KIBAKI THE GOLFER
While serving as vice-president under Kenya’s second president Daniel arap Moi, Kibaki would spare time for a round of golf even with a busy schedule
However, his golfing career ended abruptly when he was involved in a road accident on his way back to Nairobi from a campaign meeting in Machakos just before the 2002 General Election.
Although he recovered well and was able to walk well again, the ankle injury he had suffered did not allow him to get back to playing the game he loved most.
Other than playing golf, Kibaki supported golfing activities in the country. He sponsored a number of tournaments at Nyeri Golf Club, among them the annual Kibaki Trophy tournament which he started supporting in 1975.
The former president also supported golf events at the Muthaiga Golf Club and at Thika Sports Club. In addition to Nyeri Golf Club, he was a member of these two clubs.
However, he played most of his golf at Muthaiga.
As a golfer, Kibaki, preferred playing golf in jeans, a habit that almost put him in trouble with the leadership at Muthaiga Golf Club. His slow playing also became an issue with some of his playing partners.
As the first patron of Kenya Golf Union (KGU) in 1976, former Central Bank of Kenya Governor Duncan Ndegwa used Kibaki’s position as Minister for Finance and Planning to make sure that parcels of land on which golf clubs were built were protected from land grabbers.
He took over from Ndegwa as patron of KGU in the mid 80s. With support from J.R Njenga who was Commission of Lands at the time, he made sure that parcels of land on which the remaining golf clubs sat were protected.
Some of the local golf clubs that had been facing the danger of being grabbed include Nyali Golf and Country Club, the century-old Mombasa Golf Club, Nyeri Golf Club, Kiambu Golf Club, Kisii Sports Club, among others.
In 2016 Kibaki and other golfing personalities such as Ndegwa, the late Chris Kahara who became the first African president of KGU in 1978, talented golfer John Mucheru, and the late Arthur Tannahill who became the first KGU president in 1928, were inducted into the KGU Hall of Fame for their contribution to the game. Tannahill founded the 97-year-old Tannahill Shield, an annual amateur tournament played at Royal Nairobi Golf Club
