Africa-Press – Namibia. NAMIBIAN amateur golfers Bertus Damon and Hylton Villet made international headlines when they won the Windhoek Lager International Pairs World Finals at the Costa del Sol in Spain last weekend.
The Namibian pair came first with a total of 91 points on the betterball stableford format, beating the Kenyan pair of Kush and Chand Shah by a single point, while Joao Valentine and Pedro Mansilha of Portugal came third a further three points behind.
In the process, Damon rewrote the history books as he became the first golfer to win one of amateur golf’s most sought after titles for a second time, after his initial triumph with Joseph Martin in 2019.
This year’s competition followed a three-year break due to covid and featured teams from 35 countries, including South Africa, Zimbabwe, Uganda, Kenya, Nigeria and Namibia, as well as Australia, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Portugal, Spain and several other countries from Europe.
Damon and Villet qualified for the International Pairs Finals when they won the Windhoek Lager International Pairs final for Namibia earlier this year.
Damon was extremely proud to become the first golfer to win the International Pairs for a second time.
“I am very happy with our achievement and very happy that we could make Namibia proud. It was a very tough golf course, especially over the second round, but we stuck to our guns and when we finished on the 18th hole I was confident that we had done enough to secure the title,” he said.
Villet had high praise for the sponsors, Namibia Breweries, who through their brand Windhoek Lager made it possible for the Namibian and South African golfers to travel to Spain and compete in the world finals.
“It is an incredible opportunity that we have been given to travel overseas and represent Namibia. We were treated so well, met people from other countries and managed to make our countries proud. We can’t thank Windhoek Lager enough for their support and what they have done for us,” he said.
Another Namibian representative, Brenda Lens, also contributed to tournament’s archive when she carded a hole-in-one, the first in the history of the tournament, after acing the par-3 eighth hole.
Lens, who only became aware of her feat after being alerted by the TV crew, was ecstatic.
“It is my first hole-in-one ever and I have been playing golf for so many years, I just couldn’t believe it. Also to do it here while representing Namibia is just unbelievable,” she said.
Lens and her playing partner Zandra Kruger, finished third in the women’s category, behind two South African pairs, while another Namibian pair, Lydia Lumley and Julia Hart, came fourth.
Namibia also had another two pairs in the men’s championship final, with Andrew van Schalkwyk and Hein Lintvelt coming ninth and Lebeus Kangandjela and Edwin Kutara 12th out of 38 teams.
Danie Keulder of Namibia Breweries Limited congratulated the golfers on their achievements.
“Windhoek Lager is immensely proud of all the Namibian golfers after their performances at the World International Pairs tournament. It is fantastic to see the success of our amateur golfers at international level and as a brand we are extremely proud to be associated with amateur golf in Namibia and strive to grow this sport. Through this sponsorship we are able to add value to their lives and to create memorable experiences which they can carry with them for the rest of their lives. Windhoek Lager would also like to congratulate Africa Sports Management for doing a fantastic job on the organising and execution of the event,” he said.
The Namibian pair came first with a total of 91 points on the betterball stableford format, beating the Kenyan pair of Kush and Chand Shah by a single point, while Joao Valentine and Pedro Mansilha of Portugal came third a further three points behind.
In the process, Damon rewrote the history books as he became the first golfer to win one of amateur golf’s most sought after titles for a second time, after his initial triumph with Joseph Martin in 2019.
This year’s competition followed a three-year break due to covid and featured teams from 35 countries, including South Africa, Zimbabwe, Uganda, Kenya, Nigeria and Namibia, as well as Australia, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Portugal, Spain and several other countries from Europe.
Damon and Villet qualified for the International Pairs Finals when they won the Windhoek Lager International Pairs final for Namibia earlier this year.
Damon was extremely proud to become the first golfer to win the International Pairs for a second time.
“I am very happy with our achievement and very happy that we could make Namibia proud. It was a very tough golf course, especially over the second round, but we stuck to our guns and when we finished on the 18th hole I was confident that we had done enough to secure the title,” he said.
Villet had high praise for the sponsors, Namibia Breweries, who through their brand Windhoek Lager made it possible for the Namibian and South African golfers to travel to Spain and compete in the world finals.
“It is an incredible opportunity that we have been given to travel overseas and represent Namibia. We were treated so well, met people from other countries and managed to make our countries proud. We can’t thank Windhoek Lager enough for their support and what they have done for us,” he said.
Another Namibian representative, Brenda Lens, also contributed to tournament’s archive when she carded a hole-in-one, the first in the history of the tournament, after acing the par-3 eighth hole.
Lens, who only became aware of her feat after being alerted by the TV crew, was ecstatic.
“It is my first hole-in-one ever and I have been playing golf for so many years, I just couldn’t believe it. Also to do it here while representing Namibia is just unbelievable,” she said.
Lens and her playing partner Zandra Kruger, finished third in the women’s category, behind two South African pairs, while another Namibian pair, Lydia Lumley and Julia Hart, came fourth.
Namibia also had another two pairs in the men’s championship final, with Andrew van Schalkwyk and Hein Lintvelt coming ninth and Lebeus Kangandjela and Edwin Kutara 12th out of 38 teams.
Danie Keulder of Namibia Breweries Limited congratulated the golfers on their achievements.
“Windhoek Lager is immensely proud of all the Namibian golfers after their performances at the World International Pairs tournament. It is fantastic to see the success of our amateur golfers at international level and as a brand we are extremely proud to be associated with amateur golf in Namibia and strive to grow this sport. Through this sponsorship we are able to add value to their lives and to create memorable experiences which they can carry with them for the rest of their lives. Windhoek Lager would also like to congratulate Africa Sports Management for doing a fantastic job on the organising and execution of the event,” he said.
For More News And Analysis About Namibia Follow Africa-Press
