Worldwide golf march 2014 digital copy

M I D D L E E A S T ’ S N U M B E R O N E G O L F M A G A Z I N E . E S T. 1 9 9 9

Worldwide

Official Media Partner to the European Tour in the Middle East

MARCH MARC MA RCH H 20 2014, 2014 14,, IS ISSU ISSUE SUE E 15 157 7

Official magazine of the EGF & the Arab Golf Federation

PLUS

Big B ig Dogs Dogs Unleashed Unle easshed Testing time for the Big Berthas, Ping i25, TaylorMade SLDR and Titleist 913

LUKE

BAHRAIN WIN THE 2014 GCC CHAMPIONSHIP ARABIAN GOLF NEWS FROM THE REGION’S LEADING CLUBS

DONALD IT’S ALL CHANGE FOR THE FORMER WORLD No.1 AS HE LOOKS TO REBUILD HIS GAME FOR A TILT AT MAJOR GLORY

GOLF STYLE CLUB SPOTLIGHT Jumeirah Golf Estates

WIN A Callaway Big Berth Alpha

From the latest must-have items to celebrities on course

ISBN 978-9948-15-427-3

INTRODUCTION Worldwide Golf Executive Editor Since 1999

The 9-time Major Champion and 9-time Senior Major Champion p who has witnessed and been a part of some of the most historic a and memorable go golfing occasions refl reflects on the game toda today

Player Gary

Dubuisson’s rise to fame boosts French golf

I

N all my years in golf I don’t think I have ever seen a succession of sensational recovery shots of the quality that Victor Dubuisson conjured up against Jason Day in last month’s World Golf ChampionshipsAccenture Match Play Championship final in the Arizona desert.

I’ve seen some great recovery shots in my time but not from the impossible positions he was in.

He was in the desert among the rocks and thorns and just took a swipe at it and somehow his ball just landed nicely onto the green. Then he was in a difficult position in the long fringe where it’s so easy to get stuck and got it out cleanly on the green and holed his putt both times.

I met Victor when he played at Sun City in the Nedbank Golf Challenge, where he finished in a share of 20th place, and had dinner with him. He’s a really nice person.

His rise up the World Ranking is sensational. He burst onto the international scene by winning the Turkish Airlines Open last November, beating Tiger Woods, and collecting $848,930 in prize money in the process, and the following week he was third behind the untouchable Henrik Stenson at the DP World Tour Championship, the season-ending climax to The European Tour season and the final leg of The Race to Dubai.

After playing at Sun City in January he tied for fifth place in the Volvo Golf Champions at Durban Country Club, South Africa. Then last month he was runner-up to Jason Day in the WGCAccenture Match Play Championship in Arizona.

Victor joined The European Tour in 2011 at the Qualifying School Final Stage and finished the season 106th on The Race to Dubai. In 2012 he finished 52nd. Yet in the four months of November and December 2013 and January and February this year he earned more than €2million in prize money.

He currently stands in third place on The Race to Dubai and in 23rd place on the Official World Golf

2 | WorldwideGolf - March 2014

Ranking. That’s quite something for a previously little known 23 year old. He’s also close to guaranteeing his place in Europe’s Ryder Cup Team at Gleneagles in Scotland in September. He’s leading The Ryder Cup European Points List and is third on the Ryder Cup World Points List.

Victor’s success in the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship was the first victory by a Frenchman on the US PGA Tour. It’s a wonderful boost for French golf. Apart from Jean Van Der Velde, who had the chance of a lifetime to win The Open in 1999 at Carnoustie, there have been very few world-class French golfers. With The Ryder Cup being held at Le Golf National in 2018 Victor could

make the Team and create even more interest in the game in France.

We shouldn’t forget the winner of the WGCAccenture Match Play Championship, Jason Day. He’s impressed me a lot over the last few years and I mentioned in my column in Worldwide Golf before that Jason has the ability to win big events.

With that wonderful golf swing he’s got there’s no way of telling just how good Jason can be.

Australia has been a wonderful golfing nation for many, many years and with Adam Scott ranked No.2 in the world and Jason Day No.4 it’s a while since they’ve had two players in the top five in the world. Q

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CONTENTS

Over 100 destinations worldwide

2014 DRIVER TEST

LUKE DONALD’S

Major Changes

By RICHARD BEVAN

The leading drivers line up for our 2014 test. Is the latest Callaway Big Bertha worthy of it’s name? Can the TaylorMade SLDR still pack a punch in this class? PING’S stealthy-looking i25 has taken three years to develop – will it shine? The legendary Titleist 913 is a class act but does it have the muscle to compete as drivers these days are starting to resemble Swiss Army Knives on steriods.

Unleash the

‘DOGS’

IF there is one player not traditionally associated with chopping and changing things every five minutes in the quest for glory it has to be Luke Donald. Think consistency and you automatically think of Luke. Not only in the way he plays the game but the way he manages his career. Now it’s all change as he reworks his game to capture that first elusive Major.

Âť

20 Luke Donald

Former World No.1 talks about the changes he’s made to build a Major-winning swing. His short game will always remain sharp but his says that tee to green his game has not always been consistently strong when the pressure is on.

FEATURES 26 Eruopean Tour Properties and Destinations

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8

TaylorMade SLDR

52

Lofts: 8o, 9.5o, 10.5o, 12o

Standard shaft Options: Fujikura Speeder 57. Flex: X, S, R, M

63 GCC Championship and the SAGF

Report on the 18th GCC Championship at Dirab GC, Riyadh, VJG 5CWFK )QNH (GFGTCVKQP CPF VJG 0$1 KPXKVCVKQP VQ /WUECV

INSTRUCTION 47 Fundamental way to lower your score

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6 | WorldwideGolf - March 2014

Standard shaft Options: PWR 55 S&R, PWR 65 R,S,TS, X PWR 75 S,TS, X RRP: $499 WorldwideGolf - March 2014 | 53

12 The Starter 0GYU QP C DKV QH VJKU C DKV QH VJCV CPF C DKV QH VJG QVJGTĐ?

18 World Round-ups 4GXKGY QH TGEGPV 'WTQRGCP 6QWT CPF 75 2)# 6QWT GXGPVU

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63 Arabian Golf 4GEGPV TGRQTVU QH GXGPVU CTQWPF VJG TGIKQPŨU IQNH ENWDU

STYLE 89 Sir Bobby Charlton The Manchester United legend talks about the game and what makes Rory McIlroy such a stand-out player.

92 Driving Range Win an Audi A8L with Dubai Duty Free.

95 LPGA Spotlight With Solheim Cup-winning member Caroline Masson.

96 Fashion

Adjustable by 1/2 degrees

RRP: $399

RRP: $499

REGULARS

COMPETITION

Standard shaft Options: Mitsubishi Rayon: S, R, L

Ping i25 Lofts: 8.5o,9.5o, 10.5o

%CNNCYC[ŨU $KI $GTVJC $KI $GTVJ #NRJC 2KPIŨU K

TaylorMade’s SLDR and Titleist’s 913 line up in our 9QTNFYKFG )QNH ENWD VGUV VQ EJGEM QWV YJQ TGCNN[ RCEMU VJG DKIIGUV RWPEJ ;QW ECP DW[ VJGUG ENWDU UVTCKIJV QHH VJG UJGNH

$[ #NCUVCKT $TQYP 2)# )QNH 2TQHGUUKQPCN 'OKTCVGU )QNH %NWD

45 Win a Big Bertha Alpha

Standard shaft Options: Aldila Tour Green 65 S, Aldila RIP Phenom 70 S, Diamana D+ White 72, Diamana S+ Blue 62 R&S

Adjustable

52 Latest drivers get the TrackMan treatment

50 How to eliminate the 3-putt

RRP: $499

Callaway Big Bertha Lofts: 9.0o, 10.5o,13.5o

Big Dogs Unleashed

34 Akoya by Damac Trump International GC

Standard shaft Options: Mitsubishi Rayon: X, S, R, L

Titleist 913 D3 Lofts: 7.5o, 8.5o, 9.5o, 10.5o

52 | WorldwideGolf - March 2014

&CXKF *QYGNN VCMGU C NQQM CV VJG UVCVG QH VJG CTV VGEJPQNQI[ at the Performance Institute with Wayne Johnson.

Course designer Gil Hans pays a site visit to the course and GZRNCKPU JKU NC[QWV KP C 3 # YKVJ 9QTNFYKFG )QNH

Lofts: 9o, (10.5o out in April)

RRP: $399

30 European Tour Performance Institute at Jumeirah Golf Estates

Callaway Big Bertha Alpha

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Worldwide Golf

Contents

Drivers tested and big names get set for the Majors WITH the launch of the new Callaway Big Bertha, we just had to find out how the leading brands stacked up against it. The most accurate way to test clubs accurately is by using an Iron Byron machine, where your can repeat the same swing throughout the test. It was one of the main pieces of equipment used by the USPGA to lay the foundations of club restrictions.

The one thing an Iron Byron machine can’t do is provide personal feeback and deliver the random strikes of a club golfer. As golfers know from looking at the clubface of their own driver after a round, they tend to use all of it and occasionally hit the sweet spot.

Our test was based on testing the performance drivers from the leading brands. Using the TrackMan launch monitor system and a single figure

handicap golfer to provide the feedback and data, not as a robot, but as a club golfer. One aspect the test showed was that the Big Berth Alpha is certainly long but there were a few suprises.

On Tour it wasn’t a surpirse to see Rory back to his best for much of The Honda Classic. We’ve been hearing for months now that Nike has finally been able to optimise his driver and ball combination and he’s hitting it further than ever.

His dad, Jerry, told us prior to The Honda Classic that Rory is playing the best golf of his career at the moment.

Now that’s a bold but confident statement that will grab the attention of the big names going into the US Masters.

Another player focussing heavily on the Majors is our cover feature, Luke Donald. The former World No.1 has

ISSUE No. 157, MARCH, 2014 Published by: Worldwide Sporting Publications Ltd +44 1663 719926

Editor-in-Chief: Mike Gallemore Executive Editor: Gary Player Editor: Alex Gallemore Publisher: Mike Gallemore

Published in Dubai by: Prografix, PO Box 24677, Dubai, UAE (Tel) +9714 340 3785

Senior Editor: Richard Bevan Printed by: Raidy, Dubai

been known not to tinker with anything and remained loyal to his coach for the past 16 year. But, he concedes he has never really got into contention at the Majors in recent years. He acknowledges that his game is based on rhythm and the Major pressure can sometime effect that, especially from tee to green. His short game is one of the best in the business and can be left alone. Luke’s still hungry and I’d expect him to win a few times this season.

There must be something in the air as Luke’s not the only big name Englishman to change his coach. Lee Westwood has been tumbling down the World Ranking and with the Majors looming and in a Ryder Cup year he’s sought-out the advice of Mike Walker.

This should be a good move for Lee as Mike is a great coach and a no-

nonsense guy at that. Well what would you expect from a coach who has grown up and learnt his trade alongside PGA Master Professional Pete Cowen, Lee’s former coach. Mike will know what Lee needs to do as he has seen Pete work with him on the range and will have a sound knowledge of Lee’s swing.

Pete has always believed Lee will win a Major and still believes it. The pair are still friends and seeing Lee win a Major under the guidance of Mike would no doubt make him very proud. He might even smile at the thought!

Alex Gallemore Editor

Editors: Todd Staszko, James Reeves, Advertising & Marketing Director: Richard Bevan Tabitha Florence Design Manager: Sarah B. Mahmood rick@wspglobal.com Technical Manager: Mark Collinge Editorial Executive: Greg Smyth Editorial Panel: Gary Player, Mike greg@wspdubai.com Gallemore, Alex Gallemore, Richard Bevan, Todd Staszko

June 2009 SSN 1- 46805671 Approval UAE National Media Council: Ref.816 30/5/2007 Trade Licence No. 1/104375/15280

Worldwide Golf specifies that post-press changes may occur to any information given in this publication and takes no responsibility for goods or services advertised.

10 | WorldwideGolf - March 2014

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Beware the Monster

W

Tee Box

ITH manufacturers producing drivers that are continually getting longer and balls that are designed to travel further, the classic courses of old can do little to stand up to the precise and awesome onslaught from the best players in the world.

The Blue Course at Doral, which plays host to this month's World Golf ChampionshipsCadillac Championship, was nicknamed “The Blue Monster” when the US PGA Tour began holding The Doral Open there in the early 1960s because it was considered to be frighteningly long and awesomely tough. Although the nickname remains the course's difficulty has plummeted in the last 30 years because technology has effectively reduced its length.

Today – even with stimp meter readings of 13.5 on the greens – it's no longer considered that difficult. Except, of course, for the frightening final hole. The par-4 18th at Doral will remain one of the most difficult closing holes anywhere in the world – whether you’re World No.1 or an average club golfer.

The hole is 467 yards long, which considering how far the Tour professionals hit the ball isn’t much of a “monster.” But water guards the entire left side of the hole, palm trees are sporadically lined along the right and the further right you go the longer the approach to the green becomes. The green itself is narrow and is guarded by bunkers to the right and water to the left. When the wind blows it gets even harder and the water that eats into the green from the left adds to the drama. At last year’s WGC-Cadillac Championship it was the hardest hole of the week, playing to a stroke average of 4.38 and played a full stroke over par in the final round. In 2004 and 2007 it was the most difficult hole across on the US PGA Tour with averages of 4.48 and 4.63 respectively.

“It’s one of the best par-5s on the PGA Tour,” Zach Johnson once joked. “It’s the hardest hole on the planet, especially with the wind coming into you. I know it’s not technically a par-5, but the first hole at Doral is a par-5 and yet 18 always has a higher stroke average than the first hole. The 18th is just one of those holes that scares you.”

It's a true card-wrecker. Survive the 18th for four days in a row and you’re bound to be in with a chance.

WorldwideGolf - March 2014 | 13

OMAN SET FOR 9-HOLE HARRADINE COURSE

CREAMER ENDS A FOUR YEAR DROUGHT WITH A 75-FOOT EAGLE PUTT PAULA Creamer ended her long wait for an LPGA Tour title in the most sensational fashion as a 75-foot eagle putt clinched the HSBC Women's Champions in Singapore.

The American, who hadn't won since the 2010 US Women's Open, sank the unlikely putt to defeat Spain's Azahara Munoz on the second hole of a play-off. "It's one of those

putts where if you just get it in the right spot, it's going to fall down," said Creamer. "But I could stand there all day long and hit that putt and not get it within six, seven feet. This has been such a long time coming."

Overnight leader Karrie Webb faltered down the stretch and finshined in third place, one shot outside the play-off.

Harradine Golf has been contracted to design a 9-hole golf course with driving range and practice facilities as part of a new tourism and real estate development in the seaside town of Qurayyat, Oman.

Located on the coast of the Arabian Sea, the golf course will act as the central core of the WATG-designed masterplan with a surrounding combination of luxurious real estate and hotels.

The site boasts a series of majestic sand dunes ranging from 10 to 28m in height.

With a goal to protect and enhance as much of this landscape as possible, the golf course will weave its way around and between these magnificent dunes, utilising the numerous elevation changes and rolling contours to create a fun, challenging and diverse layout while showcasing the incredible views of the dune landscape and Arabian Sea. The result will undoubtedly be a unique and memorable golfing experience for Oman and the GCC region with a course to equal Peter Harradine's outstanding designs in the Middle East.

RUNNING THE RULE – FROM BJÖRN’S FURY TO DRYSDALE’S HONESTY

By Stuart McMurdo, Golf Operations Manager, Jebel Ali Golf Resort As the dust settles on another fascinating Dubai Desert Classic I can reflect on another excellent performance by the referees who were kept busy during the tournament with a few niggling issues to sort out.

Referees are normally on hand to give guidance to players but during the first round at Emirates Golf Club one referee showed that they also need to be mediators when players disagree on a situation – in particular a difference of opinion between Thomas Björn and Henrik Stenson.

The Swede smashed his tee shot on the 14th into the lake on the right side of the fairway. Luckily, local referee Barney Coleman watched the tee shot all the way and was on hand to assist Stenson with his options. From the lateral water hazard Stenson moved back around 60 yards in line from the point of entry to the lake so he could find a good lie and attack the green with a long iron. He duly dropped his ball and played his shot to the green.

Meanwhile, Björn was in the fairway around 50 yards from Stenson’s new drop position and disagreed with the position of the drop – without checking the line on which Stenson dropped.. He said nothing until play concluded and then spoke to European Tour

14 | WorldwideGolf - March 2014

referee John Paramor. A heated debate ensued on the putting green between the two players and Paramor and the referee

unnecessary scene involving two very highprofile players.

In another incident on the 16th hole Scotland’s David Drysdale called a penalty on himself after he caught a spike mark in the green by accident as he legitimately brushed aside some loose grass which was in line with his putt. He called over the referee, explained what had happened and accepted the two-shot penalty that was incurred. Drysdale completed his round two holes later and missed the cut by one stroke.

His situation reminds us that Golf is a game of honour and honesty and players such as David Drysdale and many more should be praised for upholding the game's integrity.

"IT WAS A STRANGE AND SEEMINGLY UNNECESSARY SCENE INVOLVING TWO VERY HIGH-PROFILE PLAYERS." eventually went back to the spot and agreed with Coleman and Stenson on the drop position, clearing the Swede of any mistake. It was a strange and seemingly

David Drysdale

IKE’S TREE CUT DOWN AFTER ICE STORM AT AUGUSTA A RECENT ice storm has caused irreparable damage to the famous Eisenhower Tree on the 17th hole at Augusta National which has forced officials to removed it ahead of this year’s Masters Tournament.

“The loss of the Eisenhower Tree is difficult news to accept,” said Club Chairman Billy Payne. “We obtained opinions from the best arborists available and, unfortunately, were advised that no recovery was possible.”

The tree gained notoriety because it continually caused problems for former US President Dwight D. Eiswenhower from the tee box. Eisenhower, who was a member from 1948 until his death in 1969, was said to have hit the tree so often that he actively campaigned to have it removed. He took his case to then Club Chairman Clifford Roberts in 1956 but Roberts denied the former President’s requests. It has been known as Eisenhower’s Tree ever since.

The ice storm in early Februray caused the tree to lose a significant amount of its thicker branches and a photo in a local newspaper confirmed gaping sections in its left side.

“We have begun deliberations of the best way to address the future of the 17th hole and to pay tribute to his iconic symbol of our history,” Payne said. “Rest assured, we will do both appropriately.”

STARTER

ADAM SCOTT LISTS HIS ABU DHABI PROPERTY – AND HE'LL PLAY 18 HOLES WITH THE BUYER 1934

1967

1938

2011

Above: Graphics detailing how Augusta National's 17th hole has changed over the last 80 years – Ike's tree boxed in the first image.

Masters Champion Adam Scott had put his villa overlooking Saadiyat Beach Golf Club, Abu Dhabi, up for sale and has offered the person who buys it a round of golf – be it in the UAE or anywhere else in the world.

Listed at AED 22,950,000 ($6.2m), Scott bought the property in 2008 with the idea of using it as his base while competing on The European Tour. However, he has never actually lived in it as the time he spent in recent years across both the US PGA Tour and The European Tour didn’t give him enough time to settle into a routine where he had a true ‘home’.

He had the property fully completed late last year and is now looking to sell, hoping to entice someone to put up the cash with the offer of a round of golf with him.

“Whether the round of golf takes place in Abu Dhabi or on one of the courses in America or Australia, Adam will definitely honour the commitment to play,” said Andrew Colvill, the head of investment sales at LLJ Property.

The 10,000-square-foot Mediterraneanstyle villa boasts more than 2,000 square feet outside, including a pool; domestic and serviced kitchens; a downstairs guest suite; entertaining areas; and rooms in which the service staff can live.

QUICK QUIPS LEE TREVINO:

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HARRY VARDON

JOHN DALY

"My swing is so bad I look like a

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WorldwideGolf - March 2014 | 15

Standings JASON Day has been knocking on the door of some of the biggest tournaments in the world but until last month’s WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship none had opened. It took all of the Australian’s steel to finally defeat Frenchman Victor Dubuisson on the fifth extra hole for just his second win on American soil, which moved him from 11th in the World up to No.4. The Frenchman’s short-game heroics during the extra holes even stirred the US Ryder Cup Captain Tom Watson to take to Twitter and tell the world that Dubuisson had just made “two of the best up-and-downs I have ever seen.” Watson – one of the game’s great short game players – will be hoping that similar heroics aren’t repeated when the biennial battle between USA and Europe takes place at Gleneagles in September. Dubuisson’s runner-up finish sets him well on the way to qualification to Paul McGinley’s Team as he tops the European points list ahead of Thomas Björn by over 500,000 points.

2014 RYDER CUP RANKINGS Qualification Criteria for The 2014 European Ryder Cup Team

Qualification for The 2014 European Ryder Cup Team will be selected employing the following criteria:

The players in Bold currently occupy the ten automatic qualifying places (after the WGC-Accenture Match Play):

(a) The leading four Members on The Ryder Cup European Points List (1) on Sunday August 31st 2014. In the event of a tie between Members (i.e. a number of Members having accumulated an equal number of points), placings will be decided by the Member with the higher ranking on the 2014 Race to Dubai on Sunday 31st August 2014.

EUROPEAN POINTS LIST

WORLD POINTS LIST

1

Victor Dubuisson 2,255,742

1

Henrik Stenson

248.87

2

Thomas Björn

1,718,807

2

Sergio Garcia

166.56

3

Ian Poulter

1,576,650

3

Victor Dubuisson

150.56

4

Henrik Stenson

1,544,871

4

Thomas Björn

137.16

5

Jamie Donaldson

1,505,992

5

Ian Poulter

111.68

6

Joost Luiten

1,171,318

6

Rory McIlroy

105.51

7

G. Fdez-Castano

1,169,262

7

Jamie Donaldson 90.76

8

Sergio Garcia

1,113,266

8

Justin Rose

84.54

9

Francesco Molinari 847,136

9

Joost Luiten

82.01

10

Justin Rose

10

Stephen Gallacher 81.39

837,956

(b) The leading five Members, not otherwise qualified under paragraph (a) above, on The Ryder Cup World Points List (2) on Sunday 31st August 2014. In the event of a tie between Members (i.e. a number of Members having accumulated an equal number of points), placings will be decided by the Member with the higher ranking on the Official World Golf Ranking as published on Monday August 25th 2014. (c) The Captain, Paul McGinley, will choose (at his own discretion) the remaining three Members following the conclusion of the Race to Dubai Tournament scheduled to conclude on August 31st 2014.

(1) The Ryder Cup European Points List will comprise points (1 point = 1 Euro) earned by a Member from all Race to Dubai Tournaments in which he participates between August 26th 2013 and August 31st 2014. (Money earned by a Member from the 2013 Race to Dubai Bonus Pool or Race to Dubai bonus points earned during the 2013 Final series do not count towards this points list).

(2) The Ryder Cup World Points List will comprise Official World Golf Ranking Points won by a Member1 from each tournament in which he participates between August 26th 2013 and August 24th 2014, and thereafte only from the Race to Dubai Tournament scheduled to conclude on August 31st 2014. Official World Golf Ranking Points are allocated to all officially sanctioned tournaments (on any Federated Tour) by the Official World Golf Ranking and are allocated according to the Event Rating of the tournament.

EUROPEAN TOUR RACE TO DUBAI RANKING  AS AT FEBRUARY 28, 2014 Pos. Player

Nat.

Eve. €

17

Dawie VAN DER WALT RSA

10

€315,716

34

Hennie OTTO

RSA

6

€172,172

1

Thomas BJÖRN

DEN

6

€988,969

18

Rory MCILROY

NIR

3

€279,004

35

G. FDEZ-CASTAÑO

ESP

3

€169,217

2

Sergio GARCIA

ESP

4

€849,385

19

Miguel Angel JIMÉNEZ ESP

6

€278,170

36

Jorge CAMPILLO

ESP

9

€169,194

3

Victor DUBUISSON

FRA

3

€833,661

20

Romain WATTEL

FRA

6

€274,202

37

Oliver FISHER

ENG

6

€164,274

4

Louis OOSTHUIZEN

RSA

3

€783,391

21

Emiliano GRILLO

ARG

6

€264,901

38

Jbe KRUGER

RSA

9

€153,327

5

Charl SCHWARTZEL

RSA

6

€583,321

22

Darren FICHARDT

RSA

10

€234,626

39

Tyrrell HATTON

ENG

6

€152,135

6

Jamie DONALDSON

WAL

5

€535,090

23

Brendon DE JONGE

ZIM

2

€221,448

40

Peter UIHLEIN

USA

5

€150,397

7

Branden GRACE

RSA

7

€481,071

24

Rafa CABRERA-BELLO

ESP

4

€207,099

41

Jin JEONG

KOR

5

€149,624

8

George COETZEE

RSA

6

€465,718

25

Thorbjørn OLESEN

DEN

5

€206,884

42

Steve WEBSTER

ENG

7

€148,931

9

Stephen GALLACHER

SCO

5

€437,947

26

Matteo MANASSERO

ITA

5

€205,520

43

Francesco MOLINARI

ITA

3

€140,187

10

Ernie ELS

RSA

4

€428,212

27

Graeme MCDOWELL

NIR

1

€204,156

44

Johan CARLSSON

SWE

7

€134,382

11

Thomas AIKEN

RSA

8

€385,224

28

Justin ROSE

ENG

2

€203,414

45

Raphaël JACQUELIN

FRA

4

€133,479

12

Pablo LARRAZÁBAL

ESP

4

€374,149

29

Tommy FLEETWOOD

ENG

4

€198,556

46

Alejandro CAÑIZARES ESP

5

€130,463

13

Joost LUITEN

NED

5

€361,168

30

Thongchai JAIDEE

THA

5

€197,854

47

Simon DYSON

ENG

7

€128,920

14

Mikko ILONEN

FIN

5

€345,127

31

Richard FINCH

ENG

7

€192,972

48

David LYNN

ENG

3

€126,890

15

Henrik STENSON

SWE

5

€342,533

32

Richard STERNE

RSA

7

€186,852

49

Justin WALTERS

RSA

8

€124,460

16

Morten Ørum MADSEN DEN

8

€323,193

33

Matthew BALDWIN

ENG

8

€186,618

50

Peter HANSON

SWE

4

€123,222

16 | WorldwideGolf - March 2014

TOUR NEWS Date: Jan 23 - 26 Event: Farmers Insurance Open Venue: : Torrey Pines, La Jolla, California, USA Winner’s Cheque: $1,098,000

Date: Jan 30 - Feb 2 Event: Management Phoenix Open Venue: TPC Scottsdale, Arizona, USA Winner’s Cheque: $1,116,000

STADLER FINALLY WINS IN PHOENIX

STALLINGS IS NOT FOR FALLING SCOTT Stallings admitted he didn’t look at any leaderboards as he calmly strode through the field to win the Farmers Insurance Open by one stroke from K.J. Choi, Graham DeLaet, Jason Day and Pat Perez. It was the American’s third victory on the US PGA Tour and it came courtesy of a superb 4-iron approach on the par-5 closing hole which set up a superb two-putt birdie.

Qgm \gf l _]l n]jq eYfq ghhgjlmfala]k lg oaf _gd^ lgmjfYe]flk gf l`ak Lgmj& 9k Y hdYq]j$ Ydd qgm ]n]j oYfl ak [`Yf[]k Yf\ l`Yfc^mddq A \]dan]j]\ l`ak lae]& Pos. Name 1 T2 T2 T2 T2

Scott Stallings K.J. Choi Graham DeLaet Jason Day Pat Perez

Country USA KOR CAN AUS USA

To par

R1 R2 R3 R4

Total

-9 -8 -8 -8 -8

72 74 70 66 67

279 280 280 280 280

67 70 73 73 71

72 70 69 73 72

68 66 68 68 70

Date: Feb 6 - 9 Event: AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am Venue: : Pebble Beach Golf Links, Pebble Beach, California, USA Winner’s Cheque: $1,188,000

L`]j] oYkf l Y o`gd] dgl lg []d]ZjYl] [geaf_ \gof l`] klj]l[` lg\Yq& Al ^]dl dac] A oYk d]Ycaf_ gad& 1 T2 T2

Jimmy Walker Dustin Johnson Jim Renner

USA USA USA

To par

R1 R2 R3 R4

Total

-11 -10 -10

66 69 67 74 68 73 70 66 65 73 72 67

276 277 277

18 | WorldwideGolf - March 2014

Pos. 1 T2 T2

Name Kevin Stadler Graham DeLaet Bubba Watson

Country USA CAN USA

To par -16 -15 -15

R1 65 67 64

R2 68 72 66

R3 67 65 68

R4 68 65 71

Total 268 269 269

COETZEE COAXES IT HOME FOR FIRST WIN

JIMMY Walker held on to the last to win his third US PGA Tour title of the season despite seeing his six-stroke lead erode down the stretch at the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am. The American made the turn six shots clear of the field but by the time he was teeing it up on the imposing closing hole he was just one shot ahead of Dustin Johnson and Jim Renner. On a miserable afternoon at the famous venue, Walker calmly rolled in a 5-footer for par to finally seal the win.

Country

HdYqaf_ oal` eq \Y\ Yl L`] EYkl]jk oYk af l`] ^gj]^jgfl g^ eq eaf] gml l`]j]& @] hjgZYZdq ogmd\ `Yn] dac]\ al Z]ll]j a^ A `Y\ _gll]f l`] oaf Ún] q]Yjk Y_g kg `] [gmd\ [Ydd al imalk fgo o] [Yf ÚfYddq hdYq Yl L`] EYkl]jk lg_]l`]j&

Date: Feb 6 - 9 Event: Joburg Open Venue: Royal Johannesburg & Kensington GC, Johannesburg, South Africa Winner’s Cheque: €206,050

WALKER WRAPS UP HIS THIRD WIN

Pos. Name

AFTER 239 starts on the US PGA Tour Kevin Stadler finally won his first title with a one-stroke win over Bubba Watson and Graham DeLaet at the Waste Management Phoenix Open. After several years trying, Kevin joined his famous father Craig as a winner on the PGA Tour and with it he earned his spot for this year’s Masters – won by his dad in 1982.

George Coetzee clinched his maiden European Tour title in superb fashion with a three-stroke victory over England’s Tyrrell Hatton, Korea’s Jin Jeong and South African Justin Walters at the Joburg Open. Coetzee, three times a runner-up on Tour, carded a final round 66 for a 19-under-par total and with it came a spot in The Open Championship in July.

Oal` Ún] gj kap `gd]k lg _g A oYk l`afcaf_ l`ak oYk imal] klj]kk^md Zml A l`gm_`l lg eqk]d^ l`Yl kggf]j gj dYl]j A Ye _gaf_ lg `Yn] lg _]l gn]j l`ak hj]kkmj] kg o`q fgl bmkl _]l al \gf] oal` ja_`l fgo& Pos. 1 T2 T2 T2

Name George Coetzee Tyrrell Hatton Jin Jeong Justin Walters

Country RSA ENG KOR RSA

To par -19 -16 -16 -16

R1 65 67 65 64

R2 68 69 69 70

R3 69 69 66 64

R4 66 66 71 73

Total 268 271 271 271

Date: Feb 19 - 23 Event: WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship Venue: The Golf Club at Dove Mountain, Marana, Arizona, USA Winner’s Cheque: $1,530,000

DRAMATIC DAY DEFEATS DETERMINED DUBUISSON AUSTRALIA’S Jason Day finally overcame never-say-die Victor Dubuisson at the fifth extra hole in the Championship Match of the World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship to win his first WGC title and his second tournament on the PGA Tour. Frenchman Dubuisson twice got up-and-down in sensational fashion, producing a succession of astonishing rescue shots to keep the match going before Day finally won on the 23rd hole. Earlier Day had crept into a 3-up lead through nine holes before Dubuisson fought back to level the match on the 18th when Day found trouble. Day now finds himself in fourth position on the Official World Ranking, two places behind fellow Australian Adam Scott.

9l l`] ]f\ g^ l`] \Yq$ A n] `Y\ Y dgl g^ [gfkakl]fl Úfak`]k af Za_ ]n]flk Yf\ A kYa\ lg eqk]d^ A n] _gl lg c]]h ogjcaf_ `Yj\ Yf\ ogjc keYjl& 9k dgf_ Yk A \gf l _an] mh Yf\ c]]h hmk`af_ l`jgm_`$ al oadd `Yhh]f Y_Yaf& 9f\ `gh]^mddq `Yhh]f af Zmf[`]k& ;`Yehagfk`ah eYl[`2 Jason Day

def

Victor Dubuisson

1-up (23holes)

def

Ernie Els

1-up (19holes)

L`aj\ hdY[] hdYq%g^^2 Rickie Fowler

Date: Feb 13 - 16 Event: Africa Open Venue: East London GC, Eastern Cape, South Africa Winner’s Cheque: €158,500

Date: Feb 13 - 16 Event: Riviera CC, Pacific Palisades, California, USA Venue: Northern Trust Open Winner’s Cheque: $1,206,000

AIKEN DOWNS FISHER IN EXTRA TIME

WATSON ON FIRE TO PIP JOHNSON

THOMAS Aiken collected his third European Tour title and his first Tour victory on home soil at the expense of Oliver Fisher at the Africa Open. The South African rolled in a superb birdie putt from more than 30 feet on the first extra hole of a sudden-death play-off to deny the Englishman after both players had finished on 20-under-par.

BUBBA Watson carded back-to-back weekend rounds of 7-under-par 64 at the Northern Trust Open to win his first title since the 2012 Masters Tournament, by two shots from his Ryder Cup colleague Dustin Johnson. Watson bounced back from missing out on a play-off two weeks earlier in Phoenix to fire bogey-free rounds on the weekend for his fifth win on the US PGA Tour.

A n] Z]]f oYalaf_ ^gj l`ak ^gj imal] kge] lae]& A n] ogf Y [gmhd] g^ lae]k gn]jk]Yk Zml l`]j] ak fgl`af_ dac] oaffaf_ af ^jgfl g^ qgmj `ge] [jgo\&

Qgm f]n]j cfgo o`]f qgmj dYkl oaf ak _gaf_ lg Z]& Eq dYkl oaf [gmd\ `Yn] Z]]f L`] EYkl]jk$ o`a[` ogmd\ `Yn] Z]]f Y _j]Yl oYq lg _g gml& :ml oaffaf_ `]j] ak fa[]&

Pos. Name 1 2 T3 T3

Thomas Aiken Oliver Fisher David Horsey John Hahn

Country RSA ENG ENG USA

To par

R1 R2 R3 R4

Total

-20 -20 -19 -19

66 66 66 65

264 264 265 265

65 63 64 61

66 66 70 71

67 69 65 68

Pos. Name 1 2 T3 T3

Bubba Watson Dustin Johnson Jason Allred Brian Harman

Country USA USA USA USA

To par

R1 R2 R3 R4

Total

-15 -13 -12 -12

70 66 73 67

269 271 272 272

71 70 64 69

64 69 67 68

64 66 68 68

WorldwideGolf - March 2014 | 19

20 | WorldwideGolf - March 2014

LUKE DONALD’S

Major Changes

By RICHARD BEVAN

IF there is one player not traditionally associated with chopping and changing things every five minutes in the quest for glory it has to be Luke Donald. Think consistency and you automatically think of Luke. Not only in the way he plays the game but the way he manages his career. Now it’s all change as he reworks his game to capture that first elusive Major.

»

WorldwideGolf - March 2014 | 21

22 | WorldwideGolf - March 2014

LUKE DONALD EXCLUSIVE GO BACK a few years and Luke was one of only a handful of players on Tour who had always had the same caddy, coach, manager and equipment. Now, three of those four elements have changed and it’s all geared towards the same goal.

It says everything about the Englishman’s determination to finally land the one prize missing from a trophy-laden career that he has pretty much taken apart his entire backroom team and rebuilt it brick by brick in his bid to win a Major championship.

The first casualty of the rebuild came back in 2010 when he parted company with his bagman of eight years, who also just happened to be his brother, Christian Donald, in favour of the more experienced John McLaren. He also switched management companies late last year, moving from IMG who WWG: You’re not a player traditionally associated with making sweeping changes, but you’ve made quite a few in recent times.

What prompted you to change your swing coach and are you happy with the results so far?

LD: In terms of my swing I just felt there were times when I relied too much on timing. When it was good it was really good but sometimes I just didn’t have enough consistency under extreme pressure, such as in the Majors where I needed to get the ball in the fairways and greens.

I’m excited about the work I’m doing with Chuck Cook and I feel like the swing changes are slowly becoming more natural and I’m seeing some good results.

represented him for 11 years, to Phil Mickelson’s manager Steve Loy. But it was the move that preceded his change of management that was the most bold and surprising of all. Pat Goss had been the architect of Donald’s swing since 1997 when he joined Chicago’s Northwestern University.

In a period of over 16 years working together Donald had collected 14 worldwide titles risen to World No.1 and become the first player ever to top both the US PGA Tour Money List and The Race to Dubai in the same season.

But a lean season last year and a slide down the World Ranking (he’s currently 24th) convinced him to employ the services of Chuck Cook, the coach of current US PGA Champion Jason Dufner as he seeks a breakthrough in the game’s Grand Slam events, starting with next month’s Masters Tournament.

WWG: What is it about Majors in particular that requires different strengths?

LD: I’ve come to realise that the Majors require a different philosophy.

Most weeks the best putter wins but Majors are an exception, They’re different. You have to putt better than average, which, week in week out I’m going to do. The next step is to hit more fairways and greens at the Majors.

WWG: What was the reasoning behind the split from IMG? LD: As you said, I’m someone who doesn’t like a lot of change in general.

I’ll preface what I’ve got to say by putting on record that over 11 years IMG represented me very well. But

Luke’s highest finish in a Major is tied third at the 2005 US Masters and the 2006 US PGA CHampionshp

the management scene has changed a lot in the last five years. There’s a lot more choice out there. Steve is someone I’ve known since I turned pro and I got along straight away with him. Management is really a relationship business and I’ve always enjoyed my relationship with Steve.

I’ve been impressed with the way his business has grown. »

WorldwideGolf - March 2014 | 23

WWG: Things didn’t go as well as you’re used to last season.

How much did successfully defending your Dunlop Phoenix title in Japan at the end of the year do for your confidence. Is it a big boost even for players of your calibre who have won so much, to get a win under the belt and remind you what you’re capable of?

LD: I think for me, having made those changes last year, it reaffirmed that I’d, hopefully, made the right decision. The Dunlop Phoenix is played on a very narrow golf course and I had good control of my golf ball. I hit a lot of fairways and a lot of greens. It’s always nice to win a tournament and get that confidence flowing again. To put yourself in contention and then close it out for the win is good for your confidence. That’s why we practice hard and, hopefully, it was a sign of more positive things to come for this year.

WWG: You’ve got two young daughters – Elle and Sophia – at home. How hard is it for an international player like yourself to be away from the family for long stretches?

LD: It’s tough and it’s something that I think about with my schedule. I don’t like to be away from them for more than a couple of weeks. Fortunately, they can travel with me in the US but it becomes harder when I play international events. With modern technology like Skype and Facetime I’m able to see them every day. But it’s

24 | WorldwideGolf - March 2014

tough – when you have a young family there are moments that you don’t want to miss. I make the most of it when I’m at home.

WWG: Is it important for you to have that stable family home life to keep your feet on the ground?

LD: I think having that in anyone’s life is important. Having a good family life and enjoying time with your kids, watching them grow up and change is all part of life and it’s something I cherish and look forward to whenever I go home.

WWG: You’re known to be a talented artist – do you still get much time to paint?

LD: I haven’t done any painting for a long time – not since the kids came along! I try to spend a lot of my spare time with them so it doesn’t leave much time for painting.

WWG: There’s a local artist in Dubai called Mark Robinson who has done some great portraits of all of The Race to Dubai winners including a great one of you – you should check it out next time you’re in Dubai.

LD: Really? Sounds interesting, I haven’t seen it but I’ll have to look out for it when I’m next in Dubai!

LUKE DONALD EXCLUSIVE WWG: The Ryder Cup is also looming large this year. You would surely be a nailed on Captain’s pick but how important is it for you to qualify automatically for the Team from the points list?

LD: Of course – I’ve had four very memorable experiences in Ryder Cups. I’ve been on four winning teams and that’s added to the enjoyment that I’ve had.

The Ryder Cup supersedes the sport in a way. It’s not just for golfers. Everybody who is interested in great sport watches that tournament. It’s one of the most watched events in the world and I’d love to be a part of it again. It’s a great atmosphere and it’s good to be part of a team. We play so many individual tournaments that it’s nice to come together and share those memories together.

Images by Getty

WorldwideGolf - March 2014 | 25

JUMEIRAH GOLF ESTATES – EUROPEAN TOUR DESTINATION

ELITE CLUB David MacLaren, Director of Property and Venue Development European Tour , and a Director of European Golf Design, talks to Worldwide Golf about the benefits of being a European Tour Destination:

E

uropean Tour Courses was created in the 1980s, as a means of The Tour owning golf venues in order to provide better quality golf courses for The Tour’s players to compete on. The European Tour had various partners in this venture, including IMG, the Co-Op and Clubcorp.

The business was eventually sold to Irish entrepreneur Denis O’Brien, who wished, principally, to acquire playing opportunities at Quinta do Lago in Portugal to support real-estate sales at the venue. Tour Courses was re-acquired by The European Tour in 2008 and re-launched that year as European Tour Properties.

The business now comprises a portfolio of 13 world-class venues, all of which receive brand, sales, marketing and operational support from The European Tour’s significant resources and this includes the magnificent Jumeirah Golf Estates, home to the prestigious season-ending climax to The Tour schedule, with its superb Earth course and Fire course.

The portfolio is divided into two brands, Destinations and Courses.

Courses comprise the best venues inherited from the previous business: Linna Golf in Finland, Estonian Golf and Country Club, Quinta do Lago and Kungsangen in Sweden.

There are now also nine European Tour Destinations, the first of which was the London Golf Club, which will be the venue for the 2014 Volvo World Matchplay Championship in October. Details of all thirteen member-venues can be found on www.europeantourproperties.com.

Each venue, in return for the annual Fee, receives dedicated brand, sales, marketing and operational support, designed to help the venue sell a greater number of green-fees, memberships and, where appropriate, realestate, and at a premium price.

26 | WorldwideGolf - March 2014

Jumeirah Golf Estates Home to the DP World Tour Championship, the prestigious season-ending climax to The (XURSHDQ 7RXU 6FKHGXOH DQG WKH ͤQDO VWDJH of The Race to Dubai.

WorldwideGolf - March 2014 | 27

Adam Scott

2013 MASTERS CHAMPION 速

STRIDING TO SUCCESS IN

FJ StaSof 速

FJ Sport

Style 53255#

速

www.footjoy.co.uk

www.prosports.ae

JUMEIRAH GOLF ESTATES

The selection of European Tour Destinations is based on world-class venues with world-class facilities, venues that can benefit from the above strategy and venues that have a connection to The Tour through hosting or aspiring to host tournaments.

The aspiration is to partner with the best, or one of the best, venues in each particular country. Most of the venues have a wide range of ancillary facilities such as an academy, real-estate or hotel.

We have multi-year contracts with our member-venues and each venue is audited annually to ensure that operational and service standards remain commensurate with those of a world-class venue.

Our role is always to support the club and not to manage or own the venues.

Hosting a Tour Event The main criteria in becoming a European Tour Property is the ability of the course to host a Tour event, whether main Tour, Senior Tour, Challenge Tour or Qualifying School, and the ability to benefit from the wide range of support offered by European Tour Properties and the status as a world-class venue.

Jumeirah Golf Estates is a world-class facility and is one of only two European Tour Properties to have a European Tour Performance Institute. The other is at Terre Blanche in the South of France.

It’s an indication of the success of our Properties strategy that FIVE of our European Tour Destinations are hosting main European Tour events in 2014: Diamond Country Club – Lyoness (Austrian Open); Le Golf National – Alstom Open de France; PGA Catalunya – Spanish Open; Jumeirah Golf Estates – DP World Tour Championship; and the London Golf Club – Volvo World Matchplay Championship.

In addition, PGA Catalunya will host the Qualifying School Final and Fleesensee a Qualifying School Stage 1.

Terre Blanche will also host the Riviera Senior Masters on the European Senior Tour.

A NETWORK OF WORLD CLASS GOLF VENUES » SINCE 2009 European Tour Properties of World Class golf venues has grown to encompass 13 Member Venues spanning 11 different countries, all offering a comprehensive range of facilities and services to their members and guests.

“The European Tour Performance Institute further endorses the status of Jumeirah Golf Estates as an internationally acclaimed golf destination, which has been widely praised by our European Tour players and the public alike.”

– George O’Grady, Chief Executive of The European Tour pictured above with Jumeirah Golf Estates’ Yusuf Kazim and European Tour Players’ Representative David Howell.

»Jumeirah Golf Estates joined this elite group in 2013, becoming the ninth European Tour Destination – the only one in the Middle East – and only the second course with a state-of-the-art European Tour Performance Institute, positioned adjacent to the magnificent Greg Norman-designed Fire course and Earth course, home of The European Tour’s season-ending climax to The Race to Dubai, the DP World Tour Championship.

» Jumeirah Golf Estates can boast a luxury residential golf community with superbly designed high-class, well-appointed villas set in a scenic golf community of rare distinction, plus a Performance Institute for professionals and amateurs alike.

Branding as a European Tour Destination; » Access to worldwide sales and distribution channels including www.europeantour.com; » Access to specific and tailored sales activities through European Tour databases and commercial partners; » Priority access to tournaments on The European Tour, European Senior Tour, European Challenge Tour and European Tour Qualifying School;

» Reciprocal Membership Programme where Members can play 12 other world-class international venues for a nominal charge: Jumeirah Golf Estates; UAE, London Golf Club (pictured below), England; Terre Blanche, France; St. Leon-Rot, Germany; The Dutch, Holland; Diamond Country Club, Austria; Le Golf National (pictured above), France; PGA Catalunya, Spain; Linna Golf, Finland; Estonia G&CC, Estonia; Quinta do Lago, Portugal; Kungsangen, Sweden. »Strategic partnerships with golfbreaks.com (sales), GEO (environmental), Fine&Country Golf (real estate).

WorldwideGolf - March 2014 | 29

WAYNE’S WORLD

PERFORMANCE INSTITUTE

In full swing

OPEN TO ALL GOLFERS David Howell, Players’ Representative on The European Tour, tries out the stateof-the-art facilities at the Jumeirah Golf Estates Performance Institute.”It’s a great benefit to amateurs of all levels,” he says. ”

30 | WorldwideGolf - March 2014

WAYNE JOHNSON, Director of Instruction, Jumeirah Golf Estates, introduces The European Tour /$1%.1, -"$ (-23(343$

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he European Tour Performance Institute is a brand new, custom-built training facility based at Jumeirah Golf Estates, #TA@H ^3GHR TMHPTD VNQKC BK@RR E@BHKHSX G@R ADDM CDRHFMDC RODBHƥB@KKX SN DMG@MBD the performance and needs of European 3NTQ /K@XDQR @MC B@CDLX RSTCDMSR @KHJD SN ƥMD STMD and hone their game throughout the year, utilising the very latest in cutting-edge technology. ^+NB@SDC NM SGD OQ@BSHBD E@HQV@X RDQUHMF ANSG SGD Earth and Fire courses at Jumeirah Golf Estates, the Q@MFD NE E@BHKHSHDR NM NƤDQ HMBKTCDR @ RS@SD NE SGD

art gymnasium; bio-mechanic swing studios with interactive high-performance video technology, (utilising fast-motion video capture); a putting lab; 3HSKDHRS /HMF ODQENQL@MBD BKTA ƥSSHMF RSTCHN dedicated short game holes; expansive practice fairway and teeing areas; bunker practice greens; a large contoured putting green; physiotherapy SQD@SLDMS QNNLR @MC @ ETKKX DPTHOODC ATRHMDRR lounge. ^3GD $TQNOD@M 3NTQ /DQENQL@MBD (MRSHSTSD HR NMD NE SGD ƥMDRS HMRSQTBSHNM@K E@BHKHSHDR HM SGD VNQKC NƤDQHMF an unrivalled teaching and practice experience for @KK NE HSR LDLADQR FTDRSR @MC UHRHSNQR^ FHUHMF @L@SDTQ golfers the opportunity to “rub shoulders” with the very best players in the game. ^4MCDQ SGD DWODQS FTHC@MBD NE NTQ /& Professionals, the ETPI instructional programs are informative and relaxed creating a fun learning experience from a knowledgeable team of instructors; @S $3/( VD ADKHDUD OK@XHMF SGD ƥMDRS FNKE LD@MR keeping things simple; our coaches will help you develop your game through personalized attention resulting in simple, focused steps any golfer can take to improve their swing, their strategy and ultimately their score. ^8NT VHKK DMINX SGD CHƤDQDMBD HM NTQ BQD@SHUD @MC energetic approach and our commitment to creating an extraordinary learning experience; regardless of ability, age or experience the Performance Institute will take your game to an entirely new level.

WorldwideGolf - March 2014 | 31

WAYNE’S WORLD

#@UHC 'NVDKKŗR )&$ INTQMDX HMSN SGD ETSTQD European Tour stalwart and Worldwide Golf Columnist, David Howell, a five-times winner on The Tour, including the Dubai Desert Classic in 1999 and last year’s Alfred Dunhill Links Championship, accumulating more than 12 million euros in his glittering 18-year career on Tour and representing Europe twice in The Ryder Cup-winning Teams of 2004 and 2006, steps into the future to sample the magnificent state-of-the-art facilities of the Performance Institute at Jumeirah Golf Estates with Wayne Johnson, Director of Instruction.

T

HE Balance Lab, Trackman, Flightscope, SAM, 3D biomechanics, R2D2, C3P0, sounds like we are immersed in a Star Treck revolution - beam me up Adam Scotty.

Actually, most of the above don’t just exist in an extra terrestrial futuristic film world but at the superb European Tour Performance Institute at Jumeirah Golf Estates here in Dubai.

So what does it all mean? What does it do and, more importantly, what can it do for you and me?

ABOVE David Howell at the Jumeirah Golf Estates Performance Institiute and below David tries out the technology at the putting lab.

Firstly, let me set the scene: when you stand on the practice tee at Jumeirah Golf Estates you peer slightly down the hill to the far end of the range where you can see a vast practice area of pitching greens, another manicured practice tee and a vast building to the left, The European Tour Performance Institute.

Finished in tremendous userfriendly style it brings together all the technology currently available in the game to enable golfers of all abilities to analyze their game just like the pros on the Tour do. Don’t be misled

by the name. This facility, owned and run by Jumeirah Golf Estates, is open for business for any one from Rory Mcilroy to Joe Bloggs playing off a 24 handicap. Being treated as a Tour Pro for a day is available to all, except perhaps straight drives landing in the fairway 290 yards out.

Personally, I like to think of all these pieces of technology creating something of a centre of truth. These devices tell you, through scientific numbers or show you through visual feedback, exactly what you are doing and hence why the ball reacts in the way it does. It takes the guesswork out of things and allows you to focus on the most important aspects to help you improve your game.

Great fun If you’re a keen golfer I promise you will find that it’s interesting, great fun and with the right expert guidance on hand from PGA Director of Instruction, Wayne Johnson, it’s the perfect way in working out a way to improve your power, or understand in more detail why the ball has sliced to the right once again.

The feedback that these devices give really can make the penny drop, and help cure that slice or hook.

Golf, however, will always be the hardest of games in which to improve. It takes time and patience, good advice and, most importantly, a desire to improve, whether that be to reach the world’s top ten or that elusive single figure handicap. For those reasons practice also has to be

32 | WorldwideGolf - March 2014

JGE has everything you need as a professional golfer. It’s also a great place for amateurs of all levels who want to make use of the state-of-the-art technology, plus the expert help and facilities on hand, to improve their game.

– David Howell fun. I haven’t met anybody yet who has hit balls with the aid of Trackman, the radar tracking device which tells the user exactly how hard they have hit the ball and with what spin and clubface angle, that hasn’t found the information interesting.

Neither have I met anyone who, having seen those figures, hasn’t stood there and tried to smash their next ten shots as hard as possible.

That’s the great thing about our game, hitting the ball hard is a part of golf where most amateurs could do with some help.

Once the information has been imparted, however, improving once again comes down to feel and practice - it will always be that way and the technology is there to be used once in a while to learn

something that you can take away to the manicured practice area.

I have used all the technology that’s available in my career and it’s always been informative. The trick is to then to filter that information, not look for perfection. That’s an easily made mistake and one I have made all too often. Instead of striving for perfection, just be content to settle for a slight improvement.

Then you can go and practice your wedge play to an array of greens; your chipping and bunker play from different sand and then finish off in the Performance Institute’s fully equipped gymnasium with Jumeirah Golf Estate’s Senior Personal Trainer, Neal Dinan and his team, followed by a session with their massage therapist or osteopath, Kris.

ABOVE David gets on his bike at the Performance Institute gym that has every conceivable facility for the golfer.

That’s the day in the life of a touring pro right there.

I’ve lived in Dubai during the past four winters and have always practised and played at Jumeirah Golf Estates. With the Performance Institute it has world-class facilities and it’s a fantastic place to train and work on my game when I’m not playing on Tour.

JGE has everything you need as a professional golfer. It’s also a great benefit for amateurs of all levels who want to make use of the state-of-theart technology, plus the expert help and facilities on hand, to improve their game.

Or maybe you can just do as I often do at the ETPI, just hit a few balls, have a coffee and play on the internet. That doesn’t sound too bad either. Q WorldwideGolf - March 2014 | 33

TRUMP INTERNATIONAL GOLF CLUB

course

The Trump International Golf Club, Dubai, is the 15th course The Trump Organisation will manage – and the first in the Middle East.

This aerial view shows the grassed 10th hole (top) and 11th hole (bottom) and the double-ended driving range (middle). Top right is Gil Hanse’s hand-written sketch of how he envisages the 10th green.

34 | WorldwideGolf - March 2014

WorldwideGolf - March 2014 | 35

TRUMP INTERNATIONAL GOLF CLUB A K O YA B Y D A M A C

W

ITH last month’s visit by course designer Gil Hanse the progress of the Trump International Golf Club, Dubai, is becoming the focus of attention in the Middle East. The 18-hole Championship-standard grass 7,205-yards, par-71 layout, located at Umm Suqeim Road, ten minutes from Sheikh Zayed Road, sits at the heart of the 42 million square foot ‘AKOYA by DAMAC’ masterplan development, which includes a 30,000 square foot state-of-the-art clubhouse and a luxurious Trump Spa and Wellness Centre.

“By collaborating with Donald Trump, we are bringing the most elite name in golf and international luxury real estate to Dubai,” says Hussain Sajwani, Executive Chairman and Chief Executive DAMAC Properties. “This course will provide a unique challenge for golfers, while delivering the utmost luxury and refinement for which both DAMAC Properties and the Trump Organisation have become renowned for.”

“We are thrilled to be expanding our portfolio of award-winning courses into Dubai with DAMAC Properties. Dubai is an incredible city that truly understands the meaning of luxury. Trump International Golf Club, Dubai, will be built to worldclass levels, exceeding all expectations – there will be nothing like it in the region and beyond,” said Donald J. Trump, Chairman and President of The Trump Organisation.

The development also includes a double-ended driving range, chipping facility and practice putting greens plus a high-tech golf training academy and pro-shop plus four internationalstandard tennis courts..

In December AKOYA by DAMAC was voted Best International Golf Development at the International Property Awards in London.

“This has proven to be one of the most in-demand projects we have ever launched, with luxurious living concepts surrounding this stunning golf course,” commented Niall McLoughlin, Senior Vice President, DAMAC Properties. “The award capped a great year for the company and our standout development. ” 36 | WorldwideGolf - March 2014

Gil Hanse

Talks to Worldwide Golf

G

il is a 49 year old American golf designer with a penchant for links-style layouts. He designed Boston Golf Club, Sleepy Hollow Golf Club and Rustic Canyon Golf Club in the United States and is renowned for his design of the universally acclaimed Castle Stuart Links in Inverness, host of the Sc ottish Open for the past three years. He also designed the Craighead Links course at Crail, St Andrews, alongside one of the oldest and most renowned courses in Scotland, Crail’s Balcomie Links. Last month Gil was back in Dubai to pay a site visit to another of his creations, the Trump International Golf Club, Dubai, an integral part of the AKOYA by DAMAC master development. Worldwide Golf’s GREG SMYTH was at the site off Umm Suqeim Road to talk to Gil about the progress of the project since work began last May. WWG: You have become famous for your outstanding links courses, such as Castle Stuart and Craighead at Crail in Scotland.

Is your design of the Trump Course going to have a links feel about it, despite being far from the coast?

GH: The design of the course will be predominantly a Desert Style golf course with links characteristics and native vegetation will be included where possible.

We finalised the design routing last year but there may still be some changes to the holes along the way. My approach is to use the masterplan as a guide whilst continuing the shaping. The intention is to build a very interesting Championship standard course which gives players of all levels a variety of options but most of all it’s going to be a “FUN” course to play. I like to create my own landscape from what I’m given.

WWG: What was the original site that you had to work with and what is your timescale for the design?

GH: The site was completely flat until we started to move earth last summer. I’m a hands-on designer with all my projects and I’ve been driving the Dozer to shape some of the greens. With my partner, Jim Wagner, we’ve created elevations where possible and the desert areas reflect the natural flowing Arabian dunes with native grasses covering 40 per cent of the site and sand exposed on the remaining 60 per cent. The Desert gives the course a natural feel and will need to be groomed only periodically.

The masterplan includes an academy, double-ended driving range and par three course.

WWG: Golf courses in the UAE are renowned for their quick growing – when are you aiming to complete on the various stages of the design and when is the expected completion of the course.

GH: Following the announcement of the course last May we were able to get straight on to the site and already the driving range

and holes 10 and 11 are grassed, one lake is filled and shaping work is well underway on holes two through to six. It’s exciting to be back on the course again with the guys and helping to personally shape this special course. I’m delighted with the way the course is coming along.

WWG: Although the Trump Course is inland are water features an integral part of your design?

GH: Yes – there are a number of large lakes which will play a part in multiple holes that have been positioned in natural Wadi collection areas.

WWG: Why do you think you were chosen from some of the biggest and most famous designers in the business to design the course in Brazil for the 2016 Olympics?

GH: I believe my commitment and interest in the Rio project, along with my previous work on European Tour and US PGA Tournament Courses, which have been recognised and praised by leading Tour players, played a part. Prior to the decision on who would design the course I spent six months with my family in Rio so I could fully understand and appreciate the landscape and the site. It was a great honour to be selected. I also think that my time spent working under designers Pete Dye and Tom Doak helped my cause.

WWG: Is the course being created with hosting a Tour event in mind?

GH: Yes – Donald Trump has made it clear that he hopes to have a Tour event here in the near future. The course will certainly test the best players in the game, not by huge length but by making the players select the right shot at the right time to give them the best entry into the greens. The course is also created to be playable for the regular playing members and the tees will be flexible to set up the course for all standards of player without affecting the playability.

WorldwideGolf - March 2014 | 37

38 | WorldwideGolf - March 2014

WORLDWIDE GOLF COLUMNIST <<

Greg

NORMAN AYLA OASIS IN GOOD SHAPE

I

’m pleased to say that progress on the Ayla project is gathering pace. When we first began work on the course in Aqaba I said that I believed that it would be one of the best golf courses I had ever designed and one of the best in the world. Having seen how the site is developing I’m confident that the course will be just as spectacular as we all intended it to be.

The Ayla Oasis project will go down in the history books as the first grassed golf course in Jordan and I’m proud that our Greg Norman Golf Course Design team (GNGCD) is taking another pioneering step in introducing golf to another new part of the world and widening the horizons of the game.

In the great tradition of GNGCD courses it will set a high standard for all others to follow and while being designed as a championship-standard golf course, capable of hosting an international Tour event, it will

I

also be an inviting course for all levels of golfer. There have been many challenges to overcome along the way but I’m pleased to report that the entire golf course is shaped, including the -9hole par-three academy course and driving range.

The -3kilometre man-made stream that winds its way down the fairways, and the seven lakes on the course are all functional and working well. The pump station will be on line this month and we are aiming to start capping and grassing in the coming weeks.

The golf landscape is moving along well. The trees and plants are being selected, ready to be shipped to the site.

Without doubt, the next few months will start to show the unique character of the golf course, especially when the grass is planted and the varying landscapes come together. The course sports a five

’d like to congratulate Jason Day on his brilliant performance at the World Golf ChampionshipsAccenture World Match Play Championship in Arizona last month, where he beat Victor Dubuisson after five extra holes of play. He showed a lot of heart and maturity as Victor kept extending the match by hitting shots from the desert that would have made Seve Ballesteros proud. In the end, Jason powered through and I really feel like this victory is going to give him the confidence he needs heading into the Masters at Augusta. This is only Jason’s second win on Tour, but last year we saw Matt Kuchar use the WGC-Accenture World Match Play as a springboard for a tremendous season and, hopefully, Jason can do the same thing this year.

We have to remember that Jason is still only 26 years old and has only played in 13 Majors. The amazing thing is that he has six top ten finishes to show for it. Learning how to win on Tour and how to win Majors is a process all leading

tee system, so it can be as challenging as any golfer would like to play it. All the hazards are strategically placed for the risk and reward challenge all golfers are looking to take.

While the golf course continues to progress, the other projects on the Ayla Oasis site are also coming alive. The hotel and housing are well on the way, and prospective home buyers visiting the site have been impressed with the first-class facilities that are near completion throughout the project.

The marina is filled and the moorings are in place, making the area an enticing proposition for wouldbe residents to come to enjoy the many world-class amenities the development has to offer. Investors into this unique community can also appreciate the many world-class benefits the Ayla Oasis has to offer as a much sought-after international residential haven.

golfers have to go through and this win at Dove Mountain against a field of the top 64 players in the game, should help him get closer to that elusive goal of winning his first Major.

Whether it’s Jason Day, Adam Scott, or Marc Leisman, I’m really happy to see the success of these young Australian golfers. I still have a photo on my cell phone of the three Aussie flags on top of the leaderboard at the Masters last year. It’s nice to see Australian golf receiving the recognition it so rightly deserves.

People forget that Australia only has approximately 1.3 million golfers, so our success ratio on producing world-class golfers is very high.

I hope that my Foundation in Australia has in some small way helped with this learning process and I am certain that Australia will continue to produce some of the best golfers on the world stage. With Adam currently sitting at No. 2 and Jason currently No.4 in the Official World Rankings, Australia has not seen the likes of this since Geoff Ogilvy was No.3 and Adam Scott No. 4 in the world or in 1997 when I was No.1 in the world and Steve Elkington was ranked No. 4. Q

WorldwideGolf - March 2014 | 39

WORLDWIDE GOLF COLUMNIST <<

Gary

Player

THE GLOBAL TOUR IS VIRTUALLY HERE

W

E’RE getting ever closer to having a World Tour of Golf. In fact, we virtually have a Global Tour right now. More and more big tournaments outside America are taking place in increasing numbers and there is a really big tournament being played just about every week of the year somewhere in the world.

Not very long ago there were only a handful of tournaments with total prize money of more than $5million. Nowadays, the vast majority of tournaments have a total purse of around $5million with many of them approaching $10million.

The Tour players are now global golfers. They travel from one tournament to the next to compete for huge amounts of money. Air travel has come a long way since my days. Many of the leading players travel in private jets, which makes it much less of an ordeal than it used to be, but being a global golfer means your body has to be strong enough to take the strain.

I recently spoke to a mother on a plane who had a baby with her. I said in my globetrotting golfing days we would often have six of our children with us on a flight and she said she was struggling enough looking after just one.

Rory McIlroy on his way to postng an opening round 63 at The Honda Classic.

You need skill I’ve always believed that golf is a three-dimensional game. First, you have to have the skill to succeed, second you have to have the fitness you need to be able to compete and third you need the mental strength to perform when the pressure is on. When you learn to control your mind your body follows suit.

In today’s world, to be able to attain the level of fitness required you need to make sure you are eating the right things. A healthy, balanced diet is absolutely essential. You are what you eat and the technology of eating is all-important.

If you don’t put the right fuel into your body you’re not going to get the right performance from it and the correct energy concentration. We live in a world of ever-increasing obesity and we must pay attention to what we eat.

I’ve just read a book by Novak Djokovic, the world No.2 tennis player and one of the fittest athletes in the world, and he says that he went through a period in his career when he felt tired, and had insufficient energy to keep going at the top level, so he changed his whole way of eating. It worked for him and he’s now one of the most consistently successful players on the world tennis tour. It worked for Novak and it’s worked for me for all my playing career.

You have to have the right exercise regime and you also have to have the right eating regime. They go

40 | WorldwideGolf - March 2014

hand in hand. One doesn’t work without the other.

Eating technology is going to be the big thing for the future of sport and living a long and healthy life.

People are getting sick for eating the wrong foods and it’s becoming a serious global problem.

To play sport at the highest level today you need to have the energy, the concentration and the stamina to win. As I say, golf is now a Global Tour and for golfers to be able to regularly take long flights and play to their maximum potential their body must be strong enough to stand such a tough schedule.

There will come a time when all the best players will compete in all the best and biggest tournaments wherever in the world the venues may be. It’s tough at the top so you have to be fully equipped to stand the test of time.

Rory’s looking good I’M pleased to see Rory McIlroy playing well again.

His first round 8 under par 63 and his second round 66 at the Honda Classic at PGA National, Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, showed that he’s back to his best and in control of his game. I believe Rory had only 49 putts at the halfway stage – the lowest 36 hole

total of his career. That shows he’s hitting the ball into the right places and finishing the job off on the green.

In second place after the second round was South African Brendon de Jonge, who has yet to win on The Tour, and Lee Westwood was sharing fourth place. It’s good to see Lee playing well. Since he moved himself and his family over to the States he’s had a tough time on the course.

When Rory is playing to his full potential it’s one of the most exciting sights in golf and this return to form could not have come at a better time with the Masters just around the corner. Rory is such a nice young man and such a huge talent I’d like to see him succeed. I’m so pleased to see him playing well again.

When Rory first came on to the scene Tiger Woods had the good grace to say that Rory had just as much ability as he had. That’s saying something.

Rory’s life seems a little more settled now and that’s all-important in being a successful golfer.

You’ve got to be able to focus totally on your game on the course without having to think about what is happening off the course. Q

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WORLDWIDE GOLF COLUMNIST <<

Ian

Poulter

I LOVE TO PUT SOME COLOUR INTO THE GAME

I

F I’m honest I’d have to say I’m not happy with my 2014 season so far. All the hard work that I’ve been putting in hasn’t been paying off on the golf course. I know that I just need to be patient and continue with what I’m doing. We’re working on similar things in practice as we were at the end the 2013 season and I saw some great results on the course then – so I just need to continue with it and I’m sure things will turn around soon.

I had five weeks off over the winter period of which the first two weeks were without practice and it was nice just to recharge the batteries after a long season. I did actually play the occasional round of golf during that time but it was purely for fun.

I just turned up and played without any actual practice involved. In the last three weeks of the five we started working hard again, picking up where we’d left off at the end of 2013. I’m using the same clubs as last year so there’s no change there, apart from a fresh set of wedges. We’re doing all of the same things, so you have to trust that and I know it’ll come good sooner rather than later.

Gearing up for Augusta We’re into an exciting part of the season with big events coming thick and fast like the WGCs and, of course, the first Major of the year – the Masters. It’s a tournament I’ve always loved and a golf course that I really enjoy playing. It suits my eye and I like the short game aspect to it, as well as the distance control aspect.

It’s one of the best Majors of the year and I’ll be excited to get there and, hopefully, I’ll be fresh and ready. I’ve got a fairly relaxed schedule leading up to Augusta. I’ll play the WGC-Cadillac Championship at Doral, then have a week off, then I’ll play Bay Hill and take another week off, then play the Houston Open and then the Masters. It should be a nice lead up into the first Major of 2014.

When you look good on the golf course you feel good and I’m loving wearing our new IJP Design Collection which has just been released. It’s a lighter, more vibrant and colourful way to start

2014 so I’m excited about wearing more of that as we approach the Masters. ers. It’s always nice to add a little colour leading into one of the most colourful Majors of the year! ar!

Away from the golf course urse I’ve been enjoying watching my favourite vourite football team, Arsenal, this season.. It’s no secret that I’m a huge fan and it’s great at to see them in with a real chance of winning ning a trophy this year. I wasn’t so keen on watching them lose 5-1 to Liverpool the other week but disappointment is part of any sport and Arsenal have a great young ng team with a great manager who knows ows how to deal with setbacks like that, at, so they’ll be fine.

Obviously, I don’t like watching my team lose but I don’t let it ruin my day when it happens – just likee when you’re playing golf, you have to take it on the chin when things don’t turn out ut the way you wanted them to, and lookk forward to the next challenge.

Another thing most of you will already know about me, is my lovee of cars, and in particular, Ferraris. I’ve got my eye on the new California T. It’s a turbo-charged version of the California with a new body style and I love it. Like anyy new Ferrari it’s very stylish and it packs a lot of power.

I want to add it to my collection, but first I need to get myself to o a level where I feel I’m playing some ome good golf. Once I’ve donee that, the order will be placed. Q WorldwideGolff - March 2014 | 43

WORLDWIDE GOLF COLUMNIST <<

Pete

Cowen

I

was over at the PGA National at West Palm Beach for the Honda Classic last month and before that I was in Arizona working with my guys at the World Golf ChampionshipsAccenture Match Play Championship. Now I’m staying on in Florida for another World Golf Championships event, the Cadillac Championship at the Blue Monster course at Trump National, Doral.

I was impressed with Graeme McDowell at the Accenture last month. He hasn’t played much tournament golf recently with his wife, Kristin, being pregnant. But he got three free get-out-ofjail cards in beating Gary Woodland, Hunter Mahan and then being knocked out by the eventual runner-up, Victor Dubuisson.

Family time Graeme is cutting his playing schedule to suit his family commitments this season but he’s in a good place. He’s kept up with his fitness which stands him in good stead. We’ve been going through a few things like fading the ball and working on some old stuff. He’s certainly putting in a lot of hard work and he’s getting back on the right track.

In America you can play well but winning tournaments depends on whether you hole the putts at the right time. It’s as simple as that.

Graeme’s always a confidence player and although he had three wins last season he was disappointed with his performances in the Majors.

He’s aiming to put that right this year and be up

44 | WorldwideGolf - March 2014

HAPPY AT HOME – HAPPY ON COURSE there in contention. He’s proved he can play well in the Majors by winning the US Open in 2010.

The US Open-type courses suit him well, where you’ve got to hit the ball solid and straight and be patient. He’s looking forward to taking on Pinehurst No.2 in June.

Graeme’s not a bomber, he has to think his way round. Hoylake could be good for him in The Open in July. He likes links courses and he’s had a lot of success by the seaside, particularly at Pebble Beach on the California Coast four years ago.

Rory McIlroy’s performance in the Honda Classic came as no surprise to me. He might not have finished the job off in Dubai but he’s been showing signs of getting back to his best.

He’s happy, he’s named the day and he’s getting married in November. Being happy and content off the course is all-important in making you happy on the course and playing well – which makes you happy again.

It’s good to see Irish eyes smiling with Rory’s wedding date coming later this year and with Graeme’s first child expected around the same time. Let’s hope it’s a case of happy in love and

happy on course for them both this season.

Henrik Stenson iis facing a tough challenge to repeat the success he had last year where he virtually won almost everything. How does he follow a season like that? It’s difficult to find the motivation he needs to keep on winning.

He’s not too happy with himself right now but he’s hitting the ball well and has plenty of time to make his mark. There are a lot of big events now in the middle and towards the back end of the season.

Unfortunately, Louis Oosthuizen, who played well at the Accenture in the early rounds, is injured at the moment so we’ll have to wait for him to get back into action.

Much has been reported about Padraig Harrington’s skin cancer but it actually happened about four years ago and it was benign.

Padraig is still working as hard as ever on his game. He was on the driving range until it went dark last night. He’s a golf junkie. His love of the game hasn’t diminished over the years at all. He could still find his form and become the Majorwinning player he was just a few seasons ago. It can happen quite suddenly in our game. Q

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LEARN THE FUNDAMENTALS WITH WAYNE JOHNSON

INSTRUCTION Wayne Johnson Director of Instruction PGA

T

HE fundamentals are the key to developing and maintaining a consistent golf swing. Many of the faults we see from students at The European Tour Performance Institute stem from poor basics, which golfers often develop prior to hitting the ball. You do not need to have the physical strength of Tiger Woods or the athleticism of Adam Scott to develop a sound pre-shot routine.

The way in which you hold the golf club, the way in which you position your body in relationship to the ball and the way that you aim the clubface will determine the outcome of many of the shots you hit on the course.

Here we look at four of the most common fundamentals golfers of all abilities can work on to improve their swing, consistency and ball striking.

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WorldwideGolf - March 2014 | 47

WAYNE JOHNSON DIRECTOR OF INSTRUCTION PGA JUMEIRAH GOLF ESTATES

Alignment Too many golfers aim incorrectly by placing their bodies in position first.

Invariably they become incorrectly aligned to their intended target, resulting in compensations having to be made during the swing in an effort to try and correct their poor starting position.

Build your stance around the clubface

• VISUALISE the target first by taking a look down your target line, focussing on a specific point to line up on.

• AIM the clubface first; picture a railroad track and place the clubface of the outer rail running towards your target.

• BUILD your stance around the clubface, placing your feet, knees, hips and upper body parallel to your ball to target the line on the inner rail.

Building your alignment and stance in this way will promote a better set up routine and improve the consistency of your shots.

Posture Developing an athletic dynamic posture is instrumental in encouraging a good takeaway of the club from the ball and creating a more powerful swing path motion.

Here we look at a good way to develop an athletic posture!

• STAND fairly straight upright with only a slight amount of knee flex; hold your golf club out in front of your chest with your arms fully outstretched.

• HOLDING on to the grip with your left hand, place the shaft of your club behind you running down your spine while making sure to keep the shaft in contact with your back and neck.

• MAINTAINING this position, tilt your spine forwards feeling your weight move towards the ball of your feet, lift the club out in front of you taking your grip and extending your arms towards the ground.

• IN developing good posture your shoulders, knees and the ball of your feet should line up with one another.

48 | WorldwideGolf - March 2014

Distance from the ball One of the most common questions I am asked in my teaching is “how far away from the ball should I stand.”

Here is a good way to gauge the correct distance you should stand away from the ball at address.

• In your normal set up position release your right hand grip from the club and allow your right arm to hang down freely.

• Swing your arm back to the club, and if you can return your hand to the grip from where you let go without making any alterations to your stance or position then you are in a good position.

• If you are too far away from the ball then your arm and hand will miss the grip of the club when you swing back with your arm back towards the shaft.

• If you are too near to the ball then your hand will return to the club much further down the shaft.

Ball position To enhance consistency play the ball opposite the logo of your shirt, left chest area for all full swing shots. With longer clubs widen the stance for a better balance, maintaining the same ball position and with mid to shorter irons narrow the stance.

WorldwideGolf - March 2014 | 49

INSTRUCTION ALASTAIR BROWN GOLF PROFESSIONAL EMIRATES GOLF CLUB

HOW TO ELIMINATE THE THREE PUTT In the fast paced world we live in finding the time to practice is tough going for most golfers. This is probably the reason I see most of those who do get the time, on the driving range, whacking drivers until they are almost passing out.

The Long Game is the most important part of the game if you want to make birdies, but for the typical amateur, pars would be a great start.

My advice is to be EFFICIENT with your practice time and CONCENTRATE on your putting practice. The two most important elements in your putting practice are creating a consistent stroke and testing it out under pressure.

PACE PUTTING O Getting the right speed from distance is so important to avoiding the three putt. One of the top handicap saving stats is two putting from 30 feet. It isn’t the normal to attack long putts but to ‘lag’ them up to the hole-side and if they drop that, is a bonus. Here is an easy way to practice for these.

O Set up two clubs/alignment sticks/practice aids about 30 feet/ tensteps apart on a fairly flat part of the practice green. I tend to use a gentle slope to feel the difference between uphill and downhill. With three to five balls practice from the side of one aid and try to putt as close to the other aid WITHOUT HITTING it. Try and keep the ball within the width of the aid to practice your aim. This is a great exercise that will work on your touch and feel on the greens.

O When you go to play other courses try this exercise prior to play to get the speed for their greens that day. The added bonus in this exercise is that it will iron out the kinks of a wristy putting stroke as you gain consistency in your speeds.

Come out at night /K@X ƦNNCKHS FNKE NM SGD %@KCN DUDQX MHFGS NE SGD VDDJ

PRESSURE PUTTING O Trying to simulate the feeling of pressure you have on the course is the only real way of putting your stroke to the test and the better your practice routines are the more your stroke will stand up in competition.

O The best pressure practice used for putting pressure is the â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Eight Putts from Eight Feetâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; drill. Mark an eight point course around the hole (be careful when using tees) and when you hole your ďŹ rst putt move clockwise to the next point. You MUST make it around the course WITHOUT MISSING. If you miss you have to drop back to your previous point. Vary the distances in the drill to suit your needs.

Many of you will ďŹ nd it hard to believe the PGA Tour average of holing out from eight feet is 49% as we are so used to seeing the winners holing everything. This exercise will make you well above average at your golf club.

3

For specialised short game lessons with Alastair, please contact him at abrown@dubaigolf.com

(E XNT @QD @ QDFTK@Q OK@XDQ NTQ -HFGS &NKE /@RR HR MNV @U@HK@AKD ENQ ITRS $# ODQ LNMSG @MC OQNUHCDR TMKHLHSDC @BBDRR SN SGD ĆŚNNCKHS %@KCN EQNL OL RDUDM MHFGSR @ VDDJĘ&#x2013; 3N ANNJ XNTQ QNTMC B@KK DL@HK DQDRDQU@SHNMR CTA@HFNKE BNL NQ UHRHS VVV CTA@HFNKE BNL

Unleash the

‘DOGS’ TaylorMade SLDR Lofts: 8o, 9.5o, 10.5o, 12o Standard shaft Options: Fujikura Speeder 57. Flex: X, S, R, M RRP: $399

52 | WorldwideGolf - March 2014

Callaway Big Bertha Alpha Lofts: 9o, (10.5o out in April) Standard shaft Options: Mitsubishi Rayon: X, S, R, L RRP: $499

2014 DRIVER TEST The leading drivers line up for our 2014 test. Is the latest Callaway Big Bertha worthy of it’s name? Can the TaylorMade SLDR still pack a punch in this class? PING’S stealthy-looking i25 has taken three years to develop – will it shine? The legendary Titleist 913 is a class act but does it have the muscle to compete as drivers these days are starting to resemble Swiss Army Knives on steriods.

8

Titleist 913 D3 Lofts: 7.5o, 8.5o, 9.5o, 10.5o Standard shaft Options: Aldila Tour Green 65 S, Aldila RIP Phenom 70 S, Diamana D+ White 72, Diamana S+ Blue 62 R&S RRP: $499

Callaway Big Bertha Lofts: 9.0o, 10.5o,13.5o

Adjustable

Standard shaft Options: Mitsubishi Rayon: S, R, L

Ping i25 Lofts: 8.5o,9.5o, 10.5o

Adjustable by 1/2 degrees

Standard shaft Options: PWR 55 S&R, PWR 65 R,S,TS, X PWR 75 S,TS, X

RRP: $399 RRP: $499 WorldwideGolf - March 2014 | 53

Jason Ashley Cust sto om Fit Speci cial a ist at the Address Mo ontgomerie Academ my

“

With so many fitting variations available from the five clubs on test it’s essential to use a Trackman system to narrow the options and pin point the areas that need optimizing.

“

Optimise for I distance and control In the past only the professionals had access to launch monitors and bespoke shaft options. However, amateurs are also getting the most out of the advancements in technology as the manufacturers have designed their clubs to be ’tinkered’ with to make sure the numbers add up for everybody and anybody.

54 | WorldwideGolf - March 2014

n this driver test WorldWide Golf’s Greg Smyth puts the latest performance drivers from Callaway, Ping, TaylorMade and Titleist through their paces. A driver isn’t just about distance but also accuracy, feel and looks.

Greg is a single figure golfer with a driver ball speed of 150mph. That’s a good number but he’s not going to win many long drive competitions with it. To give you some idea, Tiger Woods’ ball speed off the tee is 183mph and he’s not the longest these days.

Greg has spent most of his life playing golf on European courses and caddying occasionally for his dad Des Smyth on Tour. But having recently moved to Dubai it’s become clear he needs something different off the tee. “I’ve grown up playing golf in Ireland and mainly links golf,” says Greg. “So fighting against

Greg Smyth World dwide e Golff

“

Since being in the UAE I’m fed up of finding bunkers off the tee and being forced to layup.

It’s time to change the driver and gain some extra carry. A little more distance can’t hurt!

“

a wind has meant I’ve never been too confident launching the ball high. But having played with a few friends and Tour players during the recent Desert Classic I was amazed to see how high they flight it. 300 yard carry on Tour these days isn’t anything special.

“So, I’m in the market for a new driver and open to suggestions. I’ve got a rough idea of my stats but nothing concrete. To help me get to grips with my numbers and what I’m best suited to I booked in with Jason Ashley, Custom Fit Specialist at the Address Montgomerie Academy.

“I remember not so long ago that it took around a full day for a driver to be fitted for my dad. Lead tape had to be applied to various areas of the club head

to shift the weight to the required area in the head. To change a shaft normally meant gently heating the hosel with a blow torch to extract the old one!

In this test I managed to get fitted for five clubs in less than two hours, now that’s where technology really has come on. Speed is king in more ways than one.”

In the review we assessed the club’s individual characteristics, listened to Jason’s thoughts on how the club was set up and analysed Greg’s feedback.

To generate the stats Jason used the TrackMan system, Greg hit 10 balls with each driver, from which Jason selected the five most consistent strikes.

Extra distance is great but it needs to have control or you’re knocking it further into the rough or reloading!

WorldwideGolf - March 2014 | 55

Ping

i25

The latest driver from Ping is engineered to reduce the dreaded spin off the tee ed alignment stripes ar and go long. The patented are subtle but very effective!

The i25 is the thoroughbred in the Ping product oduct stable and is designed with speed in mind. It’s ’s not as frogiving as the Ping G25 but this club as all about reducing spin and optimising distance. The CDRHFM DMFHMDDQR VDQD @AKD SN L@JD @ RHFMHƥB@MS improvement in the top-to-bottom Moment Of Inertia (MOI) of the i25; it’s 8 per cent higher than its predecessor, the i20 driver. The increase in MOI creates more consistent spin rates on shots struck both above and below the sweet spot, leading to longer drives.

One thing that is apparent are the classic racing stripes. Marty Jertson, director of product development for Ping, said it took the company three years to perfect the racing stripes because of the CHƧBTKSX NE OK@BHMF RSQ@HFGS KHMDR NM @ BKTAŗR BTQUDC crown surface. That’s why if you look at the racing stripes in most orientations other than the setup position, they don’t look straight. However, they look perfectly straight at address on the i25 thanks to the special tooling Ping created to stamp the stripe on the head and verify its proper placement.

DATA TA

CLUB SPEED MPH

104.3

ATTACK ANG. deg

1.6

BALL SPEED MPH

153.6

JASON ASHLEY CUSTOM FIT SPECIALIST

GREG SMYTH WORLDWIDE GOLF TESTER

SPIN RATE RPM

2777

CARRY Yards

255.6

The ping I25 was not far away from performing at its optimum for the strikes we had. The main factor I would have looked at would have been to reduce the spin by 200-300RPM and that would have given us a few more yards, how I would have done this is by reducing the loft by .75 of a degree, for every degree of loft there is a change of about 300RPM but we would lose some launch angle so there is a fine line.

The i25 is a great looking club and the stripes really help to make sure you are square at address.

The club has a consistant feel and delivers a solid strike. At impact you can tell the difference over the G25 as the ball seems to jump off the face with a strong flight. I enjoyed this driver and felt like I could throw into the bag tomorrow and take one whatever the courses of the Middle East could throw at me!

SIDE Feet

TOTAL Yards

SMASH Factor

98.1L L

276.0

1.47

TrackMan GDWD FDOFXODWHG DV DQ DYHUDJH IURP WKH ͤYH PRVW FRQVLVWHQW VWULNHV RXW RI VKRWV

56 | WorldwideGolf - March 2014

HEIGHT Feet

106.3

CLUB TESTER

TaylorMade SLDR The SLDR has become one of the most played drivers on the PGA and European Tour for the past 12 months and it’s easy to see why. It’s long, low spinning, simple to set up and looks great.

The SLDR is built to help you hit longer and straighter drives by promoting a high launch angle, lower spin-rate and faster ball speed. That’s what makes SLDR TaylorMade’s longest driver yet.

SLDR’s Centre of Gravity (CG) location is both low and forward, due in large part to the large, 20-gram sliding weight on the sole. That promotes a dramatic leap in distance.

(M @CCHSHNM SN SGD KNV ENQV@QC "& ADMDƥSR SGD SLDR weight also represents a complete reinvention NE LNU@AKD VDHFGS L@JHMF HS LNQD DƤDBSHUD @MC easier to use. The movable weight shifts the clubhead’s CG horizontally toward either the heel (to promote a draw) or toward the toe (to promote a fade).

SLDR also incorporates TaylorMade’s Loft-sleeve Technology, which allows you to adjust the loft.

You can choose from 12 positions within a range of plus-or-minus 1.5 degrees of loft change. SLDR is available in three lofts – 9.5°, 10.5° and HL.

Again this driver was spinning a bit much and had a bit too high a flight which made it lose some velocity.

This was due to the 10° loft. If Greg could have hit 9° or 8.5° it would have brought the launch and spin rate down to an optimum level of around 2,600 rpm and I would have expected Greg to have hit it a further 10 yards.

JASON ASHLEY CUSTOM FIT SPECIALIST

GREG SMYTH WORLDWIDE GOLF TESTER

DATA TA

CLUB SPEED MPH

105.8

ATTACK ANG. deg

5.4

BALL SPEED MPH

154.1

SPIN RATE RPM

3012

CARRY Yards

254.3

I know quite a few lads on Tour that have these in the bag but I’d never hit one before. It’s a great looking club but feels very light. Its lightness meant it didn’t feel as solid as the others but it was simple to set up and off-centre strikes were forgiving. I was getting too much spin due to the loft so I would have liked to have hit one a couple of degrees lower. The hang time was good but the extra spin meant the flight was weak compared to the i25 or Big Bertha Alpha.

SIDE Feet

TOTAL Yards

SMASH Factor

74.2L L

273.0

1.46

HEIGHT Feet

109.7

TrackMan GDWD FDOFXODWHG DV DQ DYHUDJH IURP WKH ͤYH PRVW FRQVLVWHQW VWULNHV RXW RI VKRWV

WorldwideGolf - March 2014 | 57

Titleist 913

Since the 913 D2 & D3 drivers were launched aunched last year they have been a huge success as Titleist appears to have a philosophy to update a winning formula and not start from scratch in a bid to help out their marketing team If drivers were sold on looks then the 913 would win hands down. The Titleist D2 is 460cc and its full pear-shaped head is designed for maximum forgiveness. The 913D3 is 445cc and has a slightly smaller MOI to give the better player a little less ROHM NƤ SGD E@BD @MC LNQD VNQJ@AHKHSX 6D G@UD RDDM ANSG UDQRHNMR NM @KK SGD SNTQR @MC B@MŗSBNMƥQL whether we have seen the players favour one more than the other.

3HSKDHRS @QD ƥQL ADKHDUDQR SG@S SGD GD@C G@R LTBG LNQD DƤDBS SG@M SGD RG@ES HM QDCTBHMF ROHM Q@SDR That’s why their engineers reduced the thickness of the crown in order to move more mass lower and deeper in the head, which lowers the centre NE FQ@UHSX @MC QDCTBDC ROHM 6DHFGS R@UDC EQNL the drivers’ new face insert was reapplied to the SureFit weight, which has been increased from 7g to 9g, further lowering the centre of gravity. All this rearward weight makes for an improved MOI, which OQDUDMSR E@BD QNS@SHNM CTQHMF NƤ BDMSQD GHSR ENQ straighter shots.

DATA TA

CLUB SPEED MPH

104.1

ATTACK ANG. deg

2.7

JASON ASHLEY SHLEY CUSTOM FIT SPECIALIST ECIALIST

GREG SMYTH WORLDWIDE GOLF TESTER

BALL SPEED MPH

SPIN RATE RPM

CARRY Yards

152.6

3499

245.4

Greg struck the 913 well and you can see in the smash sh sh factor stats. He liked the feel but the club was spinning g far to much, to optimise this driver I would uld have h looked to reduce the loft and looked ked at a change of shaft to bring the spin rate dow down a further 1000rpm.

He could have tried thee 913 91 D2 which has a head size more in line with the other drivers and with a much firmer shaft. I’d d expect e Greg to get considerably more yardage with that combinati combination.

I’ve always liked the look and feel of the Titleist 913 and it’s arguably one of the best looking drivers on the market. It helped Adam Scott win the Masters so it’s good enough for all of us!

I tried the 9.5 degree 913 D3 with Dimana S 62 Stiff shaft but it was just too soft and he spin rate was through the roof. The slightly smaller 445cc head size was also noticeably different when placed next to the others at address.

SIDE Feet

TOTAL Yards

SMASH Factor

80.5L L

261.1

1.47

TrackMan GDWD FDOFXODWHG DV DQ DYHUDJH IURP WKH ͤYH PRVW FRQVLVWHQW VWULNHV RXW RI VKRWV

58 | WorldwideGolf - March 2014

HEIGHT Feet

112.1

CLUB TESTER

Big Bertha Alpha

It’s the club that’s got everyone talking and when you see Callaway’s big name Tour players put it straight into play, you know there’s more to this club than fancy looks and more gadgets than James Bond’s Aston Martin.

The Big Bertha Alpha is all about the Gravity Core technology. It has all the additional features such as perimeter weighting and quick interchangable shaft options but its the Gravity Core that’s of real interest. Callaway claim when the 12 gram Tungsten weight in the Gravity Core is placed in the low position, it can decrease backspin up to 600 rpm in certain situations, compared to having the VDHFGS ONRHSHNMDC MD@Q SGD SNO NE SGD BKTA 6HSGNTS adjusting anything else, positioning the Gravity Core weight low in the head actually dropped Greg’s spin by an average of 405 rpms compared to having the Gravity Core weight high in the face. Ball speed on mishits low on the face only lost about 1.7 mph of ball speed. Similarly, when the weight was placed in the up position, shots hit higher on the face lost less ball speed than when compared to shots hit high on the face with the Gravity Core in the low position.

This just shows that core weighing works. If you like tinkering then this club will have you entertained for a long time. But we’d advise getting a session on a TrackMan or you could end up pulling your hair out.

DATA TA

CLUB SPEED MPH

105.7

ATTACK ANG. deg

2.4

The Alpha driver showed good ball speeds for the strikes we had, the drivers spin rates were good ood but the launch angle was too high losing sing out on a maintained ball velocity, up as apposed to forward. I would have reduced the loft by a degree and paired it with a custom shaft which would have shown an increase distance.

JASON ASHLEY CUSTOM FIT SPECIALIST

GREG SMYTH WORLDWIDE GOLF TESTER

BALL SPEED MPH

SPIN RATE RPM

CARRY Yards

154.9

2458

262.6

You can feel the power off the clubface when you strike this driver – it almost feels like a trampoline. The heel and toe weights paired with the Gravity Core look make the sole look more like a space ship than a golf club. But at address the crown has a classic feel and looks great. This club is the longest out of the clubs tested and I’d like to see what the extra gain would be with a custom shaft.

SIDE Feet

TOTAL Yards

103.6L 6L 284.3

SMASH Factor

HEIGHT Feet

1.47

109.7

TrackMan GDWD FDOFXODWHG DV DQ DYHUDJH IURP WKH ͤYH PRVW FRQVLVWHQW VWULNHV RXW RI VKRWV

WorldwideGolf - March 2014 | 59

CLUB TESTER

Big Bertha The Big Bertha might not look as futuristic as the Alpha but it packs a mighty punch. This club will appeal more to the mid to high handicap player who isn’t battling to supress spin rates but looking for distance and accuracy.

The Big Bertha showcases Callaway’s Adjustable /DQHLDSDQ 6DHFGSHMF SDBGMNKNFX VGHBG ED@STQDR an 8g sliding weight that can be moved around the perimeter of the driver head to optimise shot shape and control dispersion. In addition, Big Bertha enables golfers to independently adjust loft and lie angle to help translate the added ball speed into more distance. Golfers can chose from four CHƤDQDMS KNESR EQNL SN SN NOSHLHRD K@TMBG @MFKD @MC A@BJROHM @MC SVN CHƤDQDMS KHDR CDMNSDC by ‘D’ for Draw and ‘N’ for Neutral, to optimise the directional bias. Together, these provide eight unique BNLAHM@SHNMR SG@S GDKO FNKEDQR L@WHLHRD CHRS@MBD NƤ the tee and tighen their dispersion.

This is a similar package to the TaylorMade SLDR and is overshadowed by the Gravity Core in the Alpha model. Greg didn’t manage to give it a true test but we’ve seen TrackMan stats show that some players have gained better results with this compared to the Alpha. It just goes to show our swing data suits CHƤDQDMS BKTA BG@Q@BSDQHRSHBR

DATA TA

CLUB SPEED MPH

106.4

ATTACK ANG. deg

2.7

JASON ASHLEY CUSTOM FIT SPECIALIST

GREG SMYTH WORLDWIDE GOLF TESTER

BALL SPEED MPH

SPIN RATE RPM

CARRY Yards

151.3

3291

244.7

The Big Bertha had the lowest ball speed of all the clubs and this was due to the smash factor being down which is a ratio that works out quality of strike (it’s about energy transfer) – the quality of strike was not as good as the other clubs. With this particular club to optimise the distance and strike I would have looked to a different shaft combination that would reduce spin and Greg’s feel because the launch conditions were good.

I just couldn’t settle with this club and the feel off the face is noticably different to the Alpha. As you can see from my Smash Factor stats I didn’t give the club a true test and I’m sure other players will get much better results. It’s ironic that I couldn’t get on with the club as it’s not much different to the Alpha in looks at address and I managed to ‘button’ most of the tee shots with that club. It’s a weird game!

SIDE Feet

TOTAL Yards

SMASH Factor

HEIGHT Feet

91.2L L

262.9

1.42

102.1

TrackMan GDWD FDOFXODWHG DV DQ DYHUDJH IURP WKH ͤYH PRVW FRQVLVWHQW VWULNHV RXW RI VKRWV

60 | WorldwideGolf - March 2014

SAUDI ARABIAN GOLF FEDERATION

FREE

MEMBERSHIP COME AND JOIN US at the Saudi Arabian Golf Federation, the governing body for golf in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, responsible for the issue and management of handicaps for amateur golfers.

CONTACT: gm@ksagolf.com for more information on how to learn to play golf

www.ksagolf.com/membership

2014 coverage of the 18th GCC Golf Championships

Arabian Below: The Bahrain Senior Team celebrate their victory in the gross category, Saudi Arabia (left) finished second with Qatar (right) in third place.

Bahrain and UAE hold on to their Senior and Junior titles

I Above: The UAE Junior Team stand at the top of the podium after successfully defending their Gross title at the 18th GGC Golf Championships, finishing seven shots clear of Qatar (right) with Bahrain (left) in third place.

T was a case of ‘as you were’ at the 18th GCC Golf Championships held at Dirab Golf Club, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, with both the Bahrain Senior Team successfully defending their title and the UAE Junior Team winning the Junior Gross title back-to-back.

The Senior Individual Gross event ended in a two-man all-Bahraini playoff between Nasser Yaqub and Hamad Mubarek after both had finished the three rounds of the tournament level on a total of 221 with Mubarek winning the play-off. The UAE’s Khalid Yousef was consistency itself shooting three magnificent rounds of 74 to finish just one shot behind Yaqub and Mubarek.

The Bahrain Senior Team, including Sultan Al Hakam and Mohammed D. Al Nosimi finished an emphatic 18 points clear of the second placed team, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, represented by Othman Ibrahim Al Mullah, Faisal Mohammed Al Salhab, Ali Hassan and Abdulrahman M. Al Mansoor.

The Qatar Team of Saleh Ali Al Kaabi, Ali Abdullah Al Bishi, Ghanim Mubarek Al Kuwari and Abdulrahman A. Al Shahrani came third with the UAE fourth, Oman fifth and Kuwait sixth.

The winners of the Junior Gross Team event, the UAE, took a glorious victory by seven shots from the Qatar Team with Bahrain in third place. Abdullah Al Qubaisi and Ahmed Skaik produced outstanding performances, with Saeed Al Balooshi scoring only on day one of the three-round competition. The UAE Juniors also came second in the Junior Net Team event just eight shots behind the winners, Oman.

ArabianGolf - March 2014 | 63

Omani Juniors clinch the Net Team prize THE Omani Junior team of Rashad Salem Al Harthy, Amjad Majid Altooqi and Hamoud Salim Al Harthy came from behind to win the Net trophy at the 18th GCC Golf Championships thanks to a sensational final round tally of 147.

After day two the Qatar Junior Team were four strokes clear of the UAE Junior Team who were, in turn, nine clear of third placed Oman. However, both Qatar and the UAE delivered their highest score of the event in the final day while the Omani’s withstood the pressure and produced their best.

Qatar crumbled with a final round 172 and the UAE shot a 164 which allowed Oman to step in, and they duly obliged to win by eight from the UAE with Qatar dropping out of the medal positions. Saudi Arabia took third place after their superb 139 in the final round which lifted them clear of Qatar by two strokes.

Bahrain duo seal Oman Challenge Tour invites

Above: Salaam Al Shaksy, CEO of National Bank of Oman, presents the winner’s cheque to Finland’s Roope Kakko after his victory in the inaugural National Bank of Oman Golf Classic at Almouj Golf The Wave, Muscat, last year.

64 | ArabianGolf - March 2014

T

HE Bahraini duo of Hamad Mubarek and Nasser Yaqub will both have the opportunity to tee it up in this year’s National Bank of Oman Golf Classic on the European Challenge Tour courtesy of a sponsor’s invite from the National Bank of Oman to the GCC Championships’ winner and runner-up. Both Mubarek and Yaquc finished in a tie at the top of the gross standings after three days of play at Dirab Country Club in Saudi Arabia with Mubarek finally prevailing in a sudden-death play-off.

“We have extended our invitations to the winner and runner-up of the GCC Championship to take part in the National Bank of Oman Golf Classic 2014 to encourage more Arab nationals to take part in our event,” said Salaam Al Shaksy, Chief Executive Officer of National Bank of Oman.

“Last year several Arab nationals competed in our inaugural event, including Omani National team members, Azaan Al Rumhy and Ali Hameed, and gained valuable experience in competing against the professionals of the Challenge Tour, several of whom are playing with the stars of the European Tour this year.”

Yusuf Eddiweesh, President of the Saudi Arabian Golf Federation, said: “On behalf of the GCC Organising Committee, I thank the National Bank of Oman for their kind invitation to the winner and runner-up of the GCC Championship to compete in the 2014 National Bank of Oman Golf Classic. The GCC Golf Committee accepts the sponsor’s invitations from the National Bank of Oman.”

The second running of the National Bank of Oman Golf Classic will be held at Almouj Golf The Wave, Muscat, from Thursday October 30 to Sunday November 2, 2014.

AZAAN LEADS THE WAY

A

ZAAN Al Rumhy led the way for the Oman National Team with an outstanding performance at the 18th GCC Golf Championships at Dirab Golf Club, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Oman’s leading amateur golfer won the Seniors Net Individual event with a total of 217, two shots ahead of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s Abdulrahman M. Al Mansour and four shots clear of Bahrain’s Hamad Mubarek and Nasser Yaqub, who finished level in the Senior Individual Gross competition before Mubarek won the play-off to take the title.

Azaan was fourth in the Senior Individual Gross event, just two shots off Mubarek and Yaqub and one shot behind the UAE’s Khalid Yousef, who finished third.

“It was a very well organised event and Dirab is a beautiful golf course in excellent condition,” said Azaan. “I was delighted to finish fourth in the overall Gross Individual competition and coming first in the Individual Net event was very satisfying.

“I shot seven over par – 75, 74, 74 – over the three days of the competition and I was actually one shot ahead of Khalid Yousef going into the last hole. I had a good start to the competition by shooting a 73 in the

practice round prior to the tournament.

“For our Oman Junior Team to win the Team Category Net event was a magnificent achievement and it just shows how golf in Oman is improving all the time.”

With all the exposure golf is getting in the Sultanate through prestigious international tournaments like the National Bank of Oman Golf Classic, and the efforts of the Oman Golf Committee, the game is certainly growing.

“The National Bank of Oman Golf Classic has done a lot to promote the game,” says Azaan.

“It would be good if we can get as many youngsters as possible to come and watch the tournament and learn about the game.

“The Oman Golf Committee (OGC) is working hard to encourage more youngsters to take up the game through their Junior Development Programme. The big challenge is to get the juniors to be passionate about the sport and commit to it. The OGC has selected a few private and public schools where the club PGA Pros can go along and give them an introduction to the game.

“There will be even more opportunities to play golf with the new grass course at Ras Al Hamra Golf Club (owned by the Petroleum Development of Oman) getting closer to

completion. They are expecting to have a ‘soft’ opening for its members by the middle of the year and an official opening towards the end of the year.

“There are a number of tournaments coming up but it’s the National Bank of Oman Golf Classic that I’m really looking forward to – if, hopefully, I receive a sponsor’s invitation from the Bank. Having experienced playing in a big event like the Classic last year I’d like to do much better this time.

“I learned from that event that I need to hit the ball a lot further. Working with Marcus Fraser I’ve added about five per cent more length with my long irons and woods in particular but I’m aiming for 10 per cent. I’m also trying to spend more time in the gym.”

Job opportunity National Bank of Oman Golf Classic Tournament Co-Ordinator » Responsible for sponsorship package design, sales, and after sales services. » Manage the process of acquiring suppliers through procurement in line with the Bank’s overall approved policy and approach (suppliers include infrastructure, branding, advertising, F&B, security, logistics). » Manage suppliers on the ground. » Manage the relationship with the various government departments during the preparation phase and throughout the event nt du duration. ion. » Point of contact with The European Tour. » Point of contact with the venue of the event. » Report back to the National Bank of Oman Golf olf Committee on we weekly y bas basis.. » Manage the overall action plan. » Liaise with other sections within the corporate communication division to ensure u advertising plan and PR plan are carried out adequately. » Manage the player experience and provide full support through the assigned team. » Manage the customer experience during the event.

The position requires experience of the golf industry and is initially for a nine-month contract, starting on April 1, 2014. Please attach your CV. For details of the employment salary and package please contact: ArabianGolf - March 2014 | 65 Mike Gallemore, Publisher, Worldwide Golf – mike@wspglobal.com

Saudi Arabian Golf Federation

Driving into the Future

Pictured from left to right: Abul Aziz Al Dablan, General Secretary, Saudi Arabian Golf Federation; Abulrhaman Al Mansoor, Team Member; Othman Al Mulla, Team Member; Saud Al Ghamdi, Saudi Arabian Golf Federation Board Member; Yusuf Eddiweesh, President Saudi Arabian Golf Federation; H.E. Mohammed Al Germas, President of Youth Welfare; Ali Al Balharath, Saudi Arabian National Coach; Ali Hassan, Team Member; Faisal Salhab, Team Member.

YUSUF Eddiweesh, President of the Saudi Arabian Golf Federation, talks to Worldwide Golf about the SAGF and the future of golf in the Kingdom.

WWG: When did golf first get started in Saudi Arabia, and where and who founded them?

YE: Golf was introduced in the late 1940s by ARAMCO in the Eastern Province and the game was played on the browns at the sand courses mainly by ex-pats and some Nationals. There are still five sand courses in the Kingdom but the number of grass courses has shot up to seven.

WWG: Golf has been growing at a rapid rate around the Middle East in recent years and has created considerable wealth in terms of tourism and sponsorship. Is golf growing in Saudi?

YE: Existing golfers in Saudi Arabia play regularly. Although the founders of golf in the Kingdom are ex-pats, golf is certainly growing in popularity with Saudi

66 | ArabianGolf - March 2014

Nationals. Our efforts in trying to open up the game are having an effect. We are planning to introduce golf to more youngsters, through regular visits to the schools, and we are hoping this will encourage more kids to play golf. Where golf has been added to the curriculum in schools in the UAE and Oman and other Arab nations it is creating a new generation of young golfers and we are starting to implement this policy. We also hope that the local media coverage of the GCC Championship at Dirab Golf Club in Riyadh will raise awareness of golf in Saudi Arabia.

WWG: The oil companies have created golf courses for their employees in Saudi – is this also something that could grow?

YE: Aramco has been the biggest pioneer of golf in Saudi Arabia and I’m sure they would be willing to

continue to support the growth of the game.

WWG: With golf now an Olympic sport, many countries that previously had no tradition of golf are now introducing the game so that they can send a team to Brazil. Does this help grow golfers in Saudi?

YE: With golf now being an Olympic sport in Rio in 2016 it certainly increases the awareness from the Saudi Arabian National Olympic Committee, which, in turn, means that additional funding from the government to the Federation will be invested in junior golf development.

WWG: What are your goals and aims for the Federation?

YE: I would like to see the Federation increasingly promote the sport of golf, ensure that Saudi Arabia has a unified national

Saudi Arabian Golf Courses: Saudi Arabian Golf Courses: Saudi Arabia has four/five sand courses and six/seven grass courses – three 18 holes; three 9 holes - plus Riyadh Golf Courses, which has an 18 holes grass course and an 18 holes sand course.

Ain Khaled Golf Club, Abqaiq: 18 holes sand course.

Wadi Al Saeed Golf Club, Udhiailyia: 18 holes sand course.

Rolling Hills Golf Club: 18 holes grass.

Surfside Golf Club: 18 holes sand course.

Whispering Sands Golf Club: 18 holes sand course.

Riyadh Golf Courses: 18 holes sand course & 18 holes grass course.

Dirab Golf Club: 18 holes grass course.

Nofa Golf Resort: 18 holes grass course.

handicap system, and help introduce new golf events like the The King’s Cup and the Saudi National Open Championships.

WWG: What is the handicap system in the Kingdom?

YE: The Saudi Golf Federation are affiliated to CONGU. WWG: The Royal Golf Club has hosted European Tour events in Bahrain – would this be an aim of the Saudi Golf Federation?

YE: Yes, the Saudi Golf Federation would certainly like to host an international Tour event at some stage. This would raise the profile of golf in the Kingdom but we would require significant sponsorship to bring a Tour event here.

WWG: Does the Federation believe that golf as a sport not

only provides exercise but it also teaches people etiquette and manners and consideration for other people?

YE: Of course, as golfers we understand the life skills learnt from following the rules and etiquette of golf, and we use this example whilst encouraging families and youngsters to learn to play golf. The fact that their children learn valuable life skills is an attraction to the parents.

WWG: What is immediately on the horizon for golf in Saudi?

YE: Apart from the GCC event at Dirab Golf Club we will also be the host country of the Arab Golf Championships at Riyadh Golf Courses from October 9th, 2014.

A big task is following up on our vision to implement a national centralised handicap system unifying all golfers.

Arizona Golf Resort, Riyadh: 9 holes grass course.

Palms Golf Club, Intercontinental Hotel, Riyadh: 9 holes grass course.

SAFA Golf Club, KAUST, Jeddah: 9 holes grass course.

Above: Riyadh Golf Courses, venue for the 2014 Arab Golf Championship

ArabianGolf - March 2014 | 67

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EMIRATIS EXPERIENCE PLAYING WITH THE BEST IN ABU DHABI THE UAE’s first professional golfer Ahmed Al Musharrekh of Sharjah made his third appearance at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship on The European Tour while -16year-old Abdulla Al Qubaisi played alongside former Ryder Cup Captain José Maria Olazábal in the pro-am.

Al Musharrekh, who is 23 and had played in the event twice before as an amateur, shot rounds of 80 and 82 and missed the opportunity to advance to the last two rounds of the weekend but said the experience will stand him in good stead for future opportunities.

“As the first and only Emirati golf professional I feel it’s my duty to try to support growing the game among my own community in any way I can,” he said. “Hopefully I can act as a role model and inspire a new emerging generation of Emirati players. Off the course I had the chance to spend some time working with local youngsters just starting out in the game in the HSBC World of Sport.

“This tournament is so much more than a chance to watch the stars, it’s a chance to pick up a club and learn. I’m absolutely thrilled I was able to play my part.”

With the growth of golf rising in the UAE, it is a promising sight to see two of UAE’s native golfers gaining such a valuable experience.

Ahmed Al Musharrekh in action during the opening round of the 2014 Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship.

JUNIORS OUT IN FORCE FOR THE DUBAI SCHOOLS LEAGUE THE Emirates Golf Federation’s Junior National Team are in sixth place ahead of the final event of the Dubai Schools League after a good showing in the third event of the series at The Track Meydan.

The team scored a combined total of 53 Stableford points over the nine holes with Ahmed Al Budoor top scoring with a haul of 17 points from his handicap of nine. The youngster hit three gross

pars and six gross bogeys for his tally.

Mahmood Skaik (28) scored 13, Tara Al Marzouqi (23) scored 12 and Mohamed Abdulla Saeef (28) scored 11 to complete the team’s score.

The last event of the Dubai Schools League will take place later in March and with plenty of strong opposition in the field it is a great challenge for the young EGF team to try and move up the standings.

ArabianGolf - March- 2014 | 69

DUBAI CREEK GOLF AND YACHT CLUB www.dubaigolf.com

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AUSTRALIA SEAL AMBASSADORS CUP THE 2014 Ambassadors Cup saw the coming together of various Business Council’s and Corporate organisations from across the region to compete in a fun and friendly atmosphere.

Each team consisted of six pairs and the format was Pair’s Better Ball Stableford, with all six pairs’ scores counting to create the overall team score.

The teams for this year represented the UAE, India, South Africa, Germany, Ireland, Canada, Australia, Britain and Sweden and coming out on top were the Australians with a team score of 172 points.

Finishing second place, seven points back,

were Ireland, while there were also plenty of on-course prizes. The Nearest the Pin prizes on holes 5, 14 and 16 were won by David Russell, Adina Cameron and Leon Ashford respectively.

The next prizes were for Nearest the Pin in two shots, and these came on holes 2 and six and

were won by Alastair Park and John Fellingham respectively.

Fellingham was successful again on the par-5 13th for the Nearest the Pin in three competition and Charlie Wilcox of team Britain took the same prize on the par-5, 10th.

FARDEEN HITS AN ACE IN INAUGURAL FALCON THURSDAY PROMISING youngster Fardeen Meeran underlined his potential in the inaugural Falcon Thursday tournament by hitting a hole-in-one on hole 9 on of the Palm Par-3 course to win the Junior Division Falcon Golf Arabia and Dubai Creek have come together and launched Falcon Thursdays as a chance for everyone to enjoy a fun evening of golf – no matter what their experience or level is. Competitors can choose to play one of three competitions held on the Palm Par 3 course, Pearl Putting course and the Dubai Creek Academy Golf Simulator. Meeran won the Junior title on the Par-3 course with a superb net 24.5 with Anushka Bhargava finishing second.

Ashok Kumar won the Men’s Division with a 24.9, narrowly ahead of Alan White who shot a 25.2 while the Ladies Division saw Gisela Brandt edge Glory Xavier into second place with a 25.

Elsewhere Graham Gordon putted like a pro to finish with a 4-under-par total of 40 to win the Men’s Division in the Putting Competition by four strokes from Paul Kane while the Junior Division honours went to Pragun Khanna with a 47, five clear of Matthew Kane.

Nicole Mansour was victorious in the Ladies Division with a score of 55 and Delane Kane made it three runner-up finishes for the Kane family as she finished two strokes back. Adam Savage and Fraser Gordon showed sharp accuracy as they were winners in the Nearest the Pin simulator competition.

70 | ArabianGolf - March 2014

Gisela Brandt, Nicole Mansour, Graham Gordon, Ashok Kumar, Harini White (Owner, Falcon Golf Arabia) and Fardeen Meeran are pictured after play.

CONTACT: Tel : +971 4 295 6000 E-mail: dcgyc@dubaigolf.com

Left to right: Ahmed Al Musharrekh and Stephen Hubner of Dubai Creek, Harini White Managing Director, Falcon Golf Arabia, winner Fardeen Meeran, George Horan, President, Dubai Duty Free and Rashid Hamood, Dubai Creek.

MEERAN TAKES THE HONOURS

Stephen Hubner (Golf & Membership Services Manager, Dubai Creek), Caetano Fernandes (Head of Mashreq Gold), Tony Azoulay (third place), Anand Lakhiani (Champion), Glory Xavier (runner-up), Tejan Fadlu-Dean (Club Captain, Dubai Creek), Alan Mackenzie (Director of Golf Operations, Dubai Creek)

LAKHIANI CLINCHES HARD FOUGHT MASHREQ TITLE ANAND Lakhiani won a countback against Glory Xavier to win the 2013 Mashreq Medal Championship Grand Final at Dubai Creek.

The field comprised of the top 36 players on the Mashreq Championship Order of Merits at both Dubai Creek and Emirates Golf Club and Lakhiani and Xavier found themselves at the top of the leaderboard with a net 1-under-par 70 after play. However, when both players’ back nines were compared it was Lakhiani who took the spoils.

“It is indeed an honour to win the inaugural Mashreq Medal Championship contested by the 72 top golfers of both our clubs,” said Lakhiani. “Many thanks to Mashreq, BMW, and Harvey Nichols Dubai, for sponsoring this unique event. The

members have thoroughly enjoyed the new format and look forward to another great season ahead.”

Tony Azoulay finished third in the event, one stroke back with a level-par net 70.

After the prize giving, Dubai Creek’s Golf & Membership Services Manager Stephen Hubner said: “Congratulations to all of our members who have done so well to qualify for today’s Grand Final, this is a fantastic achievement in itself. Thank you to Mashreq Bank for their outstanding contribution to golf in the Dubai, and of course to BMW and Harvey Nichols also.

“The 2014 Mashreq Medal Championship promises to be another exciting season and we look forward to it.”

THE second event in the 2014 Dubai Duty Free Junior Medal Championship series took place last month and Fardeen Meeran continued his recent form with a superb net 32 to take the overall spoils.

The scoring was very good throughout and both Punya Khanna and Vijayesh Haridas tied at the top of the Boys Division on 33.5 and needed a countback to settle the honours. After the scores were compared it was Khanna who took the spoils thanks to his better inward half and with it he takes the top spot on the Order of Merit ahead of the previous month’s winner, Kabir Nanda.

Another countback was to decide the winner in the Best Gross category as Dhruv Nair and Arkesh Bhatia both fired a solid 1-over-par 36. It turned out to be Bhatia’s day as he downed Nair on the countback and also won the Nearest the Pin prize on hole 8.

VICE CAPTAIN WHITE TAKES THE LADIES MEDAL LADY Vice Captain Harini White secured the honours in last month’s JW Marriott Ladies Medal with a fine net 67 for a two-stroke win over Glory Xavier.

“I really played well today and it was a lot of fun to be out there with all the ladies,” commented White after her win. “The course was in fantastic condition and my thanks go to all the competitors,

sponsors and club staff for making these competitions possible.”

With this win Harini jumps up to second place in the Order of Merit behind new leader Glory Xavier, whilst January strokeplay winner Daniela Sacchini drops back to third place.

LIGHTHEARTED FUN ON VALENTINES DAY THERE was a fun and alternative option for couples this Valentine’s Day when Dubai Creek pros hosted a par-3 Romantic Scramble which gave the players a chance to enjoy some light-hearted competition and an array of food and beverages on each tee.

Scoring was very good and the top spot needed a countback to settle the honours with both Hugh and Alisa Brannock and Michael and Rachel Bartless tied with 29 points. After the scorecards were compared it was the Brannocks who took the spoils as they finished their round stronger. Finishing third were Arnold and Carolin Bremann who posted a score of 28.

Golf Academy Manager Rashid Hamood, Hugh Brannock, Marie Singleton, Philip Hudson, Ailsa Brannock, winners Carolin and Hugh Bremann, F&B Services Manager, Dubai Creek Julien Pilard and Assistant Golf Professional Ahmed Al Musharrekh.

ArabianGolf - March-2014 | 71

CONTACT: Tel : +971 4 375 999

JUMEIRAH GOLF ESTATES www.jumeirahgolfestates.com

Jumeirah-Golf-Estates

TUFAIL MAKES IT A HAT-TRICK SANA Tufail won the BMW AGMC Ladies Amateur Open at JGE for the third consecutive year after another dominating display over the Fire course.

Despite a relatively chilly atmosphere Tufail went out in 36 blows and came home in 32 to win with a stunning gross 4-under-par 68. Finishing eight strokes back in second place was Kim Chiang with third place going to Julia Al Hemoud with an 80.

In the Net Division it was Jumeirah Golf Estates

Ladies Club Champion Michelle Walsh Hall who took the honours with a very creditable net 69, three clear of Elsie Bruce while Satnam Kaur was third after losing to Bruce on a countback.

Claudette Dumoulin won the Long Drive prize on hole 7 and the Nearest the Pin prize on hole 8 while the other Nearest the Pin prizes went to Tufail on hole 16 (Nearest in two) and Al Hemoud on hole 14.

BRUCE AND WILCOX CROWNED MIXED OPEN CHAMPIONS ELISE Bruce and Charlie Wilcox won the gross award at the fourth staging of the BMW AGMC Mixed Open last month with a combined score of 3-over-par 75.

Michelle and Jonny Hall took second place with a gross 78 while in the Net Division a card countback was needed to separate the top two places.

The teams of Tania and Giordano Gelasini and Ornella and Giorgio Parigi both shot a net 1-under-par 71 and thanks to a stronger back nine of 35 the top spot was awarded to the Gelasinis.

AL BADIA GOLF CLUB www.albadiagolfclub.ae

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CONTACT: Tel : +971 4 601 0101

AlBadiaGolfClub

Left to right: Charles Kinniburgh, Captain Richard Kim, Stewart Adams, Jenny Kim, Henric Carlsson and Lady Captain Liz Batson.

AL BADIA LADIES SEAL A HOME WIN

LOW SCORES IN THE AL BADIA TROPHY

THE Ladies of Al Badia won their home fixture in League 3 of the Ladies Interclub Challenge with a score of 247, 13 ahead of Jumeirah Golf Estates with The Montogomerie Dubai finishing third.

The fourth team in the league, Saadiyat Beach, did not participate.

There were individual prizes on the day and home player Tina Wade top scored with 35 points, narrowly ahead of fellow member Marceliza Manese on a countback. Finishing third with 33 points was Hilary Thornhill from Jumeirah Golf Estates. Liz Batson won the Nearest the Pin prize and Annie Brown struck the Longest Drive.

The format for the Inter-Club Challenge is an Individual Stableford, played off handicap index. The top eight scores are selected from the 10 players and these scores are totaled to give the final team score for the day. These points are carried forward to each league game giving a final tally of points at the final game. The winner of each league will then challenge the other league winners in a Grand Final.

THE first Major tournament of 2014 saw 15 teams battle for honours in the Al Badia Trophy and coming out on top with a superb gross 62 for a net 58.5 was Charles Kinniburgh, Stewart Adams, Jenny Kim and Henric Carlsson.

72 | ArabianGolf - March 2014

ALMOST A TON ON WOMEN’S WEDNESDAY A FANTASTIC score of 98 points saw Suzanne Everleigh, Sulafa Hamdan and Jenny Kim take home the honours in the recent Women’s Wednesday competition. The winners are pictured with Lady Captain Liz Batson.

EMIRATES GOLF CLUB www.dubaigolf.com

CONTACT: Tel : +9714 380 2222 E-mail: info@dubaigolf.com

EmiratesGolfClub

Members of the winning team are pictured with Shaikh Faisal bin Khalid Qasimi, president of Orient Travel, Asim Arshad, CEO of Orient Travel and Syed Mohammed Shahzad Naqvi of Etihad.

KOHLI LEADS TEAM TO VICTORY IN ORIENT TRAVEL GOLF CHALLENGE MOSHE Kohli hit a hot streak with his putter to propel his team to an impressive victory in the Etihad supported Orient Travel Golf Challenge recently.

Riding on the strength of three gross birdies, Kohli contributed 34 points as his team, consisting of Manoj Kapur, Mukesh Kochhar and Viren Varma,

tallied 80 points to win by one ahead of Gurbax Singh’s team of Baljit Kaur, Paul Joseph and Bala Subramaniam.

Kohli’s heroics and his team-mates consistency led them to victory in the team prize but the individual prize went to Subramaniam as he notched 38 points.

TRIO WALTZ TO FIRST PLACE CATHERINE Clark, Theea Hendrickx and Fiona Nicholas clinched first place in the Ladies Waltz 1-2-3 event last month on the Faldo Course. The trio top scored with 82 combined Stableford points 36 Ladies competed in the event and finishing just one point further back were Mimi Hosking, Maggie Niel and Elizabeth Pudner. In the individual prizes Hosking took the honours with a 39 point haul, one clear of Clark.

BAXTER STARTS THE NEW YEAR WITH A BRILLIANT BANG MATTHEW Baxter shot a solid 1-over-par round to win the fourth event of the 2013/14 Dubai Golf Junior Par-3 series recently.

The event was played over The Emirates nine hole Academy Course and was made up of a strong field of 58 budding future stars.

Juniors from four levels of the Dubai Golf Junior programme (black, purple, blue and yellow) competed against one another and each level was highly contested.

Baxter won the Black section by one stroke from Fareen Meeran to add 100 Order of Merit points to his tally.

In the Purple section Jay Mullane shot a 33 to win by one from Hoshi Yadav while the Blue section went to David Polo on a countback ahead of Aarnav Nath. Jamie Garcia-Villalon won the Yellow section with a 49, four shots ahead of Olvia Thomas.

Organising Golf Professional Jonathan Craddock said: “It was the perfect evening, I was privileged to witness some cracking shots, to see the passion of the kids to do well but more importantly have fun.”

ASIA TRIUMPH AGAINST THE REST OF THE WORLD THE highly anticipated Asia vs The Rest of the World tournament on the Faldo course saw 68 players split into 16 teams which faced off against each other and it was the Asian contingent who came out on top, winning 10 – 6.

In addition to the overall prize there were some individual on-course prizes and the Nearest the Pin for the Ladies on hole 2 was secured by Lady Vice Captain Mitsuko Emmerson while Jenny Ayres claimed the same prize on hole 12. For the men, Anand Lakhiani took the Nearest the Pin on hole 8 while Gary Black claimed the Nearest the Pin on hole 17.

Another shot of note came from Keith Prosser as he struck a superb hole-in-one on hole 12.

ArabianGolf - March-2014 | 73

SHARJAH GOLF AND SHOOTING CLUB www.golfandshootingshj.com

Sharjah-Golf-Shooting-Club

SARKAR WINS BY SIX TO TOP THE ORDER OF MERIT JAYDEEP Sarkar shot a gross 81 for a net 69 to win the fifth round of the Thai Airways Monthly Medal series by six strokes and with it he shot himself into the lead on the Order of Merit.

The Order of Merit currently stands at its closest for many a year with just four points separating the top four players. The top two players on the ranking at the end of the series will win a trip to Thailand courtesy of sponsors Thai Airways.

With both a morning and afternoon shotgun set up to accommodate the large field of golfers it was Indian golfer Chandan Vaidya who returned in second spot after a 5-over net 77 with third going to Tim Sephton, one shot further adrift. The best gross score of the morning session went to South Africa’s Ricky Dominguez with a 78.

With the wind picking up going into the afternoon it was going to make surpassing Sarkar’s score of 3-under very difficult and it was Malaysian Mohammad Firdaus who fared best, shooting a net 75. He was followed by

Noel Enriquez who secured second spot with a 77 with Lorenzo Rivera picking up his first award at SGSC with a net 78 for third place.

Ramli Sulaiman made it an afternoon to remember for the Malaysian contingent as he also scooped the best gross with a respectable 82.

INAUGURAL SANTA FE ASIAN OPEN LOOKS SET FOR BIGGEST FIELD OF THE SEASON THE first staging of the Santa Fe Asian Open Golf Championship on Saturday, March 15 looks set to become the biggest event of the season with over 75 entries recorded so far, with the closing date not until Sunday, March 9.

The event has options for golfers to play in the 7.30am and 1.00pm shotguns, with entries limited to 112 golfers on a ‘first come first served’ basis. The tournament is open to all Asian born players with an official handicap and registration is open now. In addition to an overall prize on the day there will be divisional prizes for every nationality represented in the field because interest in the event is so high.

In addition to the differing nationality divisions the event also has a diplomat division and has already secured a number of high-profile Asian diplomats who will represent their country as well as participate in the event.

To enter call the golf reservations team on 06548-7777 or you can also email over your name to: golfres@golfandshootingshj.com Kim Creutzberg from Santa Fe is pictured with Sharjah Golf & Shooting Club Director of Golf, Martin Duff.

YADI AND MEHMOOD ARE THE ULTIMATE PAIR THE Junior/Adult partnership of Hassan Yazdi and Mukhzar Mehmood clinched the fourth edition of the Ultimate Pairs Championship supported by Citibank recently with a superb five-stroke victory.

After guiding themselves though the first day’s formats of Texas Scramble and Greensomes they sat at the top of the leaderboard on 3-under par alongside the

74 | ArabianGolf - March 2014

formidable partnership of Mohammad Bin Firdaus and Adi Husaini. However, through the second day’s Better Ball and Foursomes formats Yazdi and Mehmood pulled away and thanks to the victory Yazdi became the Club’s all-time leading tournament winner.

Bin Firdaus and Husaini had to settle for second place with third place going to Tony Beaumont and Ove Pedersen.

CONTACT: Tel : +971 6 548 7777 E-mail: info@golfandshootingshj.com

KRAETZER AND PHILLIPS MAKE THE PERFECT PAIR

TUFAIL EASES TO FOURTH CONSECUTIVE LADIES OPEN SANA Tufail comprehensively won the Ladies Open for the fourth successive year after a 1-over-par 73 gave her a four-stroke win over Kim Chaing.

Tufail was the red hot favourite going into the tournament and she didn’t disappoint. The only negative on the day was her bogey-bogey finish which stopped her from finishing under par.

Chaing’s gross 77 was extremely steady and good enough to take the runner-up spot ahead of Julia Alhemoud who shot an 80. Fourth place went to Sharjah’s Vice Lady Captain Claudette Dumoulin with a gross 84.

A net 70 saw Jiwon Bae seal the Division ‘1’ title by four strokes from Alkyoine Aharadis with Elsie Bruce finishing third after losing a countback to Aharadis.

Home member Georgina Liu secured the honours in Division ‘2’ with a superb net 64, a full ten shots clear of runner-up and close friend Sakshi Dasgupta.

BRETT Kraetzer and Andrew Phillips produced some magical golf to win the recent BMW Members & Guests Social competition.

Playing in the morning shotgun they started fairly conservatively and made the turn in 4-under 32 in the Shambles Better Ball format but they turned it on over the closing nine and fired an 11-under 25 in the Better Ball format to win with a net 57.

Phillips was the star performer as he made a gross birdie on the final hole to sign off on the victory in style. With Kraetzer and Phillips taking the overall Morning prize they took themselves out of the reckoning for the front and back nine

prizes. Taking the morning Shambles (front nine) prize were Roy Holmes and Alez Tivi while the back nine Better Ball competition was won by Peter Foley and Mark Dupree.

Players in the Afternoon session certainly gave it a good go to try and reach the target of net 57 but they all came up short.

Coming out on top – despite losing out on the overall prize – were Shewakrmani Suresh and Sindhu Ashok as they combined for a net 60.

The Afternoon’s front nine winners were Mutki Rai and Kader Tazerout with a net 32 while the back nine winners were SGSC Director of Golf Martin Duff and his father as they compiled a steady net 3-under 33.

BENAVIDEZ CLAIMS THE UNITECHNIK STABLEFORD WHIZZ KID MEHMOOD CLINCHES THE MEDAL JUNIOR member Mukhzar Mehmood clinched the Centro Sharjah 9 Hole Midweek Medal recently after continuing the fine form he showed throughout January.

Mehmood, who had paired up with Hassan Yazdi to win the recent Ultimate Pairs tournament, posted an impressive 4-under-par net 32 to win by two while in Division ‘1’ Tony H. Bang fired a 2-under 34 to top the pile and in Division ‘2’ Yohannes Tesfa shot a 37 to take the spoils.

BERNIE Benavidez claimed last month’s Unitechnik Monthly Stableford as his haul of 39 points gave him a three-point win over Rory Thomson. Benavidez was the only player to shoot an under-par score and had it not been for a blob during his back nine assault he would have pushed himself over the 40-point mark.

Taking the top spot in Division ‘2’ was Unitechnik sponsor Hans Ettengruber who collected his first ever piece of silverware at the club. Ettengruber sealed the win with a countback win over his wife Mara while the overall gross prize went to 13-handicapper Alastair MacGregor.

ArabianGolf - March-2014 | 75

ARABIAN RANCHES GOLF CLUB www.arabianranchesgolfclubdubai.com

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CONTACT: Tel : 3000 366 4 971+ E-mail: info@arabianranchesgolf.ae

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SCANLAN AND BOLAND CROWNED THE BEST OF THE BEST

HUNDRED UP AT THE SHAMBLES THE four-man team of Detlef Proschold, Jessie Labajo and Jean Marie and Valentin Teyssedre returned a staggering 103 Stableford points to win a team Shambles event recently.

The event attracted a quality field of 18 teams which saw each player receive full handicap allowance to be taken at the appropriate stroke index hole.

The format saw all four players tee off with the best-positioned ball selected and the whole

team then playing from that point. The best two scores were then used towards the team card.

All four players on the winning team were in excellent form as they scored an outward 52 and followed it with an inward 51.

Three teams found themselves tied on 101 and the battle for second place was settled on a countback with Simon McDonald, Astri Poulsson, Hakan and Pernilla Karlsson winning by virtue of their better back nine.

ANDREW Scanlan and Peter Bolan were crowned the overall winners in the third annual SIAN Events Golf Series after they clinched the Grand Final recently with a brilliant combined Stableford score of 70.

The event saw the top ten teams from each qualifying event progress to the final and with 40 teams in action it was bound to be a closely fought contest. Scanlan and Boland clinched the title by the skin of their teeth as they defeated the 2012 winners Edoardo and Beatrice Gallepini on a countback.

Mark Kenaghan and Ian Souter took third place on the day with 68 points, one clear of Andrew Marker and Aaron Birch who had to settle for fourth.

In addition to the team prizes there were individual net and gross awards and the two gross prizes went to Colin Graham and Karen Evans with 35 and 28 points respectively while the two net awards went to Ole Sealey and Pauline Wallace, both with 37 points.

MCLENNAN AND MCKELVEY CLINCH THE MEDAL DOUG McLennan maintained his hot form as he fired a gross 71 to win last month’s Rivoli Monthly Medal for his fourth win in the last five Medal competitions.

McLennan sealed the win with a round compiled from his usual flurry of birdies and bogeys that included nine pars, five birdies, three bogeys and one double bogey which saw him edge out Erik Hartzuiker by two shots.

In the Men’s Division ‘A’ Gary Swan took the spoils with a countback win over Chris Miller with both players on 72 while in Division ‘B’ Paul Bryson shot a 71 to win by three ahead of Graeme White.

Adele McKelvey was the familiar name at the top of the Ladies Division leaderboard as she took the title with a gross 80 while the Ladies Net prize went to Anne Hainey with a 68, three clear of Karen Evans.

76 | ArabianGolf - March 2014

SMITH WINS INDIVIDUAL STABLEFORD SUPPORTED BY GRASS IT UP JETT Smith posted a brilliant 39 Stableford points to win the Individual Stableford event presented by Grass It Up recently by one stroke from Paul Murnaghan. Smith secured 19 points on the outward nine and upped his game on the back nine to score 20 to deny Murnaghan.

Two players finished with 37 points and after a countback the third and final place on the podium was handed to Anne Hainey with Chris Miller relegated to fourth place.

Worldwide

CONARES GOLF SOCIETY LEAGUE www.golfandshootingshj.com

QUARTER FINALISTS FROM CONARES AND BMW LEAGUES DECIDED BMW League leaders The Emirates Golf Society easily qualified for the Quarter Finals of the Conares Golf Society League while the KEGS shot up the rankings to deny both The Plowmen and former overall runners-up Sport 360° a place in the knockout rounds.

Emirates Golf Society won one and lost one against the already-doomed Emirates Pilots Club

Conares League Mott MacDonald MasSin Golf Society Al Naboodah Sultans of Swing Al Laith SGB RimauSinga

to clinch the top spot while the KEGS won both their matches against the MTD Golf Society which propelled them into second spot in the league. The Plowmen and Sport 360° faced off against each other knowing that they needed to win both their matches to progress. No quarter was given and the teams ended with one win each and they both missed out on the chance to progress.

Played

Won

Lost

Tied

Points

10 10 10 1 10 1 10 10

5 5 5 5 4 2

3 4 4 5 4 6

2 1 1 0 2 2

17 16 16 15 14 8

BMW League Emirates Golf Society K.E.G.S Plowman Golf Society Sport 360° Emirates Pilots Club M.T.D

In the Conares Steel League, leaders Mott MacDonald went head to head with the second placed Al Naboodah Golf Society and both won one match each which saw Mott MacDonald qualify but Al Naboodah were nudged out of second place by virtue of a countback loss to the MasSin Golf Society. The MGS moved up from fifth place in the table thanks to their two wins.

Played

Won

Lost

Tied

Points

100 100 100 100 100 100

7 6 5 5 4 1

3 4 4 4 5 8

0 0 1 1 1 1

21 18 16 16 13 4

DEFENDING CHAMPIONS DUBAI EXPUTTS CRASH OUT AFTER leading by three clear points going into the final round of fixtures the Gulf Rock Society were determined not to let their lead slip and disposed of their opponents Lloyds Register with two emphatic wins to top the SNTTA table with an impressive 24 points.

With a fight on for the all-important second place and the last remaining qualifying spot there was a tie between the Woestyn Boere Hackers and Dubai Exputts who both finished with a total of 18 points.

In the case of a tie the society with the most points on the final fixture would progress, however both teams recorded one win and one loss, therefore it went to their head to head match earlier on in the campaign and again they both also matched with three points each. To decide a qualifier the countback then went to every single SNTTA Travel League Gulf Rock Woestyn Boere Hackers Dubai Exputts Indian Expats South African Golf Society Lloyd’s Register

round played in reverse order, yet amazingly both societies had matched each other’s scores at every fixture. So with less than a week to arrange another play-off match the decision was taken to play a sudden death play-off over the 18th hole with both societies fielding one team each. Their respective society captains selected Ian larner and Lise Slane from Dubai Exputts to play against Juan Prinsloo and Heino Havenga from Woestyn Boere Hackers.

Both teams fought fiercely and the match was settled on the second hole when both Ian and Lise missed their four foot putts leaving Woestyn Boere Hackers a two-foot putt for an incredible win which saw the Dubai Ex-Putts crash out at this stage for the first time since the GSL inception.

In the Worldwide Golf league the Dubai Irish Golf Society (DIGS) completed their campaign

Played

Won

Lost

Tied

Points

10 10 10 10 10 10

8 6 6 5 3 1

2 4 4 5 6 8

0 0 0 0 1 1

24 18 18 15 10 4

Worldwide Golf League DIGS Sport 2 Business Dubai Duffers Dubai Divots Taiwan Golf Society Darjeeling Golf Society

undefeated to top the pile while second place went to Sport 2 Business who produced a solid last-match display by winning both their matches against the Dubai Duffers.

The Woestyn Boere Hackers are pictured after downing the Dubai Exputts for a place in the quarter finals.

Played

Won

Lost

Tied

Points

10 100 100 100 100 10

8

0 2 3 6 6 10

2 2 2 0 0 0

26 20 17 12 12 0

6 Worldwide 5 4 4 0

ArabianGolf - March-2014 | 77

AL AIN EQUESTRIAN SHOOTING AND GOLF CLUB www.aesgc.com

CONTACT: Tel : +971 3 702 6400 E-mail: golf@aesgc.ae

Golfin Alain

MCDONALD AND KIM SOAR TO VICTORY JACK McDonald sealed the gross honours and Jung Bin Kim won the net prize at this year’s Emirates Airline Men’s Open ahead of a field that had travelled from far and wide to compete.

McDonald clinched the victory with two stunning rounds of 66 to win, with a 10-under-par, total by six shots ahead of Zander Culverwell.

Ollie Roberts took third place in the gross section as he also finished with a 4-under-total but lost out to Culverwell on a countback and had to settle for the bronze medal.

ABU DHABI CITY GOLF CLUB www.adcitygolf.com

@adcitygolf

Talented youngster Kim challenged in the gross category throughout the tournament but came up just short, however he came out on top in the net category with scores of 76 and 70.

Second place went to Abdul Sherazee as he leaped through the field with a second round 64 while third place went to Jason Neese with consistent rounds of 69 and 70. The honours in Division ‘A’ went to James Wilson with a 70 and 71 while home player Alex Tinson took the spoils in Division ‘B’ with rounds of 72 and 73.

CONTACT: Tel : +971 2 445 9600 Fax : +971 2 443 225

adcitygolf

HURDON TAKES THE MERCURE GOLF DAY SPOILS GRAHAM Hurdon made it a day to remember as he compiled a Stableford haul of 40 points to win the Mercure Golf Day by two points from Nadia Belaid.

The ‘Hidden Pairs’ draw was made after play and the best couple were Rob Macleod (37) and Mark Downs (33) as their score of 70 took the top spot by one point from Pieter Van Eck (36) and Steve Wiltshire (33).

The Mercure Golf day raises money for Medicine Sans Frontiers association and this year the total raised was just over than 2000AED.

THORPE-WILLET SEALS THE TURKISH AIRLINES MEDAL TRACY Thorpe-Willet shot a fine net 70 to win last month’s Turkish Airlines Monthly Medal while the gross winner on the day was Darren Hall as he shot a 76.

Taking the honours in Division ‘A’ was Jong Tae Bang with a net 67 while the winners in Divisions ‘B’ and ‘C’ were Salman Khan and Roberto Valez respectively.

JONES WINS THE PEUGEOT ORDER OF MERIT IAN Jones topped the pile at the end of the 11-month long Peugeot Order of Merit Series and Steve Wiltshire will join him in the World Final in Paris in September after he played one of the best rounds of his season to secure victory in the final event to finish second behind Jones in the overall OOM standing.

Wiltshire stormed up the Order of Merit standings from 16th to second thanks to his win last month.

78 | ArabianGolf - March 2014

CONTACT: Tel : +971 2 558 8990 E-mail: info@adgolfclub.com

ABU DHABI GOLF CLUB www.adgolfclub.com

@ADGolfClub

abudhabigolfclub

TYSON TAKES OFF IN ETIHAD AIRWAYS NIGHT FLIGHT LINA Tyson took the spoils in last month’s edition of the Etihad Airways Night Flight with a score of 22 Stableford points. A field of 44 keen golfers took to the course and finished second, one point behind Tyson, was Nadia Belaid with Young Souk Choi relegated to third place after a countback between the her and Belaid.

SMITH CROWNED 2014 ABU DHABI MEN’S OPEN CHAMPION PROFESSIONAL Craig Smith took home the Abu Dhabi Men’s Open recently after he won by eight shots from the 2013 champion Michael Harradine.

Smith posted a superb score of 7-under-par thanks to net rounds of 70 and 67 while Harradine, who missed out on the overall net prize, took the gross prize thanks to his 1-over-par 145 tally.

Second place behind Harradine went to Scott Nightingale with a 147 while Craig Vance took third place on the same score after losing a countback.

Matthieu Charnelet secured the net division with rounds of 70 and 72 for a 142 total and a four-stroke win over Phil Cook with Club Captain Donovan Joseph taking third on 148.

THE ELS CLUB www.elsclubdubai.com

CONTACT: Tel : +971 4 425 1010 E-mail: golf@elsclubdubai.com

TheElsClubDubai

FUN FOR ALL IN GEMS EDUCATION GOLF DAY THE inaugural GEMS Education Parental Engagement Golf Day was held last month and offered a unique family experience which was praised by students, parents and teachers from across the GEMS Community.

The Golf Day was the first sports event of its kind within the GEMS Schools network and was a part of the Parental Engagement initiative. With 18 schools taking part and almost 100 golfers representing students of all ages, parents and teachers, the event was deemed an all-around success.

Each team consisted of students, parents and teachers playing a ‘Par is Your Friend’ format to keep the event competitive but most importantly fun for all skill levels. Student golfers ranged from +1 handicap to 36 and from ages 6 to 20.

The overall winning team was the Al Khaleej National School – Dubai, with a superb team score of 18-under-par led by Ahmed Al Budoor (10) and Vincent Joubert-Strauss (28) and Jared Slee as they nudged ahead of the Cambridge High School – Abu Dhabi team on a countback.

Jumeirah Primary School finished one stroke back on 17-under with the youngest player in the field, 6-year-old Sean Cooper making four net eagles in his very impressive round of 101 gross.

Tournament Director, James Bowring, explained: “This event is a vision of Jay

Varkey, who has been a very good amateur golfer himself. Jay has always felt that golf has been good to him, and that he has learnt a lot from the game. He now wants the students in GEMS schools to experience the same benefits.

“We really are delighted with the interest shown by students, parents and the schools in this inaugural event and hopefully this will keep growing and become an annual event for GEMS Schools and their Parental Engagement Programme.”

ArabianGolf - March-2014 | 79

CONTACT: Tel : 7474 244 7 971+ E-mail: enquiries@alhamragolf.com

AL HAMRA GOLF CLUB www.alhamragolf.com

AlHamraGolfClub

AlHamraGolfClub

TEAM ENGELBRECHT SECURES THRILLING CHALLENGE CUP WIN Last month saw the second annual Ryder Cup-style Champions Challenge Cup take place as two teams of members battled it out over two days of match play competition.

The two teams of 12 players were selected by the current Club Champions Rita Engelbrecht and Jake Maki-Petaja and they had the difficult challenge of pairing their players to try and get the best possible results.

Six pairs from each team battled it out in a fourball betterball match play format on day one and at the end of play the scores were level after both teams won three matches each.

Day two saw the decisive singles matches take

place and either team needed 6 ½ points to win the title.

Team Engelbrecht got off to a flyer as they won five of their opening six matches and when Ma Li Min picked up another point the victory was almost assured. It was left to Dave Hoggins to

soak in the glory as he sealed a 1up win over John McFadyen to get his team over the finishing line.

Team Maki-Petaja struggled to get out of the blocks and only managed to pick up 3 ½ points which left the scores at 11 ½ points to 6 ½.

THE ENGELBRECHTS TAKE COUPLES CUP

COMEBACK KING CRAIG CRAIG McGuire made it a brace of Medals in February with a solid 77 to make it two wins out of two. McGuire’s -5over total saw him win by four strokes ahead of Jake Maki-Petaja who did well to recover after dropping eight shots over the opening nine.

Maki-Petaja’s second place finish keeps him at the top of the Gross Order of Merit standings, 250 points ahead of second placed Mohammed Darwish.

Claiming the final position on the podium with an 84 was Rita Engelbrecht who just squeezed passed Oscar Lindh in a card play-off to take third place.

In the Net Division Paula Svensson annihilated the rest of the field with a superb -4under-par score of 68. Taking second place was Ma Li Min as she pipped Juho Halinen in a card countback.

THE inaugural Couples Cup took place on Valentine’s Day last month and saw couples paired together in a combined Stableford format which included lots of on course fun events.

Competitors had to use a tennis racquet to tee off on hole 4 and either a -7iron or -7wood to tee off on hole 7.

These on-course events – along with the event itself – were the brainchild of Brian and Terri Stewart and taking the spoils on the day with a team score of 69 points were Eric and Rita Engelbrecht. They were helped along their way with a nice -12point haul on hole 3 which was a result of two net birdies after

they elected to play it as a Powerplay hole.

Two teams were in a battle for second place and it went down to the wire with a countback needed to separate Tony Cashman and Ma Li Min and Martin and Nichanan Hall.

Both couples recorded identical rounds of 65 but with the better back six score of 26 points Cashman and Li Min eventually took second place.

The Nearest the Pin prizes went to Rita Engelbrecth on hole 15, Brian Stewart on hole 11 and Annette Lagerberg on hole 17. The Longest Drive challenges went to James Brown on hole 9 and Nichanan Hall on hole 14.

THE ADDRESS MONTGOMERIE DUBAI www.themontgomerie.com

CONTACT: Tel : +971 4 390 5600

theaddressmontgomeriedubai

MURRAY HITS AN ACE IN THE BMW STABLEFORD DEBBIE Murray secured a hole-in-one on hole 8 in last month’s BMW Stableford to make it a day to remember. Clear skies greeted the 78 players who teed it up and taking the spoils in the Men’s Division ‘A’ was Paul Pitman as he downed Raj Flora on a countback with both players locked on 36 points.

In Division ‘B’ Benjamin Graham top scored with 39 points, two clear of Matt Bradly while the top performer in the Ladies Division ‘A’ was Fiona Linn with 37 points, two clear of Ji Won Bae. The Ladies Division ‘B’ winner was Vera Bonderenko as she sealed a two-point win over Carol Burns on 34 points while Debbie Murray hit a superb hole-in-one on hole 8. Murray’s hole-in-one ended a run of aces at the club since the turn of the new year. Gemma Crompton holed out on the 17th during the January Ecco Medal while in the Rivoli Scramble just a few days later Mike Ryan and Farhan Yacuq both made aces – Yacub on hole 6 and Ryan on the 13th. Gulnara Smith got the hole-in-one machine rolling with an ace in Midweek play on January 2nd before Stephane Claude and Bill Glasgow joined the club in the Member’s Par-3 event and the Captain’s Teapor event later in the month.

ZABRODIN AND KUK LEAD THE WAY VALERY Zabrodin and Alex Kuk sealed the spoils in Division ‘A’ of last month’s Rivoli Citizens and Guests competition with a 76, seven clear of Joon Eun and Maneesh Dungarwa.

In Division ‘B’ it was John Norton and Benedict Pasia who took the spoils with a mammoth score of 82 which saw them win by 23 points from Mike Roberts and Theo Van Schie.

YAS LINKS GOLF CLUB www.yaslinks.com

YasLinksGC

CONTACT: Tel : +971 2 810 7777 E-mail: info@yaslinks.com

YasLinksGolfClub

ROYCE ROLLS IN FOR STABLEFORD VICTORY

Emanuel Ostojic, Mike Revell, Rick Lloyd, Ron Herman, Chris Dodd.

OSTOJIC DRIVES AWAY WITH VICTORY EMANUEL Ostojic prevailed in last month’s Cadilac Monthly Medal with a superb gross 75 while in the net prizes Mike Revell clinched the honours in Division ‘A’ with a net 72, four shots clear of Derren Sanders.

In Division ‘B’ Mike Knox stole the show with a net 72 for a four-stroke win over Rick Lloyd while the Ladies net winner was Grace Groves with a superb 66.

WILLIAM Royce picked up the top prize in Division ‘A’ of last month’s Etihad Open Stableford with a superb haul of 40 Stableford points and a onepoint win over Neil Heywood.

Bill Lisgo rounded off the podium places with 38 points while in Division ‘B’ a score of 42 saw Lora Al Marzooqi top the pile by three ahead of Sid Eiday with Soon Lai taking third.

ArabianGolf - March-2014 | 81

CONTACT: Tel : 939 227 7 971+ Email: membership@towerlinks.com

TOWER LINKS GOLF CLUB www.towerlinks.com

towerlinksgc

RUCHI AND LANKA STORM THE STABLEFORD LANKA Uduwata and Ruchi Shukla dominated the weekly Pairs Betterball Stableford after their -24point tally afforded them the luxury of a two-point winning margin over Jamie Williams and Mark Smith with Fiyaz Ahmed and Mike Cox taking third place.

Andy Klein secured the Nearest the Pin prize on hole 12 while Williams picked up the gong for his superb approach to the 16th.

Taking the Wood Spoon on the night was the pairing of Liam Walker and David Michie who were totally out of sorts and rock bottom of the pile.

WALKER AND MICHIE BOUNCE BACK IN STYLE LIAM Walker and Dave Michie finally found their touch as they secured their maiden win in the weekly social – a complete turn around from their last outing when they finished last.

The pair had only been at the club for one month and had struggled with their consistency in earlier competitions, but the two-player ‘Daytona’ format obviously suited them down to the ground as they recorded a score of 346 to win by five from Daud

JEBEL ALI GOLF RESORT & SPA www.jaresortshotels.com

Osman and Ahmed Mustapha. Taking third place with a score of 361 was Simon Payne and Derek ‘The Captain’ Fisher.

Rick and Chris Wilson will go down in history as their score of 553 set a new record as the worst score, bumping Justin Wardle and Peter Wortley off their perch.

For their efforts, Chris and Rick were awarded the iconic (and ironic) wooden spoons.

CONTACT: Tel : 5555 814 4 971+ E-mail: jagr@jaresorts.com

JebelAliGolfResortSpa

SPACKMAN LEADS HIS TEAM TO THE TITLE THE EGGS Golf Society got their year off to a cracking start and taking the spoils in the team event were Brian Spackman, Steve Morgan, Steve Tanner and Arto Schroderus with an impressive haul of 118 points.

JAGR Golf Operations Manager Stuart McMurdo is pictured with the winning team.

JAGR Director of Golf James Williams and FIGS organiser Nick Burnett are pictured with the winning team.

COMMANDING WIN IN THE FIGS DAY THE recently held Furniture and Interiors Golf Society Day saw the team of Raj Ranavaya, Ben Jackson, James Coburn and Sam Lazzari clinch the title with a superb score of 89 Stableford points – 12 clear of their nearest competitors

PRIMARY SCHOOL CHARITY DAY A SUCCESS THE long-standing relationship between Jebel Ali Primary School and the Jebel Ali Golf Resort & Spa continued at pace with the annual charity day held recently. Taking the spoils on the day with a superb score of net 28.45 were Gavin Reed, Matt Easton, Brian Schofield and Giordano Gelasini.

Players are pictured before play.

82 | ArabianGolf - March 2014

CONTACT: Tel : +966 1 812 6671 E-mail: info@dirabgolf.com

DIRAB GOLF CLUB www.dirabgolf.com

GUNN AND TREADGOLD CLINCH THE BIRST TITLE FOR the second time in the space of 12 months Graham Gunn and David Treadgold combined to win a Texas Scramble format tournament as a superb net 60 gave them the honours at the annual Birst Middle East Open.

FUN FOR ALL FOR THE DIRAB LADIES THE Ladies Group at Dirab enjoyed a fun tournament sponsored by the Courtyard Marriott Riyadh Diplomatic Quarter Hotel recently and coming out on top in the Texas Scramble format was the team of Cherry Williamson, Cindy Clark and Chris Burchner with a score of net 48 from a gross 67.

The team in second place also scored a gross 67 but the handicap of 13 given to Sile McIlroy and Wendy McLaughlin saw them sign for a net score of 54.

Madele Burger hit the Longest Drive on the day and Williamson won the Nearest the Pin prize.

Gunn and Treadgold won by two shots from John Morris and Richard Gaas while the father and son team of Resty and Christer Rem Siburg took third place with a 63. Finishing in fourth place with a 64 were Arshad Mahmood and Anjum

Mullah with fifth place going to Mujib Minhas and Tariq Sardar.

The Mens and Ladies Long Drive prizes went to Ronny Lidman and Susan Tessier respectively while the Nearest the Pin prize went to Jose Vigil.

BURGER AND O’REILLY CLINCH THE MARRIOTT LADIES GOLF TOURNAMENT THE Dirab Ladies Group held its first tournament of 2014 recently in the form of the Marriott Ladies Golf event and taking the honours were Madele Burger and Martina O’Reilly.

Burger was the overall Best Net champion with a 72 from a gross score of 92 while O’Reilly won overall Best Gross honours on 88.

Meg Fordham won the Alpah Group with a 72, seven strokes clear of Susan Tessier while Roberta Hobbs topped the Beta Group with an 87, six clear of Roselyn Deplon De Vaux.

Chris Buchner sealed the Omega Group with a 77, two ahead of Wendy McLaughlin while the Longest Drive went to Sile McIlroy and Meg Fordham won the Nearest the Pin prize.

GUNN SHOOTS 65 TO CLINCH THE SINOMA OPEN SOUTH African Graham Gunn played one of his best-ever rounds as he shot a gross 75 for a net 65 to take the spoils in the recent Sinoma Open. His play was so good it would have given him the gross title as well but because he already wrapped up the net prize, the gross honour was handed to his compatriot Mark Campbell with a 77.

Filipino hot-shot Resty Sibug won the men’s First Division (0-9 hcp) on countback from John Barrett after both players tied on 71 with third place going to Jose Vigil with a 72.

American Rusty Daggett captured the men’s Second Division (10-18) with a 69 from a gross 81 with second and third place going to Kamal Fareed and Ron Bills respectively after they both scored 70 and were separated by countback.

In the men’s Third Division (19-28) Iro Hiroaki was the winner with a 67, three clear of Farrukh Sheikh with Orazio Moretti third on 71. The Ladies Division crown went to Susan Tessier with a 73, two clear of Martina O’Reilly with Meg Fordham finishing third on 76.

ArabianGolf - March-2014 | 83

RIYADH GOLF COURSES www.riyadhgolfcourses.com

CONTACT: Tel : +966 (0) 55 739 9900

Riyadh-Golf-Courses

SOYEON JEONG SEALS THE HONMA OPEN IN FINE STYLE SOYEON Jeong shot a net 66 to win the Honma Open recently by three shots ahead of Ali Alsakha with Jong Man Lee third with a net 70. The gross winner on the day was Paul Siffre as he fired an excellent 71.

Champion Soyeon Jeong is pictured with professionals Gary McGlinchey (left) and David Clayton.

THE ROYAL GOLF CLUB www.theroyalgolfclub.com www.dubaigolf.com

CONTACT: Tel : +973 17 750777

EmiratesGolfClub theroyalgolfclub

ESTERHUIZEN CRUISES TO MEDAL VICTORY MARIUS Esterhuizen secured a comfortable win in the second competition of the Euro Motors BMW Monthly Medal Series recently with a net score of 70, two clear of Simon Brebner.

In the Divisional prizes Shaikh Rashid Al Khalifa clinched the top spot in Division ‘2’ with a net 70 while a net 69 was good enough for Vijay Srivastava took the top spot in Division ‘1’ by two shots from Sanjay Lal.

ZAMANLY WINS FIRST VOLVO WORLD GOLF CHALLENGE BAHRAIN QUALIFIER

BAHRAIN GOLF CLUB TRIUMPH IN THE CROWN PRINCE CUP THE Bahrain Golf Club team triumphed once again in the annual Crown Prince Cup golf tournament at the Royal Golf Club recently.

The team, which consisted of several members of the Bahrain National Team, defeated an amalgamated Royal Golf Club and Awali Golf Club team by an emphatic margin of 6–0.

However, a second flight handicapped competition was later won by the Awali/ Royal team by 3.5–2.5.

“The traditions of this competition go back 34 years,” explained Steve Brown, the Captain of Awali Golf Club. “Unfortunately we have only won the coveted Crown

84 | ArabianGolf - March 2014

Above: Sagar Al Noaimi (left) presents the Crown Prince Cup to Bahrain Golf Club Captain Adnan Al Sowaidi with Awali Golf Club Captain Steve Brown (far right) and Royal Golf Club Captain Stephen Wagstaff watching on.

Prince Cup once in all those years but luckily we still possess plenty of determination to keep on trying!”

The prize-giving ceremony took place in Awali Golf Club’s clubhouse afterwards where prizes, sponsored by The Crown Prince, His Royal Highness Prince Salman Bin Hamad Al Khalifa, were presented by the President of the Bahrain Golf Club, Diab Sagar Al Noaimi.

THIS year’s Volvo World Golf Challenge got off to a strong start in Bahrain. A full field of 120 golfers competed and coming out on top with a superb Stableford haul of 41 points was Murtuz Zamanly.

With 39 points Ben Elsworth took second with third place going to Naeem Khan while the Nearest the Pin prizes on holes 2 and 16 were won by Nigel Brough and Depriest Daniesl respectively.

There are five more qualification rounds left of the 2014 Bahrain Volvo World Golf Challenge, all of which will take place at the Royal Golf Club.

Bijan Majidi, General Manager of Motorcity Holdings, exclusive importer of Volvo cars in the Kingdom of Bahrain, is pictured with January qualifier winner Murtuz Zamanly (right).

INTERCONTINENTAL RIYADH

CONTACT: Tel : + 966-1-465 7833

www.ihg.com

SCORING IS SMOOTH AT THE LURPAK MEDAL FILIPINO teenager David Lloyd took the spoils in Division ‘A’ of the first Lurpak Medal of the season with a countback victory over compatriot Alex Arellano, with both players locked on 32 Stableford points.

Scoring was good because a downpour the day before left the course in lush condition and players in all divisions took advantage.

In Division ‘B’ (hcp 7-12) veteran golfer Joe Vallado stormed to a nine-point

victory thanks to a superb score of 40 points. Alan Malawanda scored a respectable 31 points to take second place while in Division ‘C’ a score of 36 was good enough for Marwan Kalupas to win by five ahead of Roberto Mariano.

Evelyn Jensen clinched the top spot in the Ladies Division with a stunning haul of 42 points while Einar and Sigrid Thorhallesen clinched both the Nearest the Pin prizes on offer.

THE ALLEGRIA, CAIRO www.theallegriacairo.com

CONTACT: Tel : +2 0122 3779788

The-Allegria

SCARELLO AND FAHMY LEAD THE RACE TO THE MONTY TAYMOUR Scarello and Sherif Fahmy took an early lead in their respective divisions in the ‘Race to the Monty’, a new series of 11 events that will run until November and reward the top two players with a three night stay at The Address Montgomerie Dubai and three rounds of golf.

Scarello earned 100 points after he won the Gross Division and is 15 points clear of Fahmy and Soliman El Assar while Fahmy leads the Net points list with 100 points, 10 clear of Scarello.

The series runs in a similar style to the US PGA Tour’s FedExCup with points awarded to players based on where the finished on the leaderboard at each event.

In addition to three rounds of golf at The Address Montgomerie Dubai, the overall winners in the Gross and Net divisions will also attend the season-ending DP World Tour Championship at Jumeirah Golf Estates.

Josh North, The Allegria’s Director of Club Operations, said: “It’s fantastic to have a partnership with one of the leading facilities in the Middle East. The Address Montgomerie Dubai is a true 5-star experience with a superb Championship course and tremendous practice facilities.

“The added bonus of seeing golf’s leading professional players at the climax of The European Tour’s Race to Dubai only adds to this once in a lifetime trip.”

Clinton Norris, Sales Manager at The Address Montgomerie Dubai, said: “We are delighted to establish a year-long partnership with The Allegria. On behalf of The Address Montgomerie Dubai, I wish all competitors the best of luck and we look forward to seeing the winners in November.”

ArabianGolf - March-2014 | 85

Riyadh Golf Club, located 20 minutes North of Riyadh off the Qassim Highway boasts 18 holes of manicured playing surfaces that can be stretched to over 7400 yards from the back teeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s. Providing a challenge for golfers of all abilities.

FACILITIES INCLUDE:

Social dinning from our, deck overlooking the 18th green, non golfers welcome.

Corporate meetings, conference facilities.

American Express driving range, open daily 6am to 9pm Riyadh Golf Academy, staffed by PGA professionals.

Night Golf front 9 only Tuesday and Wednesday, any other day available for group bookings.

Honma custom fitting available at Riyadh Golf Club

T: +966 (0) 55 739 9900 | www.riyadhgolfcourses.com North 24 57 34 East 46 34 33

FALCOM RIYADH OPEN Friday 18th of April, 2014

RIYADH FOURSOMES Friday 25th of April, 2014

BANYAN GOLF CLUB www.banyanthailand.com

CONTACT: Tel : +66 (32) 616 200 E-mail: reservations@banyanthailand.com

Banyan-Golf-Club-Hua-Hin

TOP THAI COURSE CELEBRATES ITS FIFTH ANNIVERSARY IN just five years Banyan Golf Club in Hua Hin Thailand has won both international awards and many friends to become one of the top courses in Asia.

The list of VIPs who took part in the club’s fifth Anniversary tournament in February outlined the club’s ability to attract golfers, celebrities and politicians to this popular Hua Hin development.

The governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand, Thawatchai Arunyik, spoke to the 200 guests after playing in the fifth anniversary tournament, and praised the management for creating a superb golfing experience, which he said was a credit to Thailand’s golfing experience.

Golf course architect Pirapon Namatra and Smith Obayawat, Principal Clubhouse architect (OBA) have achieved the perfect blend of a challenging 18 holes across some beautiful countryside.

Pirapon Namatra and his company Golf East have built and renovated over thirty courses, including the Banyan, Singha Park and Santiburi courses plus renovations including Blue Canyon and Alpine.

Namatra said: “I am currently building the new Waterside golf course at Siam Country Club in Pattaya, however I have many fond memories of creating Banyan which we actually complete in just 18 months. It’s a beautiful piece of land, and I think the final product is proof of that.”

Namatra added: “The owner didn’t want us to touch any of the trees so we left them alone too. All but one, the big Banyan tree that was in the middle of the 10th fairway which we moved about 50m to the left.”

Several international awards Perhaps one of the highlights is driving along to the course and seeing the magnificent clubhouse overlooking the front nine holes. Designed by famed architect Smith Obayawat, Principal Clubhouse architect (OBA) who has also created several iconic projects including the Sofitel So and K Village in Bangkok and the Thai Consulate in Guangzhou.

“Our Thai style clubhouse has been awarded several international awards, including winning Best Clubhouse in Asia Pacific for two consecutive years, which were very gratifying,” said Obayawat. “The location is beautiful and the weather is always nice in Hua Hin, and thanks to the owners – they allowed me to exercise my imagination.”

The Dutch based owners are continually looking at ways to improve the golf club and their 75-villa Banyan Resort. But perhaps the biggest success has been the dedicated behind the scenes work headed by Director of Golf and Resort Operations Stacey Walton and Stuart Daly, Executive Assistant Manager.

Within just 12 months of opening the club was recognised as the “Best New Course in Asia Pacific” in 2010 by Asian Golf Monthly, and has continued to collect a number of awards annually. Walton said: “The demand for golf in Hua Hin is still growing and our long term plan, using land we own adjacent to the current course, would be to eventually create a sister course with the same natural feel of the Banyan, but a bit different in character.”

Stacey Walton, Director of Golf and Resort Operations (left) and Stuart Daly, Executive Assistant Manager at Banyan Golf Club (right) are pictured with Khun Tawatchai Arunyik, Governor of Tourism Authority of Thailand.

Stacey Walton, Director of Golf and Resort Operations (right) and Jan Adolf Onderdijk, Shareholder (second from left) are pictured with two of the event’s winners.

Four players are pictured prior for teeing off.

ArabianGolf - March-2014 | 87

GOLF

CAROLINE MAS SSON The 24-year-old German is destined for big things on the LPGA Tour.

DRIVING RANGE Win a fabulous Audi A8L with Dubai Duty Free.

Sir Bobby Charlton Talks about his admiration for twotime Major champion Rory McIlroy who is also a huge Man Utd fan!

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STAR ATTRACTION

Charlton on McIlroy FROM COURT TO COURSE

As great British footballers go, they don’t come much more decorated than Sir Bobby Charlton. Part of the famous ‘Busby Babes’ Manchester United team which suffered the horrific tragedy of the 1858 Munich Air Disaster, he went on to form one third of the ‘Holy Trinity’ along with George Best and Denis Law, which powered United to their first ever European Cup triumph in 1968. Two years earlier he had won England’s first and only World Cup in front of the home fans at Wembley Stadium. Now a Director at Manchester United, Charlton is an avid golfer and a regular at events like the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship. He’s also a big fan of Rory McIlroy.

WWG: You’re known as one of the greatest British footballers of all time and won the World Cup with England – what do you think of Britain’s success in the golf Majors in recent years?

BC: It’s marvellous. We had Justin Rose last year and over the last few of years Northern Ireland has produced three players that have won a Major Championship [Darren Clarke, Graeme McDowell and Rory McIlroy]. It’s just unbelievable to think of.

I know Rory McIlroy is a Manchester United fan. When he won his first tournament I phoned him up and said ‘well done, it’s just wonderful for your country and for yourself and you’ve got a fantastic future.’ He doesn’t get much chance now to actually watch United play because he’s almost always playing in a new tournament somewhere in the world.

He’s just got an unbelievably simple talent. He’s a natural swinger of a golf club. It was like there was nothing else he was meant to be. He’s got a great mental attitude. He knows he’s a great player and we’re just finding out now how great he really is. He has little hiccups because he’s only young. But he will be one of the great players in the world for a long, long time.

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WWG: You actually partnered him one year in the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship didn’t you? How did you find him as a person?

BC: Yes, when I played in the Dunhill at St Andrews a few years back, when I got there they said ‘have you seen the draw?’ And I said ‘no. Who have I got?’

And they said ‘oh you’ve got a young lad from Northern Ireland. Rory McIlroy.’ And he hadn’t won anything. But as soon as I was on the first green he knocked the ball in for a birdie and it just seemed the most natural thing in the world and the easiest thing in the world to do. And it’s not an easy game, golf! But he’s just got that talent and it’s a natural talent. It’s as though he’s not been taught it. Nobody can teach you things like that. But he is just very, very creative. He’ll solve problems.

When he won the US Open I was in Africa and I had promised my wife that we wouldn’t have the television on. We were going out to see the animals and so I didn’t know the result. And I came back and I asked what had been going on and they said, oh yeah, the US Open’s just finished and Rory McIlroy’s won. And it was just great. He’s a lovely player and his attitude towards the game is just perfect.

WWG: He had a disaster in the Masters that year with a final round 80, then came back to win the US Open, what does that require in a player?

BC: What he did wrong in the Masters was that he thought that all he had to do was to go out and hit a ball up the middle of the fairway and everything would be rosy, but it’s not like that in this game.

He was criticised, but I think most people were very sympathetic to him because he has a lovely talent and they were prepared to wait. All his friends came round him and he was able to actually get over it. You can imagine somebody experienced being able to handle it, this humiliation, but not a young lad like this. And then suddenly he goes to the US Open and he wins with some of the most unbelievable golf that’s ever been seen there. I mean it was just amazing. And he won the tournament by eight shots.

Eight shots, the US Open, which is one of the hardest tournaments you could ever hope to win. But it was just breathtaking.

WORLDWIDE GOLF

STYLE Keen golfer Sir Bobby Charlton in action at Saadiyat Beach Golf Club during his visit to Abu Dhabi in 2011 for the Laureus World Sports Awards.

WorldwideGolf - March--- 2014 | 91

AUDI A8L

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WorldwideGolf - March 2014 | 93

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WORLDWIDE GOLF

STYLE

Caroline Masson Germany’s Caroline Masson was a member of Europe’s victorious Solheim Cup team last year, scoring 2.5 points from a possible four. The 24-year-old is very much a star on the rise. She enjoyed a solid rookie season on the LPGA Tour last year, finishing second, just one point behind Moriiya Jutanugarn, in the Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year Award. A winner of the 2012 South African Women’s Open on the Ladies European Tour, she’s still awaiting her breakthrough victory on the US tour.

What’s your favourite part of your game?

CM: I love to hit iron shots.

What’s been the most memorable moment in your professional career?

CM: Winning my first tournament in South Africa and being part of that amazing victory against the USA in last year’s Solheim Cup. What’s your favourite snack to eat on the course?

CM: Bananas, but I don’t eat them off the course.

If you could trade places with anyone for a day, who would it be?

CM: Roger Federer.

Do you have a favorite golf club in your bag?

CM: My 7 iron, I love it!

What would we find in your bag besides golf clubs?

CM: Literally everything!

What is your favorite meal off the course?

CM: Steak.

What is your favourite store to shop in?

CM: The Apple Store.

What is your most hated interview question?

CM: Describe yourself.

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WORLDWIDE GOLF

STYLE

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96 | WorldwideGolf - March 2014

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