WINDHOEK – The Namibia Breweries Limited (NBL) recently revealed the trophy and jacket of the upcoming Windhoek Lager Africa Jacket Golf Championship.
NBL Manager: Sponsorships, Events and Brand, Ian Stevenson, said that the championship, which was launched a mere month ago in Windhoek, had taken off in leaps and bounds. After the launch in Windhoek more successful launches took place in Zimbabwe and Botswana with Zambia and South Africa to follow shortly.
Stevenson added: “To date four tournaments have already been played and the response from golfers and administrators across the region has been overwhelming. There is keen competition to see who will eventually be representing their respective countries in the battle to become the first Windhoek Lager Africa Jacket Golf Champion in 2014.”
At the first launch in Windhoek a prototype of the trophy had been shown, but on December 4 the real one was revealed. Working together with Gys Cilliers and Bertus Botha, NBL was proud to reveal a magnificent and unique trophy. Said Stevenson: “The trophy had to be different, unique and portray elements of Africa, golf and the brand.”
He laughingly added that NBL made things a bit more intricate and advised that the trophy – like Windhoek Lager – had to be authentic, truly Namibian and just to “keep it real” only Namibian raw materials would be used, making it a truly Namibian work of art.
The trophy now displays the African continent in copper – a rich Namibian and African metal – rough and heavy as Africa is a tough continent. It is made up of two layers of 16mm solid copper with the golf ball and tee also being cut out from copper. The base is also solid and Namibian teak was the obvious choice. Stevenson added: “This trophy will stand proud next to our great Windhoek Lager beer for many years to come and will be handed over to worthy winners of the Windhoek Lager Africa Jacket Golf Championship. As I have said, this is a floating trophy but trust me, it does not float and weighs in at a healthy 52kg.”
Stevenson also addressed the subject of the jacket and said: “I suppose that many of you are curious as to why we have called this tournament the Windhoek Lager Africa Jacket Championship? Windhoek Lager and golf are both steeped in history and have deep roots in tradition and ethos. We therefore decided that the overall winner of this championship will not only receive this magnificent trophy, but also be awarded the Windhoek Lager Jacket.”
The jacket was symbolically awarded to the 20-year-old Graeme Fransman, a member of the Namibia national golf team and budding contestant for the jacket in the competition.
By Staff Reporter