which is a great partner on this sponsorship. Once we look at their progress and figure out where the gaps are, the tours will help to judge the improvement of their game.
It is a holistic program because we have coaches who not only train players on the field but also serve as mental coaches to ensure they are mentally prepared to play golf.
How does NCBA envision the PGK Equator Tour contributing to players ultimately qualifying for events like the Magical Kenya Open and the Olympics?
Our big dream is to take golf to the Olympics in 2028 and to do that our players have to have achieved world ranking. For them to achieve this they have to have played competitively and to also played with great players. The PGK Equator tour gives them an opportunity to play often and to play with great talent.
Right now, the talent is only Kenyan but as we progress, we’ll start seeing exposure with great players coming from Asia, Europe or South Africa, and we’ll also start seeing our players get exposed to global tournaments.
Once that happens, players are ready to play under pressure and can play bigger tournaments like Magical Kenya Open. We want to see Kenyans playing in PGA and all these big global tournaments and eventually we should see a few of them getting into the Olympics in 2028.
NCBA has a long history of supporting golf in Kenya, including the NCBA Golf Series. How does this partnership with PGK complement your existing golf initiatives?
The Golf Series is an internal series designed especially for our customers. It also supports the clubs, many of which are our clients, gives back to communities, and creates commercial opportunities for us.
Besides the Golf Series, we are working with the Junior Golf Foundation and are the main sponsors of both junior and amateur golf. When you look at the framework, we are investing from the moment people start playing golf as kids to when they become pros. We are completing the picture, and we believe it’s a really great opportunity to build and monetize talent.
What message would NCBA like to send to the golfing community and the general public about its commitment to the sport?
Sport is a great way of bringing people together and to drive national pride. NCBA is an iconic local brand doing many activities in the country and when as a brand we invest in talent, we are building national pride. We are proud to be part of this journey in which we have brought together different sponsors like Safaricom, Britam, Visa, and Diageo.
See also – Professional Golfers in Kenya Launch Equator Tour Program
When we think of the things we can contribute to as private sector to give a positive narrative for our country, why not? We are really excited to be investing in sports and we hope to make great impact globally, especially on the road to the Olympics 2028.
Here at Femmehub, we wish the players the very best in the Equator Tour and on the road further ahead. Here is to Olympics 2028!
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