Runsewe vows to make golf Nigeria’s top sport
President of the Nigeria Golf Federation (NGF), Chief Olusegun Runsewe, has reaffirmed his commitment to positioning golf as one of Nigeria’s leading sports, revealing that arrangements are underway to sponsor young talents for international golf training programmes. Runsewe made this known during the unveiling of golf equipment donated by the prestigious Royal and Ancient Golf […]
The Director-General of National Council for Arts and Culture (NCAC), Otunba Olusegun Runsewe.
President of the Nigeria Golf Federation (NGF), Chief Olusegun Runsewe, has reaffirmed his commitment to positioning golf as one of Nigeria’s leading sports, revealing that arrangements are underway to sponsor young talents for international golf training programmes.
Runsewe made this known during the unveiling of golf equipment donated by the prestigious Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews (R&A), Scotland.
He said part of his broader vision is to build a new economic ecosystem around golf in Nigeria, noting that Africa is expected to see over $4 billion in golf-related activity by 2025.
“As of today, there is no single golfer representing Nigeria in the Masters Open in Augusta,” Runsewe said.
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“But I promise you that from what we have started here today, in the next two years, you will start to hear about the Okafors, the Chidinmas, the Abubakars, the Olademejis, just like you hear in international football.”
Runsewe also laid out his long-term strategy to grow the sport, with a strong focus on talent discovery and increasing female participation in golf.
“The entire Europe has one of the best youth golf development programmes in the history of the world,” he noted.
“As a matter of fact, over 23 per cent of golfers in the U.S. now are ladies and young children.
Our projection is to take ladies and youth participation in golf to at least 15 per cent in Nigeria. Our goal is not just to grow the sport locally, but to also nurture champions who can compete on the global stage,” he said.
Other NGF board members and stakeholders present at the event echoed Runsewe’s sentiments and thanked the R&A for their support, emphasizing the importance of grassroots development in growing golf across the nation.