BY SIFISO NHLABATSI
EZULWINI– His Majesty King Mswati III has set an ambitious target for the King’s Golf Cup, calling for the tournament’s prize purse to grow significantly in the coming years, with the eventual winner taking home a staggering E5 million.
His Majesty made the call during the King’s Golf Cup dinner at the Ezulwini Palazzo ICC on Friday night, where sponsors presented a combined E3.24 million towards the tournament.
The sponsorship represents an increase of E150 000 from the E3.09 million raised for the 2025 edition, demonstrating continued growth in corporate support for the prestigious tournament.
His Majesty said the organisers should already begin working towards increasing sponsorship to E4 million next year, as part of a broader ambition to position the King’s Cup among the most prestigious golf tournaments globally.
He said the tournament should not only be recognised in the region and on the African continent, but should eventually attract global attention.
The long-term vision includes substantially increasing the tournament’s prize purse to E10 million, with the champion potentially walking away with E5 million.
The call comes as the King’s Cup continues to strengthen its position on the professional golfing calendar through its partnership with the Big Easy Tour (BET), a development tour within the Sunshine Tour family.
For the 2026 edition, the professional prize purse stands at E700 000, which His Majesty noted is double the highest prize money offered per event on the Big Easy Tour’s championship.
In addition to the professional prize money, the tournament has introduced incentives specifically aimed at rewarding high-performing EmaSwati golfers.
The top three EmaSwati finishers will share a bonus pool, with E100 000 going to first place, E75 000 to second place and E50 000 to third place. The awards amount to E225 000 and will be determined on performance.
The King also highlighted the King’s Cup Pre-Qualifier, where local amateur golfers competed for places in the main tournament. He said E185 000 was made available for the three-day competition, making it one of the most lucrative golf competitions staged for local amateurs in the Kingdom.
His Majesty thanked the sponsors for their continued support and singled out the companies that have joined the tournament as partners.
The sponsors named during the dinner included ESRIC, EEC, MTN, Nedbank, Ubombo Sugar, FSRA, Eswatini Railway, Luphohlo Commodities and Friends of the King’s Cup.
He said the continued increase in sponsorship reflected confidence in the tournament and urged the committee to intensify efforts to secure greater financial support.
With the 2026 edition attracting 120 professional and elite golfers at the start of the main competition, the King’s vision points towards a tournament with significantly greater international stature and financial rewards.
The proposed E10 million prize purse, including a potential E5 million winner’s cheque, would represent a major transformation of the King’s Cup and place it among Africa’s most lucrative golf tournaments.
#KingsCup2026 #KingsCupGolf #KingMswatiIII #E5Million #E10Million #Eswatini #GolfInEswatini #BigEasyTour #SportsTourism #Golf
