EARLY morning game drives, boat cruises, scenic views, unforgettable sunsets and tiger fishing on Lake Kariba are some of the exciting activities that make the resort town of Kariba a special place of incredible beauty.
BY DANIEL NHAKANISO
In short, Kariba is a nature lover’s dream.
And, still waiting for his maiden win abroad as a professional, top Zimbabwe golfer Scott Vincent needed such a vacation to refresh ahead of the new season. Better still, Kariba is his favourite place in the world.
“I love coming back home whenever I can and going to my favourite place in the world, which is Kariba,” Vincent told The Sports Hub in an exclusive interview.
“I spent five days there and it was a good way to just get away from golf, spend time with the family and just relax. I love fishing and seeing wildlife and all the other outdoor activities, so it was just a perfect holiday for me. It’s been a really good time back home.”
Vincent, who is nicknamed Mhondoro (lion) by his local golf peers due to his exploits on the golf course, has been creating waves on the Asian Tour as he battles to keep alive the country’s reputation as a nation that provides the world with some of its finest golfers.
Last year the 26-year-old rising star enjoyed his best season on tour since joining the paid ranks in 2015 after claiming three runner-up finishes at the Indonesia Open, TAKE Solutions Masters and the Shinhan Donghae Open, earning himself over half a million United States dollars in prize money.
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“If you’d said to me at the beginning of the year, would you take this at the end of the season, I would have definitely said 100%. So looking back, it’s been a really good year,” Vincent told The Sports Hub in an exclusive interview last week.
“I had a lot of good finishes even though I’m still not quite finishing it off in some of the events, but it’s been a learning experience. I’m still young and have a lot of years in front of me and still have a lot to learn, so I think if I can keep looking at it in that respect I’m in a good place,” he said.
For the first time in his young career, Vincent played in a World Golf Championships (WGC) event after qualifying and making the cut in the WGC- HSBC Champions tournament in Shanghai, China, before teaming up with compatriot Ben Follet-Smith at the World Cup of Golf.
A maiden appearance at one of golf’s four Majors appears on the horizon but his immediate target is to not just qualify for big tournaments, but to compete for top honours.
“Playing in my first WGC event and making the CIMB, which is co-sanctioned by the PGA Tour, was the icing on the cake so there are a lot of good things that happened last year and there’s a lot to build on and also to improve.”
“Hopefully, we can get into those events again in 2019 and not just to be there but to compete, so there are still big things ahead and I have high expectations of myself, which is good. It keeps me on my toes and working hard towards the future,” Vincent said.
Vincent says having his American wife Kelsey Loupee as his caddie has been a major factor in his recent fine form.
The pair met during Vincent’s time at Virginia Tech, where the former was on a golf scholarship while Kelsey was part of the university’s soccer team.
Vincent said after tying the knot in October 2017, the couple decided that she would try caddying for him in some tournaments on the Asian Tour.
They enjoyed instant success in their first tournament together as Vincent finished third at the Indonesian Masters and the pair have travelled around the world for tournaments together ever since.
“It’s being so good having her with me and travelling with me, it’s just a relief, I don’t feel like I’m missing someone at home or I’m homesick or anything,” Vincent says.
He added: “She’s right there with me, we travel a lot together for tournaments, so from that side of things it’s been a huge blessing. She also does a lot of things for me so that I don’t have to do so many things during tournaments. She’s there for me watching how hard I work and supporting me, she’s sacrificing a lot to be there, so I’m very grateful for that.”
After a refreshing break back home during the off-season, Vincent will head into his first event of the 2019 Asian Tour season at the US$1 000 000 SMBC Singapore Open at Sentosa Golf Club on Thursday targeting a solid start to the season.
“It’s the first event of the year so after coming from a long break like this you never know how your game is going to be. I’m working on a few swing changes so expectations are not very high, but obviously if I can go and do well it sets up the year and frees me up to get status somewhere else or play a bit more in Japan. It just starts the year easier if you do well,” he said.
In addition to his regular commitments on the Asian Tour, Vincent will also play some tournaments on the lucrative Japanese Tour after earning his playing status towards the end of last year.
The Japanese Tour offers the third-highest annual prize fund out of the regular men’s professional tours after the PGA Tour and the European Tour and Vincent believes it could also be a pathway to the main tours.
“Obviously, getting the Japanese Tour card was great. I’ve loved playing over there in some of the co-sanctioned events on the Asian Tour. I think their golf courses and the way they run their events is just excellent and their prize money is also good. So all in all it’s just a well-run tour with a lot of world ranking points.
That is my main goal to get the world ranking lower so that I can jump across and play more in Europe atnd the States,” he said.
