Editor: Jacqui Barry jaxdubai@gmail.com
R 2017
NOVEMBE
ISSUE 72
Editorial
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Welcome to another issue of Club Life magazine.
A
s all contributors will agree, it comes around so quickly and it seems we have no sooner finished an issue when the next one begins. As you will see in this one, we have so many events and activities happening at Emirates Golf Club which makes it a very vibrant Club and one of the best in the whole region. This month is just as busy with golf and social events; with many competitions so far having been oversubscribed, make sure you enter early to avoid disappointment.
EMIRATES GOLF CLUB SENIOR MANAGEMENT
Christopher May
Chief Executive Officer cmay@dubaigolf.com
In October we had some of the season’s ‘major’ events, namely, the Al Dobowi Mixed Amateur Open, the Ladies’ and the Men’s Seniors Championships, the Ladies’ Pink Day when funds were raised for breast cancer charity ‘Brest Friends’, as well as the Monthly Medals and fun competitions. All results are included in this issue. The ladies’ section raised a remarkable AED 118,600 for ‘Brest Friends’ charity which was a great effort by the members who donated prizes and/or bought raffle tickets leading up to the Pink Golf Day. Well done to Lady Captain Najla and Vice-Captain Sulafa for the enormous amount of work they put in to make this event such a success. The wait is over…Jones the Grocer has opened and it has been well worth waiting for. There’s a great buzz about the place and it is already proving to be very popular. The whole place looks fantastic and personally I think it’s the best refurbishment of that area in the almost thirty years the Club has been open. There are still a few tweaks to be done and it’s early days yet but the feedback from members has been very positive. With the same contractors doing the fit-out of the Spike Bar and Members’ Lounge we can expect the same high standard. Thankfully, we have now got to the best time of the year weather-wise when we have perfect temperatures during the day and that little ‘coolness’ in the air early morning and late evening. Not only do we have the great weather, but we also have many events coming up - the DP World Championship at Jumeirah Golf Estates 16th-19th November which features the top 60 finishers from the European Tour at this season-ending event. Then in December, we will have the Omega Dubai Ladies Classic at Emirates Golf Club which is also a popular event and its always great to see the ladies from the European Tour playing our Championship course.
Barney Coleman
Club Manager bcoleman@dubaigolf.com
Ganesh Mangathil
Andy Meech
Craig Haldane
Director - Golf Course Maintenance chaldane@dubaigolf.com
Adele Cowgill
Head of Sport and Leisure ameech@dubaigolf.com
Saeed Ahamed
Dubai Golf Publishing Manager gmangathil@dubaigolf.com
Head of Marketing & Communications acowgill@dubaigolf.com
Financial Controller mahamed@dubaigolf.com
Steen Simon
Pansy Gonsalvez
Haridas Palliyalil
As we head towards the Omega Dubai Ladies Masters next month and the Omega Dubai Desert Classic early February, the Majlis course will be a walking course only. Make use of the many caddies available who all work in various departments within the Club and who are willing to work as caddies on their day off. Please book in advance through Ummer or Jega as the caddies are in great demand during our winter period. Enjoy the experience it’s certainly the best way to play golf! Craig Haldane and his team have been extremely busy with overseeding of the course. - see his interesting article in this issue and, if you are a Facebook user, you will be able to take a look at his video explaining the whole process of overseeding and what it entails. Enjoy our courses, the wonderful weather, everything the Club has to offer social events, golf and also the recreation and spa side of the Club!
Food & Beverage Manager ssimon@dubaigolf.com
Head of Golf Central pgonsalvez@dubaigolf.com
Resident Engineer hpalliyalil@dubaigolf.com
Jacqui Our sincere condolences go to the family of our Past Captain, Paul Thornberry who passed away after a short battle with cancer on 20th October 2017. Paul was Captain at Emirates Golf Club 1996‘97 and was a very popular member who always had a funny story to tell and was great company to be with. He is survived by his wife Bernadette and his children, Amanda, Adrian, Sean and Zara. The cremation was held in Buckinghamshire on 3rd November, attended by all of Paul’s family, many friends and a number of past and present Emirates Golf Club members. After leaving Dubai, Paul moved to Kent in UK to manage Southern Valley Golf Club which is co-owned by some of our past Club members. RIP to our friend, Paul Thornberry who will be greatly missed.
Condolences also go to the family of former long term employee, Head Marshal, Rey Manuel. Although Rey left Emirates Golf Club some years ago, he remained in Dubai and often came back to the Club to visit old friends and members. RIP Rey.
Chef Nicholas Cuomo Executive Chef ncuomo@dubaigolf.com
Stephen Deane
Head Academy Professional sdeane@dubaigolf.com
EGC Key Telephone Numbers Main Switchboard Members Golf Reservations Membership Recreation Accounts SensAsia Urban Spa
04 04 04 04 04 04
Rhys James
Golf Services Manager rjames@dubaigolf.com
417 417 417 417 417 417
9999 9800 9801 9850 9875 9820
Follow Emirates Golf Club on Facebook for the latest news, views and special offers. We already have over 38,814 likes. Follow us on Twitter @emiratesgc and Instagram @emiratesgc
Dear Members,
I am delighted to say we have found a worthy place for the names of all our Club and Amateur Open Champions from years gone by; following the 2010 refurbishment there were a few disgruntled past champions whose names were a little too close to the Spike Bar toilets! This has been taken into consideration with our latest refurbishment. The Dubai Desert Classic has had some fantastic champions over the years, with 14 of the 28 titles won by Major champions; keep a look out for our Dubai Desert Classic/Major Champions’ wall also! Dubai, as you know, welcomes visitors from all over the globe so the Spike Sports Bar and Restaurant will house some pictures of the sporting celebrities who have set foot on the Majlis and Faldo courses. We anticipate additions to the memorabilia walls over the coming months and years. Most importantly for me, I am excited about the opening of Spikes as, over the past seven years, many members have commented on how they wanted the Spike Bar to be upstairs along with a members’ area. The members’ lounge, I feel, will be a great addition to the member experience at our great Club. The lounge and adjoining bar will be the perfect relaxing hang-out for our membership; additionally the decked terrace area overlooking the pool will improve the leisure experience. Dining from the Spike Bar menu whilst overlooking the pool will be a big improvement I am sure. Additionally all terraced areas will include lounge and dining seating as well as LED screens showing the best sporting action from around the globe. The central terrace will also be a dedicated members’ area. The Spike Bar team will dedicate specific colleagues to look after the members’ lounge and terrace enhancing your après golf/ leisure experience. Please also note that Jones the Grocer will not have televisions screening the latest sporting action. All sports fans can catch up with the latest action upstairs in Spikes. During the Omega Dubai Ladies Classic and Omega Dubai Desert Classic, we will add temporary screens in Jones the Grocer, but only for these specific weeks. Jones will also have a grab and go section for those of you running late for your tee time! Spike Bar The Spike Bar may be getting a new location, but its position as the very heart of the Club will not change. The new Spike Bar will provide a relaxed and friendly ambience where members and guests can enjoy a host of international favourites and all the live sporting action from around the globe from the terrace or inside the brand new restaurant. A dedicated members’ lounge and terrace provides members with privacy and a dedicated space to enjoy. To add some spice to the new menu, Emirates Golf Club have teamed up with famous UK based Chef Hari Ghotra who has designed a series of extra special dishes to bring her unique Indian blend to the Middle East. Spike Bar Dress Code All members and accompanying guests in the Members’ Lounge are required to follow the dress code for this area. For gentlemen a shirt with a collar is required and collarless T-shirts are not acceptable. Only members and their accompanying guests may use the Members’ Lounge Spike Bar Dress Code For gentlemen a shirt with collar is preferred. Operational Hours of New Outlets Jones The Grocer 6:00 am - 10.00pm (last food order) weekdays 6:00 am - 11.00pm weekends Spike Bar 1:00pm - 1:00am (last food order) weekdays 9:00am - 1:30am weekends and public holidays
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Jones the Grocer Jones the Grocer has become a firm favourite in the region and we are delighted to be introducing the popular Australian food emporium to Emirates Golf Club. The new Jones the Grocer is located on the ground floor of the clubhouse, offering a choice of inside or al fresco dining in relaxed surroundings. Open for breakfast, lunch and dinner, Jones is the perfect venue for a family get-together or relaxed dining experience with friends or colleagues. The menu will serve up a selection of Jones’ best loved dishes and healthy options where the focus is on delicious food made with passion, expertly sourced from the best artisanal producers around.
gEr’s Club Mana lEttEr
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e are experiencing exciting times at the Club as we look forward to opening Jones the Grocer and the Spike Bar in the coming days and weeks. You will no doubt have seen my latest letter that included a description of each outlet and I have included these again below for your information. Additionally, please look out for some surprises in the Spike Bar; we have tried to capture the great history of Emirates Golf Club with a focal point being on the Dubai Desert Classic that will be crowning its 29th champion in January 2018.
Carine Weekdays open for lunch, afternoon tea and dinner Weekends and public holidays open for breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea and dinner.
Carine (to open after the Omega Dubai Desert Classic in early February) The rustic feel of Northern France is synonymous with hearty cuisine, together with a rich culture, heritage and sense of community. Brought to Emirates Golf Club in partnership with the renowned Chef Izu, Carine will deliver all of these in abundance. Chef Izu has well and truly put his culinary stamp on the region; he was the opening Head Chef of La Petite Maison which made the World’s Best Restaurant lists just two years after opening and he was the driving force behind the prestigious La Serre Bistro & Boulangerie. Carine is a brand new concept that has been designed just for Emirates Golf Club, offering Chef Izu’s exceptional tastes in a warm and homely environment. Spike Bar Toilets With the new location of the Spike Bar on the first floor and with the introduction of the members’ lounge, it was essential to include additional restrooms in the redesign. Please be advised that the construction of the new restrooms that will service the Spike Bar, terrace and members’ lounge has commenced. The facilities will be located between the swimming pool and the clubhouse, removing the grass bank near the children’s pool. In addition to the new restrooms, two external shower units will be added to the exterior of the building for the convenience of members and guests using the swimming pool. Driving Range Balls – Majlis Range I hope your practice sessions have improved with the addition of Titleist Nxt practice balls on the Majlis range. Please help us maintain this improvement by leaving the balls on the range; unfortunately we have lost 1500 balls in 45 days. Granted, visitors may have helped themselves to a souvenir but, to date, we have found them in four members’ bags also. I would like to thank all members who have participated in a hectic October calendar; we witnessed full fields in the Ladies’ Season Opener, Mixed Season Opener, Diwali Scramble, Al Dobowi Emirates Mixed Amateur Open and the Pink Ball Golf Day. Congratulations to the ladies’ section and to our Lady Captain Najla Bartette for raising AED 118,600 for such a great cause. A massive thank you to all the sponsors and to those of you who donated raffle prizes and/or purchased tickets! The Omega Dubai Ladies Classic (changed name officially from the Omega Dubai Ladies Masters) will take place on the Majlis course from 6th – 9th December. More information will follow closer to the event. However, please note to all Tennis and Padel tennis players, we have changed the location of the hospitality generators this year to make sure your leisure activity is not disrupted by noise and pollution from the units. The Omega Dubai Desert Classic will be staged from 25th - 28th January 2018 the week after the Abu Dhabi Championship. Another reminder about the Annual Members’ party…the date is Thursday 8th March 2018 so please make a note in your diaries for our 30th Anniversary celebrations. Barney Coleman Club Manager
Captain’s MEssagE
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Dear Members,
I
hope you enjoyed the Season Opener. My drive is done and, although you all made me a bit nervous, it was OK. I hope you enjoyed the day when Najla and I tried to add some Slovenian-Lebanese flavour and we will continue working on this. The month of October was very busy; after the Season Opener I played for Team North America in the Talker Cup which was won by Europe. Congratulations. We had a full field for the Diwali Scramble of 34 flights, 136 players, followed by a great evening. Special thanks to our sponsors Midcom. The Men’s Senior Open was won by Veneet Mohan with a gross score of 71 which he said was his best score ever. This was followed by the Tri-Nations Cup (England, Ireland and Scotland) to which I was invited to play for Scotland (work that one out - I guess Scotland and Slovenia begin with the same letter!). Scotland finished in second place behind the winners, Ireland, and it was a great day.
MEN’S COMPETITION RESULTS
At the end of last month we had our Monthly Medal won by Nitin Kripalani with the best net of 66. The Mixed Amateur Open sponsored by Al Dobowi was once again a full field and a wonderful day. Congratulations to all the winners and a big thank you to sponsors. We are well into our season and we have several tournaments to look forward to in November. In addition, we have our first refurbished restaurant open - Jones the Grocer. I feel we have been quite comfortable in the temporary Spike Bar in Le Classique but we are looking forward to the new Spike Bar on the first floor of our clubhouse. The Majlis course is now walking only which is great as it means a bit more exercise! Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any complaints or suggestions but, most importantly, enjoy your golf! Ivan Fornazaric Club Captain 2017-2018
In association with
OMA JUNE MEDAL Friday 27th October 2017
Nitin Kripalani Wins the OMA Emirates October Medal
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ongratulations to Nitin Kripalani who scored a net 66 on the Majlis course to secure back-to-back victories of the OMA Emirates Medal at Emirates Golf Club, in association with Jean Georges Dubai. Nitin just clinched the best score of the day by one stroke ahead of Achal Ghai and Sudhir Vora who both scored net 67. Kooros Daneshvar scored a steady 74 to win the best gross prize. Following Nitin Kripalanai in A Division was runner-up Chrsitian Klynge with a net 70 and in third place with a net score of 71 was Qamar Rasheed. Achal Ghai claimed victory in B Division with his net 67, just edging out Sudhir Vora who also scored a net 67 with a better back 9 score. In third place was Club Captain Ivan Fornazaric with
A Division: handicaps 0-10 Winner: Nitin Kripalani Runner-up: Christian Klynge Third: Qamar Rasheed Best Gross: Kooros Daneshvar B Division: handicaps 11-20 Winner: Achal Ghai Runner-up: Sudhir Vora Third: Ivan Fornazaric C Division: handicaps 21-28 Winner: Mewa Singh Sangwan Stableford Event Winner: Dileep Kumar
66 net 70 net 71 net 74 67 net 67 net 69 net 72 net 39 points
a net 69. C division was won by Mewa Singh Sangwan who shot a net 72. In our new Medalford style tournament, where players can compete in an adjoining stableford event, Dileep Kumar claimed the prize with 39 points. All of our winners will now enjoy an evening’s dinner courtesy of Jean Georges Dubai.
As we move forward from a very busy month we look forward to some milder weather and walking on the Majlis course as it is being prepared of our two major tournaments, the Omega Dubai Ladies Classic and the Omega Dubai Desert Classic. We have had an incredible month with lots going on. We played our first Inter-Club competition in Abu Dhabi when we came second behind Abu Dhabi City who were playing on their own turf. It was a very hot and humid day which finished with some excellent results. Well done to our Emirates Golf Club team! The Midcom Diwali Scramble was a huge success with over 130 members playing. Most ladies made the effort to dress in traditional Indian outfits resulting in a very colourful evening as we sat for a lavish and succulent Indian themed buffet prepared by our F&B team; comedian Ali entertained us, which was appreciated by all. Our much-anticipated fundraiser, the Pink Ball tournament, in aid of Brest Friends and Al Jalila Foundation, was a huge success with 112 ladies playing and 132 attending our lunch! It was great to see all the ladies dressed in pink and even our colleagues made the effort to add pink to their outfits. We thank our title sponsor Mercedes who sent us an all pink vehicle for our photo shoot; thanks also to
our co-sponsor HSBC and to our major prize donors Al Gurg Group, l’Occitane, Pro Sport, Project Beauty, Liali Jewellery, House of Windsor Jewellery, Dhamani Jewellery, The One & Only, Park Hyatt, the Entertainer, Taylor Made, Ecco bags, Oakley sunglasses, Buckles & Belts, DG Golf and the Westin to name a few. Thank you to my ViceCaptain Sulafa who worked hard and who was extremely supportive throughout; also thanks to Past Captains Maura, Martha, Helen, Rekha and also to Josie who were a great help before and during the event.
It was great to see the Spike Bar transformed with pink on the day so a big thank you to the F&B team who worked hard to accommodate us all there and thanks to the ladies’ locker room team who looked after us on the day and decorated the locker room with pink ribbons everywhere! Thank you to the Golf Office who had to check in 112 ladies on the morning and to Cian and Alex who spent the morning on holes 4 and 11 where we had a ‘beat the pro challenge’. Last but not least, thanks to Bryan who looked after the putting competition that was going on during the competition between holes 9 & 10. Congratulations to Mags Breen who holed the 100-foot putt and won an Evnroll putter donated by DG Golf. We are very proud to announce that altogether we managed
to raise AED118,600. This amount will be donated to Brest Friends who will use the money locally to raise breast cancer awareness and help women in need of treatment who have no other means to pay for it.
5 in’s lady Capta MEssagE
I
can’t believe that October is behind us. Once the Captains’ drive-ins were out of the way the Season Openers were lots of fun with on-course food stations and lovely buffets after the competitions! The highlight of the Mixed Season Opener was the presentation of special personalised cups for Ivan and me, prepared and designed by Miles from F&B! Thank you!
A huge thank you to all our members who bought raffle tickets and donated so many raffle prizes; without whose support we would not have been able to raise as much money. We had 135 prizes for our raffle thanks to everyone’s generous donations.
We ended the month with the very popular Al Dobowi Mixed Amateur Open with over 100 players participating! What a great event it was, although it is a tough format and a big challenge for married couples who played together! Thankfully it all ended well and disputes were left on the course! At the end of the day we all sat together with many a tale to be told! Najla Bartette Lady Captain 2017-2018
CoMpEtition rEsults
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LADIES’ COMPETITION RESULTS
Winners:
Josie Tracey, Jenny Ayres, Elise Hanson, Elvira Smith
61
Runners-up:
Christiane Sprunck, Maggie Neil, Ingrid Lind, Haide Wright
61.7 net
net
Third:
Rajni Sud, Rena Sethi, Ninu Smith, Connie Sayal
62.5 net
Guess The Lady Captain’s Drive
April Prestwidge
163 yards
Nearest the Pin Hole #4:
Petra Daman Willems
Nearest the Pin Hole #15:
Mags Breen
Longest Drive Hole #12:
Ingrid Lind
Longest Drive Hole #8:
Kiyono Taniuchi
7 CoMpEtition rEsults
LADIES’ SEASON OPENER 2nd October 2017
LADIES’ MONTHLY MEDAL Monday 9th october
CoMpEtition rEsults
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SILVER A DIVISION: handicaps 0 – 14 Winner: Mitsuko Emmerson Runner-up: Veronica Elias Best Gross: Jayshree Gupta SILVER B DIVISION: handicaps 15 –23 Winner: Mini Philip Runner-up: Lynne Dickinson BRONZE DIVISION: handicaps 24 –36 Winner: Annette Carstanjen
LADIES’ SENIORS CHAMPIONSHIP Monday 16th October 2017
STABLEFORD COMPETITON
Champion: Runner-up: Third: Best Net:
Winer:
LADIES’ HALLOWEEN THEMED COMPETITION Monday 30th October 2017 Winner: Runners-up: Best Dressed:
April Prestwidge, Jacqueline Byat, Elise Hanson, Lynne Dickinson Annette Carstanjen, Ingrid Lind, Fiona Berry, Sue Hopwood Christiane Sprunck, Yana Jamieson
90 points 86 points
Cathy Lajotte Veronique Rossett Mitsuko Emmerson Antonia Ludvigson
Connie Sayal
79 gross 81 gross 81 gross 70 net
34 points
66 net 72 net 79 gross 71 net 71 net 70 net
CoMpEtition rEsults
10
LADIES’ PINK BALL COMPETITION Monday 23rd October
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e had a fantastic turnout for this year’s event hosted by our Lady Captain Najla Bartette with funds raised in the region of AED 118,000 going to the Brest Friends Charity in association with the Al Jalila Foundation.
This year’s format was a team Texas Scramble with the emphasis on returning the pink ball at the end of play. The winning team, with a fantastic score of net 59.9, was the team of Arathi Appaiah, Veronique Rosset, Monica Palao and Swati Singh. The runners-up were Martha Wong, Lynne Dickinson, Naima Maya and Mitsuko Emmerson with a net 61. Just one further stroke adrift in third place were Fiona Berry, Sue Hopwood, Viv Caley and Cathy Lajotte with a net 62. In fourth place with a net 63.2 was the team of Christiane Sprunck, Haide Wright, Ingrid Lind and Janine Dols. Our guests on the day had their own prizes to play for and the winners were Kyung Soon Kang, JR Kim, HC Kim and Janet Kim with a net score of 60.9. On-courses prizes were won by Jenny Ayres and Eunshim Heo for nearest the pins and prizes were also awarded to Veronique Rosset and Janet Kim for the longest drives. Thank you to HSBC and to Mercedes Benz ME for their support towards this worthy cause and for providing the pink Mercedes vehicle for the photo shoot. Thanks also to all our fantastic members who contributed prize vouchers and raffle gifts.
TEAM PRIZES (WITH THE PINK BALL) Winners: Arathi Appaiah, Veronique Rossett, Monica Palao, Swati Singh 59.9 Runners-up: Martha Wong, Lynne Dickinson, Naima Maya, Mitsuko Emmerson 61 Third: Fiona Berry, Sue Hopwood, Viv Caley, Cathy Lajotte 62 Fourth: Christiane Sprunck, Haide Wright, Ingrid Lind, Janine Dols 63.2 Best Guest Team: Kyung Soon Kang, JR Kim, HC Kim, Janet Kim 60.9 Guest Runners-up: Anna Cheung, Sheila McIlroy, Sally Parker, Willemijn Roeterdink 61.6 NEAREST THE PIN HOLE # 7: Division A: handicaps 0-18: Jenny Ayres HOLE # 11: Division B: handicaps 19-42: Eunshim Heo LONGEST DRIVE HOLE # 12: Division A: handicaps 0-18: Veronique Rossett HOLE # 3: Division B: handicaps 19-42: Janet Kim 100ft PUTTING CHALLENGE: Mags Breen BEAT THE PRO HOLE # 4: Willemijn Roeterdink BEAT THE PRO HOLE # 15: June McDonald
11 CoMpEtition rEsults
MIXED COMPETITION RESULTS
CoMpEtition rEsults
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Winners:
Mike Butler Bradley Eiffe Sarah Butler Jacqueline Eiffe Runners-up: David Formas Sandra Chia Glory Xavier Hannah Alan Third: Raj Janardhan Swati Singh Chandru Manghnani Suresh Shewakramani Guess length of Captain Ivan Fornazeric’s drive: Winner: Surender Kandhari Guess length of Lady Captain Najla Bartette’s drive Winner: Naima Maya LADIES’ LONGEST DRIVE HOLE # 8: Viv Caley MEN’S LONGEST DRIVE: HOLE # 3: Anil Shivanna LADIES’ NEAREST THE PIN: HOLE # 11: Swati Singh MEN’S NEAREST THE PIN: HOLE # 7: Vipen Sethi NEAREST THE PIN:ALL GOLFERS: HOLE # 4: David Formas HOLE # 15: Darren Cole
115
116
116 195 yards 136 yards
MIXED
CoMpEtition rEsults
D SEASON OPENER
13
6th Ocotber 2017
CoMpEtition rEsults
14
MIDCOM DIWALI SCRAMBLE 13th October 2017
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ongratulations to the winning team of the MiDCOM Diwali Scramble, Kush Sama, Harjive Oberoi, Naresh Handa and Pankaj Varma who shot a fantastic scramble score of net 56.1 on the Majlis course.
The event was very well contested, with eventual runners up Anil Shivanna, Nitin Kripalani, Surjit Namli, and Gaurav Verma finishing in second place with a net 58. Third place went to the team of Bhupesh Sharma, Naresh Bhambhaney, Sameer Joshi and Komal Sharma with a net 59.1. On-course competitions included nearest the pin on holes 4 and 15, which were won by Nitin Kripalani and Ingrid Lind respectively. Finally Najla Bartette and Maura Duggan guessed correctly how many tees were in the vase and won a brand new set of headphones each. Congratulations to all winners! Thank you to MiDCOM for their continued support of this fantastic event, and many thanks to all who contributed to the day and made the MiDCOM Diwali Scramble such a successful and colourful event.
Winners: Runners-up: Third:
Kush Sama, Harjive Oberoi, Naresh Handa, Pankaj Varma 56.1 Anil Shivanna, Nitin Kripalani, Surjit Namli, Gaurav Verma 58 Bhupesh Sharma, Naresh Bhambhaney, Sameer Joshi, Komal Sharma 59.1
Nearest the Pin: HOLE # 4: Nitin Kripalani HOLE # 15: Ingrid Lind Guess how many tees in the vase Najla Bartette + Maura Duggan
707 tees
15
MIXED AMATEUR OPEN 28th October 2017
CoMpEtition rEsults
Al Dobowi Mixed Amateur Open 2017
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ongratulations to the winners of the Al Dobowi Mixed Amateur Open 2017, Gurbax Singh and Satnam Kaur. The 18 hole event was played on the Majlis course with over a 100 players participating. The pair shot a fantastic score of a net 69.2. The event was hosted for the 22nd consecutive year by Infinity powered by Al Dobowi, fantastic supporters of Emirates Golf Club, producing an event that is hugely popular with members and nonmembers alike. Past Emirates Golf Club Captain Vipen Sethi and partner Amarjeet Radia were the runners-up with a score of net 70. In third place were Emirates Golf Club members David Formas and Sandra Chia who also posted a sub-par score of a net 70.6. The best gross prize was won by Saif Thabet and Sara Engsig, a very strong team who shot a solid 2 over par 74 which is a fantastic score in what can often be a difficult greensomes format. Finally, everyone at Emirates Golf Club would like to sincerely thank our competition sponsor. Mr. Surender Kandhari of Al Dobowi deserves tremendous credit for his long continued commitment to this event and to Emirates Golf Club.
Champion:
Gurbax Singh & Satnam Kaur
69.2 net
Runners-up:
Vipen Sethi & Amarjeet Radia
70 net
Third:
David Formas & Sandra Chia
70.6 net
Best Gross:
Saif Thabet & Sara Engsig
74 net
TRI-NATIONS Winning team: Ireland Second: Scotland Third England
TALKER CUP 2017
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ongratulations to Team Europe for winning the Talker Cup against Team North America The Talker Cup was started in May 1988 by Richard Chiarantona and, since then, it has gone from strength to strength. There were two events in 1988 so this year was the 31st one. Well done to both teams for what was a great event played in true Talker Cup spirit with Europe winning back the trophy this year. Captains this year were Julian Nicholas for Europe and Mark Thomson for North America.
Th e c u r re n t s co re i s E u ro p e : 1 4 N o r t h Am e ri ca : 17 1 9 8 8 North America 1 9 8 8 Europe 1 9 8 9 North America 1 9 9 0 North America 1 9 9 1 Europe 1 9 9 2 Europe 1 9 9 3 North America 1 9 9 4 Europe 1 9 9 5 North America 1 9 9 6 North America 1 9 9 7 Europe 1 9 9 8 North America 1 9 9 9 North America 2 0 0 0 North America 2 0 0 1 North America 2 0 0 2 North America 2 0 0 3 North America 2 0 0 4 Europe 2 0 0 5 North America 2 0 0 6 North America 2 0 07 Europe 2 0 0 8 Europe 2 0 0 9 Europe 2 0 1 0 Europe 2 0 1 1 Europe 2 0 1 2 North America 2 0 1 3 Europe 2 0 1 4 North America 2 0 1 5 Europe 2 0 1 6 North America 2 0 1 7 Europe
rECiproCal Clubs
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SPOTLIGHT ON HERITAGE GOLF CLUB - MAURITIUS
A MULTI-AWARD WINNING CHAMPIONSHIP GOLF COURSE
The Heritage Golf Club is a multi-award winning championship golf course located in the southern part of the beautiful island of Mauritius. Set on an idyllic piece of land between rolling mountains and the turquoise lagoon of the Indian Ocean; accompanied by beautiful vistas from every green and tee; the Heritage golf course provides an enjoyable and challenging experience for golfers of all handicap levels.
A CHAMPIONSHIP GOLF COURSE
This 27-hole golf complex which was designed by Peter Matkovich and opened in 2004, comprises an 18 hole championship golf course, a 9 hole Par 3 course, exceptional practice facilities, golf academy, clubhouse, restaurant and golf shop. With 5 teeing options on each hole, golfers of all levels are catered for. The course was recently recognised as one of the Top 10 golf courses in Africa, according to global news broadcaster CNN, and in November of 2014 and 2015 claimed the title of “Best golf course in the Indian Ocean” at the World Golf Awards in Portugal.
AFRASIA BANK MAURITIUS OPEN
From the 7th – 10th May 2015, Heritage Golf Club made international golfing history by playing host to the first ever tri-sanctioned golf tournament in the world between the European, Sunshine and Asian Tours. In so doing, it became the first Indian Ocean course to host a European Tour Event and become part of the exclusive “Race to Dubai” calendar. At Heritage Golf Club we believe that ladies and gentlemen do not need rules and that all our players, both visitors and members alike, should be treated as royalty. We look forward to welcoming you to our pristine fairways soon!
RECIPROCAL CLUBS Full golf members at Emirates Golf Club have the privilege of the member’s guest green fee rate when playing the below reciprocal golf courses. -
Albatross Golf Resort, Czech Republic Archerfield Golf Club, Scotland Banyan Golf Club, Thailand Blue Canyon Country Club, Thailand Centurion Club, Hemel Hempstead, UK Clearwater Bay Golf & Country Club, Hong Kong, China Close House Hotel & Golf, England, UK DLF Golf & Country Club, Gurgaon, India Foxhills Club & Resort, Surrey, UK Huntingdale Golf Club, Victoria, Australia
- Hubbelrath Golf Club, Dusseldorf, Germany - Jumeirah Golf Estates, Dubai, UAE - K Club of Straffan, Kildare, Ireland - The Hong Kong Golf Club, Hong Kong, China - Laguna National Golf & Country Club, Singapore - London Golf Club, UK - Mission Hills, China - Münchener Golf Club, Germany
- Peninsula Kingswood Country Golf Club, Victoria, Australia - Real Club de Golf el Prat, Barcelona, Spain - Royal Golf Club, Marianske Lazne, Czech Republic - Saujana Golf & Country Club, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - Taiheiyo Club, Japan - The Duke’s, St Andrews, Scotland - The Heritage Golf Club, Mauritius - Yas Links, Abu Dhabi, UAE
Tee time reservations need to be made in advance through Membership Services. The current membership card must be produced at the reciprocal club when playing golf upon check in. For further information on the reciprocal clubs please contact our Membership Services team or email egc@dubaigolf.com
paul thorn
bErry
18
Paul taking over the Chairmanship of Dubai Irish Society from Colm McLoughlin in 1989
ert Classic
Dubai Des
Paul and other Irish Society m embers at a lun Gerry Collins, Fo ch with reign Minister fo r Ireland 1996
party 1996
Paul with son Amanda an s Adrian and Sean, daughters d Zara an d granddau ghter Ella
One of the many Talker Cups Paul played in
Paul & Bernadet
te’s wedding at
the Club, April
1990
England v Ireland (now the Tri-N ations with Scotland having been add ed)
Members’ Annual party 1997
ie Els n with Ern ny Kilgallo ssic win la C t Paul & Dan er es st Dubai D after his fir
The ‘b
Christmas Day at the Club trying our the kids’ new toys!!
It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Paul Thornberry, peacefully succumbing to a short battle with cancer the evening of Friday 20th October 2017. In his final weeks he was surrounded by family and close friends, ever laughing and enjoying his final moments, knowing the inevitable but never dispirited by its reality. As his children, we are very touched and grateful for all the messages of love and support received in the last few days; in our eyes he is the greatest and seeing how many lives he’s impacted has made us appreciate even more the man we get to call our dad. Amanda, Adrian, Sean & Zara
P ners chplay win , Pairs Mat ps am K Paul & Tom ey rl ch & Cha against But
boys’ on tour - one of the many golfing
aul was born on May 15th 1947 in Ireland and was one of seven children. He joined the Royal Navy and later moved into the gas industry which took him to a number of different countries before he eventually took up a posting in Dubai in the early 80s. Paul was an avid golfer so it was no surprise that when Emirates Golf Club opened in March 1988, he did not hesitate to join and he became Captain in 1996-’97. To his golfing friends, he was well known as Nudger; his love of golf even took him on a round the world golfing trip with his close friend, the late Paul Philips. Paul loved the ‘craic’ at the Club and he could be seen there most days. Even his wedding to Bernadette took place at the Club, not only the reception, but the actual wedding ceremony too. Paul had two children from a previous marriage Amanda and Adrian, and two with Bernadette, Sean and Zara. When the Thornberry’s left Dubai in 2010, Paul happily took over the management of Southern Valley Golf Club in Kent where he was a part owner. He worked there util recently when he became ill. RIP Paul
trips Paul organised
MEMORIES
EgC
s MEMoriE
22
Emirates Golf Club at the start of construction
The Majlis is almost ready
The Club Pros: Greg Schofield, Elliott Gray, Adrian Flaherty
New Year’s - fancy dre
Can you guess which holes
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Desert Rats v Professional snooker players
Talker Cup - Team Europe 1990
New Year’s Day 1989: Swim the Lake Challenge…far end of 9th hole to front of 18th
The very first New Year’s Eve 1988: Frank Johnstone with the Baker Street band
The original Spike Bar
these are on the Majlis?
It’s a Knockout competition at the poolside 1989
EgC
s Day Scramble ess in those days
s MEMoriE
30 Years of Emirates Golf Club
Junior link
s
24
Junior Tournament Schedule Par 3 Series Thursday 7th December 2017 Friday 26th January 2018 Thursday 15th February 2018 Friday 16th March 2018 Thursday 5th April 2018 Friday 20th April 2018
Dubai Golf Par 3 Series Event 3 Dubai Golf Par 3 Series Event Dubai Golf Par 3 Series Event 5 Dubai Golf Par 3 Series Event 6 Dubai Golf Par 3 Series Event 7 Dubai Golf Par 3 Series Event 8 & Grand Final
Emirates Golf Club Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club Emirates Golf Club Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club Emirates Golf Club Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club
Dubai Golf Junior 9 Hole Medal Series (Black, Silver & Red Levels) Date December 14th 2017 January 25th 2018 January 18th 2018 February 8th 2018 February 22nd 2018 March 1st 2018 March 22nd 2018 April 5th 2018 April 12th 2018 May 10th 2018
Event Four Five Six Seven Eight Nine Ten Eleven Twelve Thirteen & Grand Final
Levels Black – Red Black – Red Black – Red Black – Red Black – Red Black – Red Black – Red Black – Red Black – Red Black – Red
Course Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club Emirates Golf Club, Faldo Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club Emirates Golf Club, Faldo Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club Emirates Golf Club, Faldo Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club
Aman Ailani junior elite student College Golf Chronicles
H
ello everyone and greetings from chilly Boston! If some of you have not met or seen me around at the Club before, please allow me to introduce myself. My name is Aman Ailani and I have been a member at Emirates Golf Club since January 2014. I am currently a Sophomore at Bentley University, just outside of Boston, Massachusetts. At school, I am a studentathlete on the Men’s Golf Team, and through this article, I hope to give everybody back home some insight as to what it’s like to play golf in an American college system!
training sessions, as we all know how important physical fitness is in the modern game. Things can sometimes get a little tough especially during exam season as we cannot let our games slip just because we have exams, so we have to work a lot harder than most students at the school to keep our grades up and play as well as we want to.
We have had a great season so far, having won our Conference Championship and received a direct bid to the NCAA Regional Championships next spring in West Virginia. From there, we hope to play well and qualify for the National Championships! That continues to be our goal and we aim to produce good performances to help us achieve this.
A typical day of practice would include me waking up at around 8.00am to eat breakfast and get changed to go play 18 holes. I like to roll out and stretch before hitting the course as we typically don’t have much time to warm-up. After playing 18 holes, we usually grab lunch and then dash back to campus. At around 4.00pm we begin studying and getting ready for our next day of class and mid-terms. On Mondays and Thursdays, I am in class from 8.00am to 2.00pm. After class, I usually get lunch and head back to my room to relax for an hour or so before I head to the range, gym, or both!
In season, we typically play 36 holes a week as part of official practice, but with a driving range just a couple of minutes away, we would be hitting balls at least four or five times a week. In addition to team practices, I am trained by Robbie Cannon, who has visited Emirates Golf Club in the past to conduct
Life as a student-athlete is definitely timeconsuming and if your head is not in the right place it can definitely rub you the wrong way. Much is expected of you and without family there for constant support, you have to either figure things out or fall to the wayside as another talent that never put the work in.
I am extremely committed to performing at a high level for my school, and come December, I expect to see myself back at the practice facilities, the gym and the course trying to get better for the upcoming spring season. It is great to hear of the amazing developments at the Club, and I am thrilled to hear what an amazing job Barney and his team are doing to get things ready for the busy winter season! That’s all for now, Happy golfing and play well! Aman Ailani
Pro’s Tip of the Month
Face Control with Mark Bruce
pro’s tip
by PGA GOLF Professional Mark Bruce
25
I have spent many hours watching players with relatively good swings struggling to know whether their ball is going to go to the left or to the right. As we know, golf is a game of misses, and who ever misses best generally has more consistent results. Tour Professionals all hit wayward shots like the rest of us, except they limit this by missing to one side of the hole rather than both left and right. Club face aim at impact accounts for 85% of the ball’s initial starting direction. Working on the two drills below will help you understand how to improve your club face delivery.
Drill 1 - The Takeaway When taking the club away many players focus too much on hinging the wrists with the result often leading to the opening of the club face. This leads to poor movements during the swing to try to square the club face. The feeling I work on a lot with many players is to keep the club face looking at the ball for as long as possible during the takeaway of the swing as seen in the picture (right). This offers greater face and wrist control.
Drill 2 - Returning The Club To Impact Anywhere from shoulder/hip height, open your right hand and slowly bring the club face down to the ball (imitating the downswing). The right hand placed on the side of the grip should be matching the club face. Try to return the hand so that your palm is facing the target. (see pictures below) Practising this drill will help to educate your hand position at impact.
Give these simple exercises a try the next time you are either playing or practising and enjoy straighter golf shots.
sport2bu
sinEss
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S2B OCTOBER 2017 HIGHLIGHTS
T
he humidity is slowly but surely getting better, with our Monday nights getting cooler! The winning scores this month have been pretty high with the majority of wins coming from the back 9! We have officially moved from QD’s to Emirates Central for the presentation and post-golf activities. The convivial atmosphere each Monday at Emirates Central continues to be the key to the success of our ever growing society, averaging over 42 attendees this October. The Club continue to do us proud in tailor-making the room to suit our needs with activities including golf darts, darts, table football and meeting areas!!
Eclectic 19 Winner
Richard Aybar
R
ichard Aybar Wins Eclectic 19 in October!
The left hander produced a 59 gross to take the Eclectic by a shot from Tony Piccolo with Russell Yeomans coming very close with a 60.95 net in 3rd position; the best gross of the Eclectic went to James Yeomans who shot a 55 (17 under) over the 12-week period.
Conares Match Play We kicked off the Conares matchplay with S2B Team 2 competing against the Indian expats who are historically difficult to beat. Jorg and OB played well but lost 2 & 1, while Hawas Gaddafe and Peter Donaldson unfortunately lost down the 18th. In addition Ahmad Fakhreddine and David Pinder played in the betterball pairs, and made a credible 38 points just missing out on the prizes. However, David did manage to win a nearest the pin! Our next fixture is on 25th November.
Richard has secured an exciting new role with Abu Dhabi based developer Imkan as the new Head of Projects Sales. He is also due to marry his lovely fiancée Ana on November 24th 2017, a truly exciting time in his life…but not as exciting as winning the Eclectic!
October Player of the Month – sponsored by Hawas Gaddafe
Ahmad Fakhreddine
A
hmad has been in Dubai for over 11 years, specialising in electromechanical design and construction, working presently with ARCO General contracting which is a part of ALRYUM Group. ARCO diversifies between infrastructure (pipe lines, pumping stations and treatment plants), building construction (theme parks, theatres, residential and commercial) and landscape. Ahmad heads up the electromechanical section for the Group. Ahmad has also been a professional basketball player in the Lebanese basketball league; golf was the alternative to phase
out from basketball but to stay in competition mode…. it’s been working so far since joining S2B!! 1st: 2nd: 3rd:
Ahmad Fakhreddine Rob Duczenko David Minchin
56 points 55 points 53 points
The Player of the Month award is calculated by the best three scores combined of each player on Mondays. Ahmad started October iwith 22 points then followed up with 16 and finally 18 points in the last game of October. Before that Rob Duczenko led the way but just fell one point short in the final round of the month. Ahmad claims the third Golfer of the Month award sponsored by Hawas Gaddafe, joining Jorg Muller and Darren Hooker.
Call to Action for Emirates Golf Club Members Should you be an existing or new member at Emirates Golf Club and you fancy joining us on a Monday night for some competitive rollup golf and socialising in M’s afterwards, please contact James for more information! Email:
jyeomans@yeomansexecutive.com
Tel:
0504816277
We look forward to welcoming more Emirates members to our society.
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Thanks to our sponsors
sport2bu sinEss
S2B at the RAK European Challenge Tour Pro-Am Sport2Business were invited to the Ras Al Khaimah European Challenge Tour Pro-Am on 24th of October at Al Hamra Golf Club. The course was in great condition with the greens being particularly fast and true! We were paired up with Pedro Oriol from Spain who, back in 2015, was the longest hitter on the European Tour; he is a very solid player currently 11th on the Order of Merit and looking good to qualify back onto the European Tour next year. The shot of the day went to our main man Akram Skaik who holed out for an eagle 2 from 127 yards on the par 4 2nd hole! The S2B team ended up 14 under par for the day, just short of the prizes.
Teddy Sheringham Visits the Emirates Our friend Kevin Keen, ex West Ham player and Liverpool coach under Brendan Rogers, now coach at ATK the Indian Super league football team, has been training the squad at the unbelievable Sheikh Hamdan facility in Nad al Sheba for pre-season training before heading back to India. Teddy Sheringham has been appointed Manager and Jussi Jääskeläinen as goalkeeping coach. All three were lucky enough to play with Russell Yeomans on the Majlis course. Teddy, a solid 5 handicapper and Jussi a 300+ hitting 18 handicapper convincingly beat Russell and Kevin!
October Monday Night Winners October October October October October
2nd: 9th: 16th: 23rd: 30th:
Jimmy Norfolk Dave Minchin & Neal White Tom Lind Victoria Johnson & Akram Skaik Fathi al Busaidy & Ben Spargo
22 points 22 points 23 points 20 points 22 points
slow play
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Article courtesy of Golf Digest
September 25, 2017
Yes, You Can Beat Slow Play
Shaving seconds and minutes could cut half an hour off your round. By David Owen HIT FIRST, THEN TALK.
I’ve played with golfers who save their jokes until it’s their turn to tee off. They’ve got a captive audience, because no one can move until they’ve hit, so they tee up a ball, then lean on their driver and unwind. Tell them to save it. Leave your driver’s headcover in your car. Ten seconds a hole? Twenty seconds a hole? Painless and easy.
TIGHTEN YOUR PRE-SHOT ROUTINE.
D
avid Brailsford, a former competitive cyclist, became the performance director of the British national team in 2003. British Cycling had stunk for most of a century, but Brailsford believed he could turn the team around by applying an idea he’d begun to formulate while earning an MBA—an idea he later described to the Harvard Business Review as “a philosophy of continuous improvement through the aggregation of marginal gains.” He was convinced that, if he and his cyclists broke down everything they did into small components and then improved each of them by just 1 percent, the cumulative impact would be a significant enhancement of their overall performance. Brailsford and his team members searched for tiny improvements everywhere—in their equipment and their technique, of course, but also in such seemingly trivial elements as their handwashing method, the pillows and mattresses they slept on, and the accumulation of dust on the floor of their maintenance truck. The results were remarkable. U.K. cyclists won two gold medals at the Olympics in 2004, then eight at the Games in 2008 and eight more in 2012. In 2010, Brailsford also became the manager of Team Sky, a British professional team. He applied the same ideas there, and his cyclists won the Tour de France in 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016 and 2017. Queen Elizabeth rewarded him with a knighthood in 2013. I learned about Brailsford and the magic of marginal gains from my golf buddy Tony. We were playing what we call a Two-Hour 18: a full round of golf, walking, in two hours or just over. Playing that quickly is possible only when our course is virtually empty—early in the morning or late in the afternoon, or when it’s raining—but it doesn’t involve running, or even walking very fast. As Tony pointed out, we are able play in what most golfers think of as
record time because we have intuitively identified and eliminated innumerable tiny time sucks—the same kind of thing that Brailsford did systematically with his cycling teams. Brailsford’s thinking about marginal gains can probably be applied to life generally, but it lends itself especially well to pace of play. The average round lasts forever, Tony and I are convinced, not because golfers “play slowly” but because they waste 10 seconds here and 20 seconds there, pointlessly, on every shot on every hole. This is an existential issue for golf, because one of the biggest beefs that new players have about the game (in addition to the fact that hitting a golf ball is demonstrably impossible) is that it takes all day. If the members of a foursome each trim just 30 seconds a hole—a target easily within the capabilities of almost any player—the total savings, over a single round, add up to more than half an hour. Tony’s and my discussion about marginal gains began with his observation that not wearing a glove (a practice he adopted many years ago for the purpose of playing faster) saves a surprising amount of time, because he isn’t continually pausing to put it on and take it off. Not everyone likes to play barehanded, but if you wear a glove, as I do, you can achieve the same benefit by leaving it on all the time or fussing with it only when you’re doing something else, like walking toward your ball. Here are some other areas ripe for marginal improvement:
HIT FIRST, THEN SEARCH.
If a member of your group slices one into the weeds, play your shot before you wander over to help. This isn’t rude. He’ll probably have found his ball by the time you’ve hit, anyway, and you won’t be holding up the group behind you by joining the search.
Only two or three of the two dozen regulars in my club’s Sunday-morning men’s game still take practice swings. That alone probably saves 20 minutes per round per foursome. If you can’t play without a practice swing, limit yourself to one. Preshot routines are important (supposedly), but they don’t have to last forever.
BE READY TO PLAY.
During a spring vacation trip with my family many years ago, I sat on the terrace of our rented condo, which overlooked a golf course, and spent a couple of hours reading a book and watching other people play golf. Main takeaway: absolutely no one I observed was ready to act when it was their turn to act. They stood or sat like zombies until they were away, and only then did they begin to check their yardage, test the wind, pick a club, clean their grooves, put on their glove. Five minutes per foursome per hole, at least.
PLAN AHEAD.
On a links course in Scotland in the early ‘90s, I joined two members who were playing a club match, and even though I thought of myself as a speedy player, I had to concentrate to keep up with them. One reason they were fast is that at every green they left their clubs in exactly the right place: on their route to the next tee. If (like many slow players) you dump your bag or park your cart in a random location—or, worse, directly in front the green—the players behind you can’t hit until you’ve fully decamped. Sad! Of course, becoming faster feels futile if everyone else is slow. But a non-dawdling foursome can speed up an entire course, by constantly nudging the group ahead. And there’s a bonus, which is that playing faster leaves less time for the most destructive force in golf: thinking.
Veneet Mohan
What was your first job in the Middle East?
What is your earliest golf memory?
Hacking around the Creek par 3 course as a 36 year old, wondering how I would ever handle the ‘big’ course.
What is your first memory of EGC? 2017 Emirates Senior Open
It was in early 1998, as a 28 handicapper, when I was asked to play on a sponsor’s invite in the Indian Invitational. The seemingly insurmountable distance between the tee and the start of the fairway on the 8th hole of the Majlis was an ‘Oh-my-God’ moment for me.
I now own and manage two nurseries, under the Oakfield name, one in JLT and one in Jumeirah. With over 150 children between them, we are proud to be perhaps the only fully inclusive nurseries in Dubai. It is the best job in the world.
What is your favourite golf course in the world?
What has been your best job ever? I’m doing it now…..to be a part of the development of young minds and their journey to discovery is a joy which never palls.
First low score in a competition
Tell me a bit about your family.
I am still waiting for my first hole-in-one, but the five iron which dropped in for an eagle on the 6th hole of the Majlis earlier this year comes close!
What do you consider to be your greatest on-course golf accomplishment?
The Mohans
What is your favourite childhood memory?
Posting my first ever score of 1 under 71 (Majlis) in defence of Emirates Golf Club Men’s Seniors title this year with my first ever seven birdies in a round, including my first ever four birdies in a row, (2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th), followed promptly by a double bogey on the 6th.
That has to be our family road trip over a week, driving across India, from Calcutta to New Delhi in early 1971. Given the condition of Indian roads then, it was quite an adventure.
And your best young adult memories?
Bhutan Machhu Picchu 2006 with Nupur
The two years of my MBA at IIM Bangalore were perhaps the most stimulating and enjoyable years of my youth
Great venue for a golf course - Sapa, Vietnam
I love science fiction and fantasy as genres and I am currently enjoying Book 12 of the Drizzit series.
Playing a pleasant 18 holes of golf at the Creek with Dwight Yorke without realising it was him until the 19th hole.
What do you love about Emirates Golf Club?
Whitewater rafting in Bhutan
St Petersburg, prettiest city in the world Lining up
Sathguru (Indian yogi and mystic) Donald Trump, Tiger Woods.
What are you reading right now?
What has been your most memorable golf encounter?
The camaraderie, sense of belonging, being part of a community which I really enjoy, the mixed emotions that the Omega Dubai Desert Classic brings to us members and the friendly efficiency of the junior staff.
Sitting on a completely empty verandah, as if I was the only person left in the world, looking onto the green vista around the ancient temples of Khajuraho, Madhya Pradesh, in a cloudburst in the height of summer, with rain pelting down around me.
What would be your dream fourball for golf?
Nuwara Eliya golf course in Sri Lanka. The layout, the views, the weather, the 120 year old clubhouse, the caddies, all come together beautifully for me.
What is your best golf shot memory?
I am the youngest of three; I grew up as a nomad, travelling around India as my Dad was in the Air Force. I call the best planned city in India, Chandigarh, my home. My wife and I live in Dubai while our daughters, our pride and joy, live and work in London.
What has been your most exotic travel destination to date?
ofilE
My first foray outside India was on 1st of August 1984. I landed in Dubai as a management trainee with African and Eastern (Unilever). I was a stranger in a strange land, Dubai was actually my first real job. As a management trainee, I rotated around different departments of Unilever including the liquor business of African & Eastern. Late evening ‘market visits’ to pubs around Dubai were the highlight of my training stint.
MEMbErs pr
Spotlight on…
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Microlight over Victoria Falls Ashville NC
hys
30 rulEs by r
BY RHYS
A
Matchplay
s the Club matchplay season gets underway, this month I will be discussing the options you have if a scenario arises where you are unsure of the ruling and there is doubt on how to proceed. In stroke play, a player who is doubtful of his rights or the correct procedure can play out the hole with two balls. He must state which ball he would like to count in his score and report the facts to the committee before submitting his scorecard. However, in matchplay you cannot play two balls. You MUST continue the match without delay by proceeding in the manner that you believe is in line with the rules. If your opponent disagrees with this,
the opponent can make a claim to be considered by the committee later. The opponent MUST make the claim in a ‘timely manner’ and MUST notify you that he wants to seek a ruling. The claim MUST be made before any player plays from the next teeing ground or, in the case of the last hole of the match, before all players leave the putting green. Once the result of the match has been officially announced, a claim may not be considered by the committee unless: • The claim is based on facts, which were previously unknown to the player making the claim at the time the result was officially announced. • The player making the claim had been given wrong information by an opponent.
• The opponent knew he was giving wrong information.
STATUS OF A LATE CLAIM
As mentioned claims MUST be made in a ‘timely manner’, otherwise the committee is unable to consider them. For Example: a player realises that his opponent should have lost the 4th hole when he grounded his club in a bunker. For a claim to be made in a ‘timely manner’, the player would need to raise a claim before either player played a stroke from the 5th tee. If you have any rules queries that you would like to discuss over the coming weeks then please do not hesitate to ask on your next visit to the club or simply email your query to rjames@dubaigolf.co.m
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS 2017 Sunday 3rd December
Day 1
Official Practice Day
07.00-15.00
Monday 4th December
Day 2
Official Practice Day 07.00-15.00 Challenge Match (Par 3 Course)
Tuesday 5th December
Day 3
Pro-Am
Wednesday 6th December
Day 4
Round One
Thursday 7th December
Day 5
Round Two
Friday 8th December
Day 6
Round Three Star Clinic
Saturday 9th December
Day 7
Final Round Prize Presentation
07.30 & 12.45 shotgun starts
Majlis Driving Range 17.30
Tis the season!
I
hope you all had the opportunity to watch the short video we did on this year’s overseeding practice on the Majlis which took place from 29th October to 2nd November. To put things in perspective… in the lifecycle of a new born baby we need to take it from being new born to a teenager in the space of four weeks (and you know how teenagers can be!) The seed germinates in around 3-5 days and drops a small root into the soil for the first time. Within 10 days you will see an even blanket of green across the fairways in particular. By day 14 the Rye is ready for its first cut (the baby is now up and walking). Ideally we want to do all our mowing when the course is dry, as the quality of cut is a lot better and when you are growing in a new seedling, it is paramount that you get a good quality cut through the plant to prevent any opportunity for disease and damaged cells. Donal and his mechanics will be spending a lot of time fine tuning our
equipment and ensuring, in particular, that the cutting units are razor sharp, utilising our newly purchased grinders! Why does it have to be sharp? Imagine going for an operation and the doctor arrives with a blunt scalpel to work through your skin....that’s why! To help minimise any disease, we typically spray a preventative fungicide to assist, prior to the first cut. In terms of fertility (food), the plant is spoon-fed for the first six weeks and we spray a liquid based fertiliser that is absorbed through the leaf and translocated into the root system, versus applying a granular. The reason for this is two-fold. If we apply a granular too soon, the still active Bermuda grass will be able to absorb this and potentially out-compete the new Rye that we are trying to promote. Secondly, the new Rye seedlings’ root system is not advanced enough just yet to take up the nutrients from below, hence us feeding through the leaf until it is more mature. By eight weeks our Rye is pretty well established and we can really start to fine tune our maintenance practices and start producing somewhat of a young adult to work with. By 12 weeks we are a matter of days away from the Omega Dubai Desert Classic so in its life-cycle you can appreciate that the Rye needs to
9th October Nice from far but a long way to go before we can call this a surface
r’s grEEnkEEpE Cuttings
GREENKEEPER’S CUTTINGS
31
grow up pretty quickly. It’s not typical for a plant to have to establish as quickly as this, but when you are overseeding into an existing stand of competing turf, you need to push things along pretty quickly. During the coming weeks we remain a walking golf course so take advantage of the great weather. For those of you who are taking trolleys, we have asked the caddies to please walk the trolleys towards the cart paths when you get close to greens. If you could please help us out by not walking the trolleys up to the edges of the greens it would be greatly appreciated. These are the most difficult areas to get good germination and the less traffic here, the better for us and ultimately for you as well. Things will be wet out there as we continue to water little and often, but rest assured, as the plant matures, we dial back considerably and will have the surfaces firmer and faster and as soon as possible. As always, we sincerely thank you for your understanding and we look forward to providing you with fine surfaces for the season ahead. Good golfing! Craig Haldane Director - Golf Course Maintenance
MilEs’ MoM
Ents
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F&B UPDATE
MILES ENTWHISTLE
We are open!
A
s I am sure most of you will have seen, we have now officially opened Jones the Grocer on the ground floor of the Clubhouse. I can speak from experience that the menu is fantastic, offering a wide choice of dishes served from 06.00 until 22.00 during the week and until 23.00 at the weekend. A few of my personal favourites so far would be the Brioche French Toast with Vanilla Seed Crème Anglaise from the breakfast menu, Burrata (basically a creamy mozzarella) with grilled olive bread, Jones Wagyu Burger made with freshly minced and marinated wagyu and finally, the delicious Crispy Buttermilk Chicken Burger. The restaurant also offers a fantastic beverage selection with a host of refreshing drinks including, Jones natural fruit cordials, Organic Cold Pressed Juice’s, Jones Sparkling Organic Juice’s, Fever Tree sodas and fresh smoothies using fruits, natural yogurt and honey - just to name a few.
As for the coffee, I will quote Jones themselves
We look forward to welcoming you to the new restaurant over the coming weeks, and hope you enjoy everything on offer as much as we do. Just a reminder that members’ discount is applicable in Jones the Grocer. In other areas of F&B we have completed the summer renovation of the pool bar, with the introduction of hops draught taps, an air conditioned storage room and a new polished work surface which will aim to improve the service and experience around the pool. We were glad to support the ladies again during the Pink Ball with on-course snacks and ‘pink bags’. The ladies did a fantastic job raising money so huge congratulations to you all on another successful year.
MEET THE TEAM AT JONES THE GROCER JACO GROVE
GRAEME BEGGS
Spike Bar: Restaurant Manager
Jones the Grocer: Restaurant Manager Graeme is a 26 year old South African who grew up in Dubai and developed a deep passion for food and beverages of all origins. His parents are Dubai Golf members who are proud to become a part of Dubai Golf’s wonderful family. Graeme started his career in F&B as Assistant Restaurant Manager and part of pre-opening team of Pollo Pollo restaurant. He went on to being in charge of an outlet in IMG World of World Adventure where he was part of the pre-opening management team; he was also involved with the closing construction for another restaurant and then become Acting Manager for three of the QSR Restaurants.
MOHIT KUMAR SINGH
Jones the Grocer: Assistant Restaurant Manager Mohit is 29 years old and from Mumbai, India. He is a very passionate, enthusiastic and a team player. With over nine years of experience in the F&B industry, he has worked with International chains such as Intercontinental Hotels, Park Plaza, Ramada and Cheesecake Factory. He was part of pre-opening teams for more than four properties. Mohit is very happy and excited to join the great family of Dubai Golf.
R
oseleaf Café, founded by Rose Zeini and husband Leon, was born from a passion for home cooking, entertaining and the love of seeing generations of family come together over shared meals. Hailing from Australia and New Zealand respectively, Rose and Leon bring their experiences from previous restaurant concepts, combined with their love for dining and traveling, to create the now cult following that Roseleaf Café has earned.
Jaco is 32 years old, grew up in South Africa and is the proud brother of André Grove who previously managed Emirates Golf Club Spike Bar. He has over 12 years of experience in hospitality, having worked for four years as Assistant Manager of Mövenpick Jumeirah Lake Towers where he was responsible for the smooth operation of their flagship bar UBK. Jaco also led the operation of 3 Bars in the famous Riva Beach Club in Palm Jumeirah with 34 team members.
DAYAN ANTHONY
Jones the Grocer: Head Chef Dayan is 37 years old of Sri Lankan nationality with more than sixteen years of professional experience in the hospitality industry. He has worked in different hotels in Dubai, namely, Jebel Ali Oasis Beach Tower, Jebel Ali Resorts & Hotels, The Address Hotel Dubai Marina, Atlantis the Palm, Dubai (pre-opening team), Hilton Dubai Creek, Bab Al Shams Desert Resort & Spa (pre-opening team). Dayan possesses qualities such as being very vigilant, pro-active, accurate and enthusiastic about his work and he is very friendly. He has been tenacious in forging strong relationships with colleagues and with customers and he has built up a reputation for unwavering credibility, loyalty, and accuracy. He is motivated, hardworking, reliable, result focused with a great passion for his work.
Rose’s philosophy is simple, believing in offering fresh, quality, healthy, crafted goodness that is kind to your wallet. Add into that a little bit of creativity, innovative touches to traditional recipes and a dedicated kitchen team and you’re sure to find that they’ve managed to create something magical to your taste. Roseleaf Café is now open at Emirates Golf Club, serving handcrafted coffee, delectable sweets and home-cooked savoury dishes daily from 7.00am. For more information, visit www.roseleafcafe.com
33 rECipEs
SPIKE recipe of the month by Chef Nicholas
CAPTAIN’S SALAD Roseleaf recipe of the month
Energy Balls
Energy Balls? Like most modern day families we have a busy household with a teenager and a tween. Our lives are packed to the brim with non-stop activities, so when it comes to filling a small hole in your tummy these little rascals are the perfect healthy energy provider. Roseleaf Energy Balls are bite-sized snacks that will hold you over until the next “proper” meal as they are filled with a blissful combination of protein, carbs and fats. Below is an adapted recipe that we make and love because it’s quick, super easy and very adaptable to tweak the ingredients to suit your tastebuds. Servings: 24 Ingredients 1 cup porridge oats 1/2 cup creamy or crunchy peanut butter 1/2 cup ground flaxseed 1 cup dates 2 tbs cocoa powder 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (you can also use mini chocolate chips, raisins, dried cranberries) 1 tbs coconut for dusting Instructions Add all of the ingredients to a large bowl and mix together well. Form into balls. If the mixture is too sticky, chill in the fridge for easier handling. Dust with coconut.
Roasted eggplant & cauliflower with tahini green goddess dressing Ingredients 680gms cauliflower, cored and cut into 1-inch florets 140gms extra-virgin olive oil 5gms salt 5gms pepper 450gms Japanese eggplant, sliced 1/4 inch thick 250gms Greek yogurt, preferably 62gms tahini Anchovy fillets, drained 2pcs garlic cloves 15ml fresh lemon juice 30gms chopped dill 30gms chopped parsley 225gms Persian or kirby cucumbers, thinly sliced 1pc avocados, peeled and cut into wedges 115gms watercress, stemmed sumak yoghurt Instructions 1. Preheat the oven to 450°. On a rimmed baking sheet, toss the cauliflower with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil and season with salt and pepper; spread in an even layer. On a second rimmed baking sheet, toss the eggplant with 1/4 cup of the olive oil and season with salt and pepper; spread in an even layer. Roast the vegetables, stirring occasionally, until golden and tender, 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer the vegetables to racks to cool. 2. Meanwhile, in a food processor, puree the yogurt, tahini, anchovies, garlic and lemon juice until smooth. With the machine on, drizzle in 3 tablespoons of water and the remaining 3 tablespoons of olive oil until smooth; season with salt and pepper. Stir in the dill and parsley. 3. In a 3- to 4-quart glass trifle dish or bowl, spread the cucumbers in an even layer; season with salt and pepper. Top with the cooled eggplant and cauliflower and the avocados and season with salt and pepper. Finish with the watercress and serve the salad with the tahini dressing.
fit lab
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Dear Members,
W
ell what a start to the new season - it’s great to see many of you really getting at it in Fit Lab and sticking to those fitness goals. I can honestly say in my fifteen years at the Club it is the busiest I have seen the whole operation. I am very proud to say that the Club keeps on evolving year on year making us the best in the business, not just in this region, but worldwide.
If you ook at the wide range of facilities at our Golf Club I am sure you will agree with me it would take a special golf club to beat what we have. As you know we have tried to partner with the best in the business like Sensasia, Up and Running, Hamilton Aquatics, Zata Sports, Elite Squash Academy and Roseleaf Café to name a few and they are really adding great value to the Club and helping to enhance your experience, so I would like to say a special thank you to all of our partners who are doing an incredible job. Padel Tennis continues to grow and if you haven’t tried this already, it is a must try for any age and standard. We are in the process of building a fourth court which will give you an even greater opportunity to play and this should be ready by the New Year. Padel Tennis has also been involved with the Fitness Challenge and it’s great to see new players joining in. Mac our new professional Zumba Instructor is doing an amazing job and is heavily involved in the Fitness Challenge going on in Dubai. Mac has been running a free Zumba Class on Mondays and has been hugely successful. For you ladies this is another must try.
TENNIS ZATA is keeping busy at Emirates Golf Club with the 2017/18 tennis programme running at almost full capacity. October was Breast Cancer month and again we hosted our breast cancer ladies’ tournament with full attendance for the eighth year running. The vibe was fantastic and everyone thoroughly enjoyed themselves. Congratulations to the eventual winners Carolyn Thompson and Alison Graham as well as to Fiona Donaldson and Annie Ellerby who were as runners-up. Part of the proceeds were donated to the UAE charity Brest Friends. a very worthy cause, which is in partnership with the Al Jalila Foundation, a licensed Dubai charity. Andy Meech Head of Sports & Leisure
ASSESS YOUR RUNNING TECHNIQUE AT UPANDRUNNING
T
he UPANDRUNNING Run Clinic in Dubai is a service provided by our running specialist physiotherapists, which helps runners to overcome pain and improve performance. If you are a runner with a niggle, incorrect biomechanics, poor technique or simply want to improve your performance – the Run Clinic can help. During a 60-minute appointment, using a treadmill and running analysis software, we will digitally assess your running technique, cadence, biomechanics and any injuries you are carrying. Your consultation will include: • Running specific examination • Biomechanical running assessment • Video analysis of your technique, including cadence analysis • Musculoskeletal screening • Technique advice and correction • Footwear advice • Rehabilitation / management plan • Advice on exercises and stretches to assist your performance • Running training plan To book a session at the Run clinic please call 04 518 5400 for appointments or email info@upandrunningdubai.com.
20%
early bird
discounts* IN-SPA NOV 23RD – 30TH
gifting for christmas Get
PERSONALISED GIFT VOUCHERS FOR YOUR LOVED ONES WWW.SENSASIASPAS.COM SENSASIA URBAN SPA AT EMIRATES GOLF CLUB 04 417 9820 *Ts & Cs apply as always | This offer is only valid between November 23rd – 30th 2017 | This offer is not valid with any other offers or promotions | This offer is not valid for the purchase of products or spa packages such as SERIES 3/6/9 | This offer is not valid in conjunction with Love My points | SensAsia reserves the right to change the terms and conditions of this offer without any prior notice.
proshop
36
Juan Kramer Retail Manager Prosports International Mob: +97150 6685157 email: juan@prosports.ae www.prosports.ae
TEE & SANDWEDGES FROM THE PROSHOP THE IDEAL GIFT 2017 LIMITED RELEASE: MYGIRL
W
ith the 16th edition of his My Girl Putter, Scotty Cameron created a customised Futura 5MB that puts the powers in flowers with a unique “muscle back” made for the ladies. In a rose gold finish crafted especially for his highly anticipated seasonal offering, this 34 inch limited mid-mallet shows its strength with a milled flower pattern designed into the curved flange of this multi-material masterpiece. Always accessorised to the hilt, the 2017 My Girl comes with a precious milled aluminium shaft ring anodised in a stunning copper hue, a Tour-Preferred custom Matador grip and a matching flower print headcover made especially for this year’s edition. It has been limited to only 1,250 pieces and the UAE will have only two - we are lucky enough to have both at Emirates Golf Club. SPECIFICATIONS Loft Head Material Lie Weights Length Offset Grip Release Details
What’s
3.5 degrees 70 degrees 2 x20grams 34” Full Shaft Black Leather Pittards 11” custom black mid-size Matador with copper coloured print only 1,250 pieces made worldwide
ECCO IS BACK IN OUR STORE
NEW
When top performance is a must, the ECCO shoes will set your game free. Featuring our revolutionary spike-less outsole ECCO SPYDR-GRIP®, our newest addition to the ECCO CAGE line, the ECCO CAGE PRO maintains the same incredible stability and flexibility, while its powerful grip utilises your foot’s pivot points for a natural, effortless swing.
THE NEW TAYLORMADE SPIDER PUTTERS After a sell out in the first half of the year, TaylorMade have launched the new TaylorMade TP Spider Putter Collection. The Spider Tour Red with Sightline delivers Tour-proven performance to every golfer. With perimeter weighting for added stability and an added sightline to zero in the player’s focus, Spider Tour Red with Sightline provides a stroke of confidence to help golfers drain more putts when they matter most. Retail Price: Members’ price:
AED 1,195.00 (less 20%) AED 956.00
PURE ROLL™ INSERT
Played by Rory McIlroy, Jason Day and Dustin Johnson, the Pure Roll™ insert combines 45° grooves with a softer polymer to increase topspin and improve forward roll across varying surfaces, helping your ball start and stay on its intended line.
TITLEIST FITTING DAY AT EMIRATES GOLF CLUB On Tuesday 21st of November, Team Titleist will join us at Emirates Golf Club Majlis Driving Range between 4.00 and 8.00pm. Book your individual 30 minute time slot with the Golf Shop team to get fitted for the new Titleist 718 irons and 818 Hybrids.
BOOK YOUR SLOT Station 1
Name
Station 2
4.30pm
4.30pm
5.30pm
5.30pm
6.30pm
6.30pm
7.30pm
7.30pm
Name
NEW 718 AP IRONS. MORE DISTANCE, MORE FORGIVENESS AND MORE PROVEN PERFORMANCE FOR EVERY PLAYER.
Titleist have released their new 718 irons and 818 hybrids. With six different iron sets and two different hybrids the new range is designed with something to suit everyone so it’s definitely worth attending one of our regular fitting evenings to try them for yourself. Perhaps the most anticipated club is the all new 718 AP3 irons that truly represent the best of both worlds, specialised in speed and formidable in forgiveness. Everything Titleist have learned from creating and advancing their AP1 and AP2 irons merged to create the longest, fastest player’s iron ever: 1+2=3. Retail Price
Price Including Members 20%Discount
Ap1
AED 605
AED 484
Ap1 Graphite
AED 735
AED 588
Ap2
AED 845
AED 676
Ap2 Graphite
AED 980
Ap2 Graphite
Ap3
AED 845
AED 784
Ap3 Graphite
AED 990
AED 676
CB
AED 845
AED 792
MB
AED 845
AED 676
TMB
AED 1,175
AED 676
TMB Graphite
AED 1,335
AED 940
Hybrids 818 H1/H2
AED 1,068 AED 1,375
AED 1,100
AND STILL THE NUMBER 1 BALL IN GOLF… Titleist is still the #1 ball in golf. They recently released their midyear report since we have passed the midway point on the calendar across the worldwide professional golf tours. Their report confirmed that over the first half of the 2016-2017 season Titleist has once again been the #1 ball for more players and more champions: ‘To date this season, the game’s finest players have relied on a Titleist Pro V1 or Pro V1x golf ball 15,411 times, more than seven times the nearest competitor with 2,123 and more than all competitors combined. During this same time, Titleist golf ball players recorded 115 worldwide victories, more than seven times the nearest competitor with 16’! It’s the one thing you use on every shot so why settle for anything other than the #1 ball in golf?! Warm Regards, Juan Kramer
s t e p p i n S e l 19th Ho National Flag Day
Life members Alwyn & David Nesbitt and Frank & Paula Johnstone on a visit in October from Spain to Portugal to catch up with Tom & Jacqui Barry
Ishu Rupani, Nelly Amarnani, Hitesh Bhayani and Anand Lakhiani visiting the Dreamland Golf Course in Baku Former European Tour and Solheim Cup player Lisl Esterl and partner, Neil Webb (former Pro at Emirates Golf Club) played in the Pink Charity Day in aid of Breast Cancer at Quinta do Lago, Portugal last month. They send their regards to all friends at the Club
Tom Barry, Rai Legnar, Ross Lovelock, Wayne Foster, Simon Blenkinsop, Gordon Ratcliffe, Sean Thornberry, Mike Sim Sid Howlett, Front: Bill Gandy, Danny Kilgallon, Jim Mullins (Ross Barry was also present but missing from photo)
Past Captain, Dick Purchase recently visited the Club Pictured with Pro Bryan Smyth and Dubai Golf CEO, Chris May
’
WHAT S ON? Golf CalendaR DATES FOR YOUR DIARY NOVEMBER 2017
Bryan Smyth’s putting masterclasses are proving to be very popular
Paul Byrne with Bryan McFadden from Westlife and Keith Duffy from Boyszone
29th October - 2nd November - Majlis course is closed for overseeding. NO CARTS are allowed on the Majlis course from 3rd November 2017 until 7th February 2018 Saturday 11th Junior Open 08:35 - 11:35, Faldo Monday 13th Ladies Competition & 08.30, Faldo Past Captains’ Trophy November 16th -19th DP World Championship, Jumeirah Golf Estates Monday 20th Heritage Trophy - Round 1 08.30, Faldo Friday 24th Clubhouse Trophy 13.00, Majlis Saturday 25th Legacy Prime Members Pro-Am 13.00, Majlis Monday 27th Heritage Trophy - Round 2 08.30, Majlis