The first Kabul Desert Open golf tournament in Afghanistan since 1979 went off without a hitch -- once the Russian tanks were cleared off the fairway.

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Ever since the 1979 Soviet invasion, three burnt-out Russian tanks and multi-barreled rocket launchers littered the fairway, but this year a tournament was held Friday on the nine-hole golf course, reported the Daily Telegraph Saturday.

John Dempsey, a U.S. lawyer working for the justice ministry, organized the tournament. He told entrants they were playing "at their own risk."

Two U.N. workers from the United States, Sam Hendricks and Jiffer Bourguignon won the tournament. Of the 20 teams competing, most played with an armed caddy.

The golf course, opened in 1967, once had lush greens and numerous water hazards. Today the water hazards are gone and fairways are overgrown with thorn bushes.

"Attack the course! Play aggressively," advised the club instructions.