Fiji’s newest annual golf tournament organised by Lautoka Golf Club was a big hit on the weekend.
It recorded a big turnout with one of Fiji’s best golfers, Sam Lee winning the one-day event which was to help the family of the late The Fiji Times journalist, Maciu malo.
Lee won the professional division during the Long Run-sponsored Maciu Malo Memorial Trophy Championship at the Lautoka Golf Club course on Saturday.
He carded an impressive score of five under par 64 to claim the $500 prizemoney.
Resident professional Roneel Prakash was second with 66 while Zoheer Ahmed finished third with a gross score of 68.
Veteran golfer and sponsor Ram Reddy claimed the amateur category defeating national squad member Asish Kumar after a three-hole playoff.
Adanda Madhvan took out the overall net prize with a score of 63. Malo died last year.
The tournament which will now become an annual event attracted more than 50 golfers.
The Fiji Times editor Fred Wesley said Malo was every passionate about his job.
“In Fiji the work of a journalist is often not understood,” Wesley said.
However, we have a 150 year history and apart from the many obstacles that we face, we strive to continue our work in informing our people.
“It is a daily challenge and it is something that I’m very proud to say that Maciu understood.
“He was one of our top writers and one of the things that differentiated him from other writers was the fact that he understood people. Maciu was a people’s person and made it his business to cover various sports, not just rugby. Maciu was one of our senior reporters who used to travel around the globe in the World Rugby Sevens Series, but when he came back he would still put the spotlight on other sports such as golf, bowling and snooker.
“So the tournament in his name was a very humbling experience for me. It was a very humbling moment and I’m sure the family will want to acknowledge what the organisers and players have all done. “From The Fiji Times, we thank all those people who supported this event remembering someone who was a very important part of our company,” Wesley said.
