Captains of the 13 teams pose with the Yale Challenge Trophy at the Samarahan Country Club recently.
KUCHING: Thirteen teams will vie for the Yale Challenge Trophy at the 6th Samarahan Country Club (SCC) Annual Team Matchplay Championship at SCC from Saturday (April 11) to May 10.
This is three teams less when compared to a maximum of teams which played at last year’s edition.
According to the organising committee, defending champions HKH Red will not be playing this year as they are preparing for the Sarawak Amateur Open held in Bintulu this weekend.
The tight schedule has also affected some members of other teams who have committed to other golf competitions in and outside the state.
“The organising committee is pleased with the support given by golfers in Kuching and we are all aware that getting a team of 12 players for a month-long tournament is not an easy task,” said SCC captain Terence Chai who is also tournament chairman.
Due to its popularity, the SCC Team Matchplay – inaugurated in 2010 – has seen Team Challenger, Dayang Salhah Enterprise, Team Boss and HKH Red winning the EOX Challenge Trophy in 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2014 while Tee Off won the Sunny Feel Challenge Trophy in 2013.
This year’s tournament will see YALE S.K.L Quantum Enterprise signing up as the main sponsor with SCC for the next five years and the introduction of a brand new Sterling Silver Trophy from the United Kingdom named as the Yale Challenge Trophy.
In addition, the prize money has been increased to RM10,000 cash voucher for the champions, RM8,000 cash voucher for first runners-up and RM5,000 cash voucher for the third place.
The opener this weekend will see eight matches drawn in the first round including three byes for Birdie, Boss and Kaban 15.
This year’s KGS Team Matchplay Championship finalists Mafia Hukum will open their campaign against Harmoni and HGA will face DJango Official, Avengers versus Cash while Merapi will take on Warriors.