Professional golfer Ollais Mollel has called for the formation of East African Tour to enable the region's golfers compete favourably on the international scene.

Speaking yesterday in Arusha, Mollel said if the East African Tour is formed, golfers from such tours in Europe and South Africa would come and compete in East Africa.

He cited the South African Tour and European Tour as ones, which can bring new challenges to the region.

"We'll have more of our golfers competing in the East African Tour which will help elevate standards of our golfers," he said.

According to him, the tour would also enable the golfers to qualify for the World Professional Golfers Association (PGA) and compete against the likes of Tiger Woods, Vijay Singh, Els Ernie and Greg Norman.

Mollel, who captained the national golf team for six years before turning professional in 2006, said only the Kenya Open has been professionalized and incorporated.

He said the number of professionals in the region was still down, disclosing that there were less than 60 professional golfers.

Mollel also called upon sponsors to improve their packages, which he said, would help attract more players.

"In this case, the aspects of ideal packaging and management are imminent to the sponsors," he said.