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Overview |
| Situated at an
altitude of 6,600 feet and located on the northern highway just 20 minutes from Nairobi city centre,
Sigona Golf Club offers the visiting player a range of unique hole
challenges and lightening fast greens. The par is 72 for men over 6,597
yards and 73 for women over 5,934 yards. Club night is Wednesday.
Overall verdict: a superb round of golf if not one of the best in the
Nairobi area. |
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| Front Nine |
| The first four
holes on the outward nine are relatively short but require careful course
management. An accurate medium iron will usually find good fairway position
on the short 340-yard, par-4 first, hole. Tee shot accuracy from a daunting,
elevated tee box shot is also critical on the 382-yard, par-4 second. The
narrow opening to an otherwise generously wide fairway is flanked by dense
woodlands and tall trees. The second green has a vicious right-left slope.
Tee and pin positions will influence club selection for the 165-yard, par-3,
elevated third green which has two tiers. The hole management issues to be
addressed on the 523-yard, par-5 fourth hole are the dog-leg left from the
elevated tee box and a relatively narrow opening to the large green where
pin position can influence club selection for the approach shot. |
| Holes five, six, seven and
eight are the main challenges on Sigona's front nine. The par-3, 210-yard
fifth hole is as difficult as its index seven suggests, and the
bunker-guarded, breaking green is ultra-fast. An accurate second shot to the
sixth green is essential on this index 3, par-4 hole over 377 yards.
Sigona's most difficult hole is the 453-yard, dog-leg seventh. The tee shot
is uphill, often leaving a side-slope second shot. Smart golfers will plan
to reach the generously large two-tier green in three. The par-4 eighth over
409 yards is stroke index 5 and tee-shot through a narrow opening in the
trees is the main difficulty to be addressed. The challenging eighth green
has a high central hump. The tee and second shots on the par-5, 524-yard
ninth are helped by a generously wide fairway. As many golfers under hit
their approach shots to the elevated two-tier and very fast green, one club
extra may be needed. Enjoy the climb to the tenth tee box! |
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| Back
Nine |
|
The drive from the very elevated tenth tee
(see photo - right) has to be one of the most spectacular in Kenya. The
ideal position for a clear, second shot on this 581-yard, par-5, is
slightly left of the fairway. Most golfers select a pitching wedge for the
short 134-yard, par-3 eleventh where breeze can be factor in aim. Hole
twelve over 410 yards is a difficult index 2 with a high elevated green.
Smart golfers will aim for good green position in three shots. Another
difficult par-4 follows - the 419-yard, index 4 thirteenth has a
relatively narrow fairway with bunker trap, and is flanked by dense
woodlands. The green slopes into the centre from both sides. |
|
After avoiding the bunker hazards and
accounting for breeze on the 200-yard, par-3 fourteenth, the golfer faces
a steep and fast downhill slope on the green. The par-5, 477-yard
fifteenth is rated the easiest of Sigona's holes. For most golfers, the
main challenge is the uphill chip to a fast two-tier green. The fairway on
the par-4, 410-yard sixteenth is generously wide, but is flanked by dense
woodlands. Most golfers will need a medium iron to reach the green in two,
including avoiding the hill mound and bunker guarding the approach to this
two-tiered, sloping green. To avoid the maze of fairway bunkers on the
par-four, 371-yard seventeen hole, many golfers lay up with a medium-long
iron, leaving a short-iron approach to the elevated green with a vicious
down-slope. The ideal position for a clear approach shot to the eighteen
green on this 371-yard, par-4 is the flat on the right side of the
otherwise sloping fairway. Dense woodlands await the pull or slice. The
fast green has a noticeable slope. |
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