By Special Correspondent
Many of the finest players in the region will battle it out for the coveted Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship (AAC) crown when the 12th edition of the championship is contested at Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club from November 3-6.

Japan’s Keita Nakajima and China’s Yuxin Lin are two of the most compelling stories at this year’s event. Nakajima will be entering the championship as the reigning No. 1 player in the World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR), while the two-time AAC champion Lin aims to surpass 2021 Masters champion Hideki Matsuyama (2010, 11) and become the first player to win the title three times.

However, with the region attempting to emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic, which denied many players competitive action for a long period of time, the field will be hungry to make its mark in the Asia-Pacific region’s most integral amateur championship. And then there is the big motivation – a dream invitation to the 2022 Masters and the 150th Open Championship at St Andrews.

Following are five players who are certain to have a say in this year’s championship:

Photograph by AAC

KEITA NAKAJIMA
Japan
WAGR (as of 20 October 2021): 1

The 21-year-old becomes only the fourth active WAGR No. 1 player to compete in the AAC, joining Matsuyama, Japan’s Takumi Kanaya and Australia’s Curtis Luck. He took over as the top-ranked amateur in the world when Kanaya – his compatriot, best friend and 2018 AAC champion – turned professional. The Tokyo-based Nippon Sport Science University student is making his fourth appearance in the championship and aims to finish better than his tie for second place in 2018. With amateur golf coming to a standstill in the region, he has relied on playing against the professionals on Japan Golf Tour since the beginning of 2020, winning once at the Panasonic Open, finishing inside the top 10 three times and recording two top-20 finishes. Known for his fearless approach on the golf course, Nakajima famously decided to hit his driver on every par-4 and par-5 holes in a couple of tournaments. Earlier this year, the Mark McCormack Medal winner said his big goals for 2021 were to win a professional golf tournament as an amateur and win the Asia-Pacific Amateur title and follow in the footsteps of Hideki Matsuyama and Kanaya. He checked the initial box with his victory in the Panasonic Open, as he became just the fifth amateur to win an event in the history of that professional tour. He will excitedly attempt to accomplish the second feat at Dubai Creek.

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SAM CHOI
Korea
WAGR: 13

The recent form of the 21-year-old University of New Mexico senior, who is majoring in communications, is sending a clear message to the fans that the AAC this year is much more than a Nakajima-Lin fight. In five events between May and July this year, Choi won the New Mexico-West Texas Amateur and Maridoe Amateur Championship, and finished runner-up in the Mountain West Conference individual championship and the Pacific Coast Amateur, advancing to a playoff in both events. In his last two events, the Wolf Pack Classic and the William H. Tucker in Albuquerque, he finished in a tie for runner-up. This marks Choi’s first appearance in the AAC, and he will be bidding to end a long drought for his country. If he makes it to the podium on Saturday, Choi will become the third Korean champion after Han Chang-Won in the inaugural 2009 edition and Lee Chang-Woo in 2013.

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Photograph by AAC

YUXIN LIN
China
WAGR: 22

The defending champ – a winner in Wellington in 2017 and Shanghai in 2019 – will not only be looking to hold on to his crown and become just the second player after Hideki Matsuyama to repeat as champion in AAC history, he will also attempt to better the Japanese legend and win the AAC title for a record third time. This marks Lin’s fifth start in the championship, and after finishing tied for 21st in his debut appearance in South Korea (2016), his worst finish was a tie for ninth place in Singapore in 2018. With the Beijing-born Lin’s ability to bring out the best in his game at AAC, the University of Florida southpaw will always be counted among the pre-championship favourites.

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PUWIT ANUPANSUEBSAI
Thailand
WAGR: 42

Despite producing several professional players who have made a mark for themselves on the world stage, Thailand has yet to have a player raise the trophy at the AAC. One of the major reasons often offered for this is that Thai players tend to turn professional at a very early age. Not Anupansuebsai though. The 22-year-old, a senior at San Diego State University, decided on a full college career, and is in prime position to add Thailand to the championship’s annals. A two-time member of the International Team in the Arnold Palmer Cup, he won all three of his matches in 2021. Across a six-week stretch of college golf in April through May this year, he won twice and finished second in two other starts. Standing 5 ft. 3 in., Anupansuebsai packs a punch in his slender frame, but make no mistake – he is ready to reach tall heights.

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Arjun Gupta lets it rip off the 9th tee during this year’s Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship at Abu Dhabi Golf Club. (Andrew Redington/Getty Image)

ARJUN GUPTA
India
WAGR: 202

While the 17-year-old Indian may not be ranked as highly as some of his fellow competitors, he has a unique edge over the field – born and raised in Dubai, Gupta has the best local knowledge of the field on how to tackle the course at Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club. Gupta won the Abu Dhabi Amateur Championship in December last year, which earned him a place in the European Tour’s Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship. He also participated in the U.S. Junior Amateursthis year and reached the round of 16. Interestingly, Gupta’s twin sister, Natalii, has been nominated by the Emirates Golf Federation (EGF) to play under the UAE flag in the Women’s Amateur Asia-Pacific, which is being held the week after the AAC in Abu Dhabi.

The post Five players to watch when Dubai Creek hosts the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Kent Gray
Can Michael Bolt finally be the captain to halt the amateur’s five-year Dubai Golf Trophy dynasty?

We’re about to find out with the teams for the April 10-11 Ryder Cup-style matches between Bolt’s UAE PGA Tour pros and the Ahmed Skaik-captained Emirates Golf Federation (EGF) amateurs released.

REWIND: UAE PGA captain Luke Plumb on fifth straight Dubai Trophy loss: ‘The EGF top 5 did a number on us’

Bolt’s 16-man team for the 22nd edition at Emirates Golf Club (Faldo course) and Jumeirah Golf Estates (Earth course) features a number of familiar faces including freshly minted UAE PGA Championship winner Luke Plumb and David Gray who edged Bolt 1-up to win his third UAE matchplay championship recently.

UAE PGA Championship winner Luke Plumb is set to be a key member of the professional team.

Skaik, the first Emirati to captain a Dubai Trophy team, will partner UAE national teammate Khalid Yousuf in the Saturday foursomes against Purna Sharma & Malcolm Young.

There are some particularly juicy top of the order match-ups with amateur team talisman Josh Hill teaming with Jay Mullane to take on Dong Lee and Jonathan Craddock while Arjun Gupta and Yash Majmudar take on Bolt and beaten UAE matchplay semifinalist Sujjan Singh.

For the first time, women will compete in the Dubai trophy with Olivia Jackson and Anneke Strobach representing the UAE PGA and Hyeonji Kang and Natalii Gupta, Arjun’s sister, the EGF amateurs. They will play a separate competition this week ahead of the women being incorporated into the full Dubai Trophy in 2022.

The Faldo will host the foursomes and fourball matches on Saturday ahead of the singles on Earth Sunday.

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UAE PGA Professionals v EGF Amateurs

Saturday Foursomes
Match 1: Dong Lee & Jonathan Craddock v Josh Hill & Jay Mullane
Match 2: Michael Bolt (Captain) & Sujjan Singh v Arjun Gupta & Yash Majmudar
Match 3: Luke Plumb & Phil Waine v Viggo Sorensen & Zubair Firdaus
Match 4:  Graham Forbes & Louis Gaughan v Toby Bishop & Sam Mullane
Match 5: David Gray & Ryan Smith v Steve Kelbrick & Max Burrow
Match 6: Purna Sharma & Malcolm Young v Ahmed Skaik (Captain) & Khaled Yousuf
Match 7: Bishnu Sharma & Sam McLaren v Dan Byrne & Niklas Korjonen
Match 8: Michael Major & Thomas Ogilvie v Gordon Munro & Jake Wiltshire
Ladies: Olivia Jackson & Anneke Strobach v Hyeonji Kang & Natalii Gupta

The post Bolt, Skaik name teams as EGF amateurs chase Dubai Golf Trophy six-peat appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

The 16-year-old Dubai-based England Boys’ international notched up another EGF title at the weekend, overcoming a “lacklustre” opening round 72 on Friday with a stunning nine-under 63 on Saturday to win the Arabian Ranches Men’s Open.

With lift, clean and place in operation, the 63 (which included a bogey on the par-3 7th!) doesn’t count as an official course record but it mattered little as Hill overturned a two-shot deficit to triumph with a -9 total, two strokes clear of pal Arjun Gupta. Toby Bishop made it a Trump International Golf Club, Dubai one-two-three after sharing third place with James Nash (Ormskirk G.C.) on -2.

RELATED: Prodigy Power – The driver swing that helped Josh Hill wow the golf world

The coronavirus pandemic has impacted elite amateur golf even more profoundly than the professional circuits which makes the EGF Order of Merit series a vital source of competition for the region’s top ams, especially with the planned resumption of the MENA Tour’s postponed season in Jordan apparently canned.

Hill’s father Russell underlined that in an Instagram post celebrating yet more silverware for his world-record-setting son in the third event of the 2020-21 EGF OOM Championship:

 

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A post shared by Russell Hill (@golf_osteo_path_dxb)

Russell Hill, an osteopath who recently went out on his own in a business actively looking to help golfers avoid common injuries and improve their own games, has been on hand to capture his son’s hard work in the gym recently.

“I tried to convince Josh (because it was weekend) that we should have a bit of a sleep in and start later (7am),” Russell Hill said in a recent social media post. “He totally refused and insisted we start at 5.30. I don’t have the inclination to put a dampener on desire, enthusiasm, momentum, dreams, dedication, drive, grind, progress etc, etc. I love supporting it and love being part of it.”

 

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A post shared by Russell Hill (@golf_osteo_path_dxb)

There has also clearly been some tidy work on the Trump Dubai range in conjunction with his England-based coach Rob Watts. Just check out that divot patten:

 

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A post shared by Russell Hill (@golf_osteo_path_dxb)

Hill’s latest victory comes after he captured the Trump Dubai club championship last month with a pair of course record-equalling rounds of 65 to comfortably edge Craig Vance by four strokes.

RELATED: Meet the MENA Tour’s new Boy Wonder

It will be interesting to see whether Hill has the opportunity to qualify for the Abu Dhabi and Dubai Desert Swing events early next year or will be handed invites. He became the youngest player to qualify for two European Tour starts earlier this year, the opportunity at the OMEGA Dubai Desert Classic courtesy of his victory in the MENA Tour’s 2019 amateur OOM race.

Hill entered the Guinness Book of World Records as the youngest winner, at 15 years, six months and 27 days, of an Official World Golf Ranking event at the MENA Tour’s Al Ain Open in October 2019.

The next EFG OOM event is the Sharjah Golf & Shooting Club Men’s Open on Dec 4-5.

The post Josh Hill fires closing 63 to enhance EGF legacy with Arabian Ranches victory appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

Anxious to avoid a fifth straight defeat in the annual Ryder Cup-style matches, the pros will take a two-point, 9-7 advantage into the 16 singles matches at Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club after a particularly satisfying afternoon of work on Earth yesterday.

 

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DGT2020

A post shared by DGT (@dubai_golf_trophy) on Oct 3, 2020 at 12:16am PDT

The amateurs established a 5-3 lead after the opening foursomes at Jumeirah Golf Estates on Saturday, highlighted by 2&1 wins for Josh Hill and Toby Bishop and Emirati duo Ahmad Skaik and Khalid Yousuf over Michael Major and Tom Buchanan and Ryan Smith and David Laing respectively.

Hill and Bishop were impressively six-under in seeing off Major and Buchanan.

 

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A few from today’s #dubaigolftrophy @j.hill_golf and @welsh_golfer shot six under to win their foursomes 2&1! It was a great match, well done lads! @robwattsperformance

A post shared by Russell Hill (@golf_osteo_path_dxb) on Oct 3, 2020 at 12:05am PDT

But the pros mounted an impressive comeback in the afternoon fourballs, winning six of the eight matches. Hill and Bishop kept their unbeaten record intact for the amateurs with a 2&1 win over Buchanan and Samuel McLaren while Arjun Gupta and Dave Guinee kept the amateurs in the contest with an important 3&2 win over Steven Munro and Malcolm Young.

Check out the putt Hill drained to seal a second win with Bishop.

 

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Good day at the office, the 4 ball second match today was a grid but Josh carried a boogie free day on till the end! Most important lesson was proving that golf still can be won with only three GOOD shots and 65 average shots in a round! @jmgolfcoach thanks had to borrow that! #dubaigolftrophy

A post shared by Russell Hill (@golf_osteo_path_dxb) on Oct 3, 2020 at 8:34am PDT

Boom.

There were big 5&4 wins for the Michaels, Major and Bolt, over Max Barrow and Bayhaan Lakdawala, and for Jackson Bell and captain Luke Plumb over Barry Pavic and Gordon Munro. Louis Gaughan and Jordan Gallagher were also impressive 4&3 winners over Skaik and Yousuf.

And so onto Sunday’s singles where there are some intriguing matchups with Hill pitted against newly minted UAE PGA Matchplay champion Major in the first match out at 11.30am. EGF captain Steven Kelbrick, who will face Gallagher, has stacked his order hoping for a fast start to ratchet up the pressure on the Plumb’s pros.

A fascinating Sunday awaits at The Creek.

 

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All to play for tomorrow with the UAE PGA Professionals leading the way 9-7 from the EGF amateurs. Morning foursomes 3-5 afternoon fourballs 6-2 so a come back from the pros. #dubaicreek #jumeirahgolfestates #dubaigolftrophy #dubaigolf #uaepga #egf

A post shared by UAE PGA (@uaepga) on Oct 3, 2020 at 8:03am PDT

The post UAE PGA pros fightback for 9-7 lead heading into Sunday’s Dubai Trophy singles appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

After being on European duty last summer, COVID-confined Josh Hill, Toby Bishop and Arjun Gupta are back to bolster Steven Kelbrick’s EGF line-up who are seeking a fifth straight win in the 54-hole event set for Jumeirah Golf Estates and Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club on Oct. 3-4.

Hill, fresh from a run to the round of 16 at The 125th Amateur Championship at Royal Birkdale, and Gupta are two of Kelbrick’s four picks, joining Sharjah’s William Xu and Emirati international Khalid Yousuf. Bishop qualified through the truncated EGF Order of Merit season which was won by Dan Byrne. The Els Club Dubai youngster adds yet more firepower to the amateur side which was revealed on Thursday to Golf Digest Middle East, along with Plumb’s 16-strong team.

RELATED: Amhad Skaik set for Dubai Trophy history

Plumb has handed captain’s picks to Al Ain’s Tom Buchanan and unattached former Arabian Ranches head pro Malcolm Young, another experienced Dubai Trophy campaigner who forced his way in with a top-five finish at last week’s UAE PGA Championship.

JA The Resort-attached Plumb is confident he has the team to halt a run of four straight losses but also concedes Kelbrick’s team deserve to go in favourites.

“The Amateurs have a really strong side. Golf in the region has some fantastic talent,” Plumb said. “The big three are all playing, Josh, Toby and Arjun, and they are mixed in with lots of experience so they are formidable opposition. I think we are underdogs but certainly have a great chance and there is no pressure on us.”

It’s not that the Pros are lacking talent or form. Plumb just wrapped up the UAE PGA Order of Merit title, Michael Major (Dubai Creek) edged Dong Lee (Emirates G.C.) 3&2 to capture the Henrik Stenson Eyewear UAE PGA Matchplay Championship while UAE national Ahmed Al Musharrekh (EGF) carded rounds of 75-69 at The Creek for a +1 aggregate to become the first Emirati to capture the UAE PGA Championship earlier this week.

 

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Congratulations to @major_michael for winning the 2020 @henrikstensoneyewear UAE PGA Matchplay Championship ???? Mike fired some timely back nine birdies to edge out runner up @dongkyonlee by 3&2. @gaughanlouis pipped @davidlaingpga to finish in overall 3rd Place. A big thank you to our sponsor Henrik Stenson Eyewear & @trumpgolfdubai for the hospitality today. #uaepga #henrikstensoneyewear #matchplay

A post shared by UAE PGA (@uaepga) on Sep 15, 2020 at 5:30am PDT

 

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Congratulations to Ahmed Al Musharrekh on winning the UAE PGA Championship. Ahmed fired a -2, 69 round a testing Dubai Creek for a total of 75/69 +1. This is the largest golf competition for a UAE National to ever win and a fantastic achievement for Ahmed ??? Runner up by only a single shot was @jacksonbell01 JGE with 68/77 +2 and in solo third @graydavid_1 with 72/74 +3. X3 tied 4th on +4 @malc_younggolf @phil_waine @urs_perfectman. A fantastic 2 days @jumeirah.golf @dubaicreekgolf and thanks to all their teams for the hospitality. #dubaigolf #dubaicreek #jumeirahgolfestates #uaepga #uae #winner #champion

A post shared by UAE PGA (@uaepga) on Sep 22, 2020 at 4:24am PDT

“I think the team is extremely strong this year, maybe one of the best I’ve played in with no weak links and lots of people playing well so we go in with a good chance,” Plumb said. “We will be creative with the pairings to try and give us the best chance. I think it’ll just come down to who plays well on the two days. If we play to the level we can, then we have a great chance this year.”

Kelbrick is equally confident, insisting he hadn’t looked at the UAE PGA team.

“We can only control ourselves,” the Trump Dubai member said before recalling his dream performance at the 2019 Senior Open at Royal Lytham and St. Annes.

“It’s the same as Senior Open. We are here now, let’s embrace it and believe that we can win. Five in a row is possible but the key is attitude. We’ve got to enjoy the experience and allow it to lift our performance. That’s the goal.”

The post Big names return as EGF Amateurs chase Dubai Trophy five-peat appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Kent Gray
We’re not sure if Josh Hill, Toby Bishop or Arjun Gupta have ever studied the deeds of Winston Churchill in history class but the Dubai schoolboys have, at least unwittingly, heeded one of the former British Prime Minister’s famed quotes.

While top-flight professional golf is back, sans spectators, the world’s elite amateur events are only slowly creaking back into life courtesy of the coronavirus pandemic. But channelling Churchill’s circa 1940 “Never let a good crisis go to waste” war cry, the MENA Tour teens are working harder than ever. Indeed, they haven’t really stopped, escaping into the desert for socially-distanced practice sessions even before lockdown when courses were deemed out of bounds to teens for health and safety reasons.

There’s no need to suddenly try salvaging something from what is essentially a lost year when you don’t see it that way. Rather all three have kept on keeping on with carefully plotted progression plans.

Hill is working with a new coach, Bishop is invigorated after committing to the University of Florida and Gupta has refreshed by hitting his school books – knowing the sooner he sorts his education the sooner he can get on with chasing his pro golf dream.

If you’ve been following along, you’ll know the teen trio were dubbed the ‘Three Amigos’ by the MENA Tour in a nod to the 1986 American comedy-western starring Steve Martin, Chevy Chase and Martin Short. You need to draw a long bow to connect Hill, Bishop and Gupta to the Hollywood stars in a golf context, perhaps other than giving this period a movie moniker, something like 2020 global-horror.

But together the talented 16-year-olds have kept smiling and getting on with their young lives, looking forward to the mooted conclusion of the MENA Tour season in Jordan in mid-October to late-November. And brighter, ‘new normal’ times beyond that.

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Josh Hill

THE RESET

The way Josh Hill’s unforgettable 2019 rolled into 2020, you’d have thought the English Boys’ representative would be cursing the big amateur golf shutdown caused by the coronavirus. Quite the opposite for the +6.5 handicapper (not a misprint!) as it turns out.

As a refresher few will require, Hill earned an entry in the Guinness Book of World Records when he won the MENA Tour’s Al Ain Open last October. The youngest winner – at 15 years, six months and 27 days – of an OWGR event went on to qualify for a European Tour debut in Abu Dhabi and played the following week in Dubai (courtesy of winning the MENA Tour’s amateur Order of Merit), keeping his name in lights. But his game was in a slightly darker place thanks to an uncooperative driver which saw him miss the cut at both Desert Swing events.

“Even though it was frustrating going into lockdown, I felt it came at a good time,” Hill reveals. “I was doing a lot of changes in my swing to help me control the ball better and this probably would have been harder to do whilst playing in tournaments.”

Those changes, instigated by new coach Rob Watts, took some inventiveness to bed in, first during lockdown in Dubai and later, when flights resumed, at the family home in England.

“Even though I was in a small apartment in Dubai, I tried to keep myself busy and keep improving. Before lockdown, when juniors weren’t allowed to practice at the clubs, we went into the desert to hit balls which was fun. Once we were in lockdown I would hit balls into a net in the communal area of the apartment and I ran in the underground car park and did the best gym session I could with the equipment I had.

I cannot thank them [Joe Marshall and the CH3 Dubai team] enough for what they did but sometimes change is good and challenges you.”

“I still did a bit of swing work [in Dubai] but it has been nice to see the ball flight again to know that what I had been working on was working. I played some really good golf before leaving for England and was shooting some good numbers around Trump. Hopefully, I can keep doing this up in the upcoming tournaments.”

Golf news, much less Middle East amateur golf news, has been scarce since the COVID-19 outbreak but if there was a headline popper, it was Hill’s decision to end his relationship with Joe Marshall at the Claude Harmon 3 Performance Golf Academy at The Els Club, Dubai.

“Joe and the CH3 team really helped me in the three years I was with them. They helped me progress and get some good results. I cannot thank them enough for what they did but sometimes change is good and challenges you,” the 16-year-old says.

“Rob Watts has a lot of good players and I feel since we met, he has a lot of confidence in me and we have a good relationship. When I was in Dubai, we would do Skype calls from the range which worked well and now that I’m back in the UK I see him every couple of weeks.”

The initial feedback from the new partnership has been encouraging after Hill made the cut at the prestigious Tillman Trophy and eventually settled for a share of 20th at leafy Foxhills Country Club in Surrey.

“I felt a bit rusty but it was good to get the season going and I cannot wait for the next few tournaments.”

Will that include the MENA Tour’s mooted five-event, six-week encampment at Ayla Golf Club, or part thereof?  And later, maybe following pal Toby Bishop to college in the U.S.?

“I hope I will be able to play in the rest of the MENA tour season as it is such a great tour. But I also need to see what is happening with school and go from there.

“I feel for me college golf is definitely a possibility and I have spoken to some of the coaches and am working towards this but it depends where my game is when the time comes.”

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Arjun Gupta

TRENDING

With Josh Hill creating history and headlines around the world and Toby Bishop learning to become a serial winner too, it is easy to cast Arjun Gupta as the third Musketeer. Don’t be too quick with the supporting role tag though.

With a closing 66 to snare fourth place at the Ghala Open in mid-February, the Dubai-born Indian earned his best finish on the MENA Tour. It underlined the potential the +3 handicapper had shown by capturing the Faldo Series Middle East Championship at Al Ain Equestrian, Shooting and Golf Club in April 2019.

Gupta played his final 36-holes in Oman in an impressive 11-under-par to seal his second amateur title on the regional development circuit after he shared that honour with Hill at last November’s MENA Tour Championship. He also came within a shot of earning his first-ever Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) points. We suspect they will follow soon enough.

“I want to win the Amateur Journey to Jordan this year and this is a good step in that direction,” Gupta said at the time.

A year 12 student home-schooling through iCademy Middle East, Gupta spent the two months of lockdown in Dubai but unlike golf-focused Hill and Bishop.

“I went to the desert a few times to hit a few shots but, apart from that, just focused on my education. I was a bit frustrated that I couldn’t play golf that much but I got the opportunity to focus on education and health.”

I want to win a tournament on the MENA Tour and this gives me confidence that I am close.”

Gupta had planned to tee it up in events in the U.S. before the pandemic changed everything. Now he’s focused on the MENA Tour’s October- November plans at Ayla Golf Club in Aqaba.

“They are the only events I hope to play in this year. I have learned a lot from the pros and gained real competitive experience through the MENA Tour.”

The U.S. still features in Gupta’s plans but it’s unlikely he’ll follow in the soft-spiked footsteps of University of Florida-bound Bishop.  Again, don’t be fooled. There is a firm plan, one where Gupta continues to let his golf do most of the talking.

“I’m happy to see Toby achieving his goals but I don’t have college plans at the moment,” said the Jamie McConnell coached Gupta. The reason? “Because I would like to turn pro and achieve my goals.”

Time will tell if Gupta’s longterm vision comes to fruition. For now he retains bold amateur ambitions.“I want to win a tournament on the MENA Tour and this [his Ghala performance] gives me confidence that I am close.”

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Toby Bishop

FOR THE GATOR GOOD

Few amateurs have greater cause to lament the months of top-flight competition lost to the pandemic than Toby Bishop.

The reigning Welsh U-18 Boys’ Strokeplay champion – who doesn’t celebrate his 17th birthday until Dec. – had been riding a giddy wave of form right up to golf’s shutdown, sparked by an unlucky playoff loss in the Trump Men’s Open.

He scorched to a cool nine stroke victory at another EGF-sanctioned event, navigating the Saadiyat Beach Men’s Open with a -14 (36-hole) total that included an amateur course record 62. Later he overcame a field that included the likes of European Tour player Gavin Moynihan to capture The Els Alliance and looked on course to make the honours board at Trump Dubai after carding a 68 for a three stroke lead following the opening round of the club championship.

Then, with U-18s banned from UAE courses overnight, the decision was taken to cancel the club champs. Lockdown followed shortly afterwards and surely too angst at a white hot spell extinguished by an invisible enemy?

“My coach Jamie McConnell and I didn’t look at this break as a negative or make excuses,” says Bishop who counts the U16 European Faldo Series title he won in late 2018 among his chief triumphs to date.

“Every other player was in the same situation as me, so it was down to me to work harder than them during lockdown to improve my game and allow me to return to competitions with the same great form.”

With a win and a second in a pair of Trump medals since the reopening, and rounds of 69-75 to edge Kate Bibby by three strokes at the CH3 Collegiate Invitational at The Els Club, that was a mission largely accomplished as we went to print.

“It was definitely a weird feeling returning to competitions, mainly the tournament mentality and getting used to that again. But it’s what every player strives for. I love the pressure of the situation and enjoy every moment when I’m out there competing against my friends.”

Competition is coming in spades for Bishop who has committed to join the University of Florida in the recruiting class of 2022. World amateur No.2 Ricky Castillo is among Bishop’s imminent Gator team-mates.

“With both my parents being teachers, the collegiate pathway has always been the goal for me…and Florida has been my first choice college for a long time. It’s an environment I can’t wait to experience and look to grow as a golfer and a person during my time there. My goal is to be the best at what I do and I believe the University of Florida provides me with the best platform to achieve that.”

As he does on the range at The Els with coach McConnell, the Director of Instruction at the CH3 Performance Golf Academy, Bishop left no stone unturned before settling on the Gators’ golf programme.

My goal is to be the best at what I do and I believe the University of Florida provides me with the best platform to achieve that.”

“I ended up making contact with around 20 programs. On these calls I had to narrow down which programs met my criteria and I could not have found a better fit than University of Florida. The coaching staff there, in coach Deacon and coach Leon, have been so helpful throughout my calls and were a huge part in my decision. I will be spending four years there and my family and I couldn’t think of anyone we would rather have to develop me as a golfer and a person off the course than Coach Deacon, he is such a great role model for all his players and fellow golfers.”

It’s been frustrating having to forego a trip to the U.S. to visit collegiate campuses and play AJGA events, not to mention the full summer schedule he had planned in the UK including the Carras Trophy, the (British) Boys’ and Welsh Amateur Championships and the Boys’ Home Internationals.

Refocused, Bishop is now looking forward to entering Year 12 at Dubai English Speaking College this month and kicking off his A-Level studies. There’ll also be enough golf to keep his competitive fires stoked.

“The rest of my year will be based in Dubai. I will play in as many Men’s opens and local tournaments as I can find and we have the Dubai Golf Trophy [the Ryder Cup-style match between the top-performing EGF OOM amateurs and UAE Tour pros] scheduled for late October. In preparation for those events I will continue to follow my practice plan and work with Jamie to fine tune all areas of my game. We’re currently focusing on speed as my main goal and trying to become as sharp as I can around the greens.”

School commitments might prevent Bishop playing all the remaining MENA Tour events, if they are played in Aqaba later this year as mooted. What isn’t under debate is Bishop’s praise for the pathway provided by the regional developmental circuit.

“To be able to compete against European and Challenge Tour players across many different countries on great courses, is such a valuable learning experience. Just having to be independent travelling, learning from the pros and also learning to own my game at the same time.

“Early on during my first season, the MENA Tour highlighted areas of my game that needed improving. That enabled me to improve to a much higher level this season and structure my practice in a much more productive manner. I hope to use these experiences and the confidence gained to compete during the events later on this year.”

The way Bishop has carried on from where he left of pre-COVID, don’t be surprised if he keeps good on that goal as well.

The post The MENA Tour’s ‘Three Amigos’ are staying calm and cracking on appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Kent Gray
The MENA Tour deliberately took 16 months between the end of its seventh season in late 2017 and the start of its eight edition in February 2019 to redesign the regional developmental circuit. A further refinement was the decision to condense the current 2020 schedule into essentially three months between late January and mid-April, allowing members the chance to kick-start their year in the Middle East’s best weather before spreading their wings around the world. The MENA Tour suddenly fitted perfectly into golf’s global landscape – until the world suddenly wasn’t the same courtesy of the COVID-19 pandemic.

With travel around the G.C.C becoming increasingly challenging, the MENA Tour’s leadership took the decision on March 5 to postpone the final six events of the 11-tournament season until October-November, reintroducing a mid-summer break as was previously the case. Only time will tell what professional golf, much less global sport, will look like come late 2020 and beyond but two things are certain; the MENA Tour deserves praise for acting so decisively and continues to work tirelessly behind the scenes to ensure a smooth resumption when things get back to the new normal, whenever that is. In the meantime, here’s five mid-season takeaways from the 9th edition of the MENA Tour by Arena.

1) Langley leads
What’s $704 between professional golfers? For David Langley (pictured above), it’s a potentially priceless sum. The 25-year-old Englishmen went into the enforced break atop the Order of Merit (OOM) standings, edging compatriot David Hague to a start in the European Tour’s €2.5 million Trophee Hassan II as a result. At the time of press, the June 4-7 stop in Morocco wasn’t among those postponed by the European Tour meaning Langley, the 2017 Open Championship silver medallist (for low amateur honours), has a shot at quickly adding to the $25,499 he’s banked in his five MENA Tour starts this far. The Stokenchurch pro will take plenty of confidence (if not recent form) to wherever his golf travel takes him next after capturing the season-opening Journey to Jordan 1 Championship before finishing 11th and runner-up in Egypt and Oman respectively. Langley then did just enough to hold off Hague for the Morocco spot after Hague won the Royal Golf Club Bahrain Open before finishing 33rd to Langley’s 38th in the Journey to Jordan 2 Championship, the final event before the postponement. $704? A huge sum in the mini-tour scheme of things.

Bailey Gill teed it up on the European Tour courtesy of the MENA Tour. Photo by Joy Chakravarty

2) Gill (just) sneaks in
The MENA Tour’s remit is to provide fledging professionals opportunities at the next level. Unlike David Langley whose aforementioned, European Tour start in Rabat is up in the air, countryman Bailey Gill at least got to play the Oman Open before the coronavirus shut down golf worldwide, the reward for winning the MENA Tour’s Ghala Open in Oman a week earlier. Rounds of 77-70 meant the 22-year-old English lefty missed the cut at Al Mouj Golf but the big-time experience was no doubt priceless. Gill will resume the MENA Tour in 6th place on the OOM.

Arjun Gupta has ground to make up on amateur oom leader Shergo Al Kurdi. Photo by Joy Chakravarty

3) Al Kurdi has company
After Josh Hill’s breakout 2019 campaign including worldwide fame after winning the Al Ain Open, Shergo Al Kurdi has dominated amateur headlines this season. The Jordanian 16-year-old become the first amateur from the G.C.C. to earn Official World Golf Ranking points after his gusty runner-up finish to Langley at the J2J#1 Championship in late January, a huge step towards realising his 2024 Olympic Games dream. But watch for Arjun Gupta (pictured No.3) in the second half of the season. The Dubai-based Indian is second to Al Kurdi in the amateur OOM and will be buoyed by his 4th placing at the Ghala Open. Gupta’s fellow Els Club Dubai range-rat, Toby Bishop, is another cursing the coronavirus enforced pause after a rich run of domestic form. Bishop, 7th in the MENA Tour amateur OOM, signed for a course record 62 en-route to winning the EGF’s Saadiyat Beach Open before capturing The Els Alliance and then leading the Trump Dubai Open before COVID-19 trumped everything.

George Groves, the WR4GD No.1, in action at the DP World Tour Championship, where he lifted the EDGA Dubai finale trophy last November. Photo by Joy Chakravarty

4) Great determination
Sadly lost in these tumultuous times was the MENA Tour’s trailblazing agreement with the European Disabled Golf Association (EDGA). It was set to showcase four players with an official World Ranking for Golfers with Disability (WR4GD) and a handicap of 4.4 or less at the Ras Al Khaimah Open (Tower Links G.C.), the Northern Emirates Open (Al Hamra G.C.) and the Al Ain Classic. Those events were among the six postponed. Here’s hoping the EDGA players are among those on the tee when the MENA Tour resumes.

Englishman David Hague is second behind Langley in the OOM and eyeing the Arena Championship at Ayla Golf Club, the MENA Tour’s destination partner in Aqaba, Jordan. Photo by Joy Chakravarty

5) Smooth resumption
A doff of our cap to the administrators worldwide trying to piece professional golf back together again in these extremely uncertain times. The cryptic scheduling puzzle is no less challenging for the MENA Tour who had sourced a series of European, Asian, Challenge and Alps Tour starts for its best 2020 performers, invites on tours now in a state of flux themselves. Those are complications for another day though. For now, the great news is a determination to get the MENA Tour by Arena back on its feet as quickly and as safely as possible and heading towards the season-ending $100,000 Arena Championship at Ayla Golf Club, the circuit’s Aqaba destination partner. “We are in touch with the members and updating them on a regular basis. The logistics are being tied up right now. We are looking at the window of October-November. The Tour is talking to the venue partners and will release the dates as soon as possible,” the tour said in a statement. A resumption, in any shape or form, will be a grand statement of intent.

The post Officials hope to complete the disrupted 2020 MENA Tour season in October-November appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Kent Gray
Bailey Gill planned to tee it up at the $75,000 Royal Golf Club Bahrain Open next week. Instead he’ll be rubbing shoulders with the likes for former world No.1 Martin Kaymer at the European Tour’s Oman Open, an event with a cool million extra greenbacks on the line. Amazing, potentially life-changing things like that happen to good players on the MENA Tour by Arena.

The 22-year-old Englishman was trying to get his head around the sudden change of plans after capturing the $13,500 winner’s cheque at the Ghala Open on Wednesday.

The Worksop lefty birdied his last three holes and five of his last six in a bogey-free 65 to get to -15 and win by one from overnight leader and room-mate David Langley. Scot Craig Ross, who briefly owned the lead by two strokes at the turn, settled for third at -12, a shot ahead of impressive Dubai-based Indian teen Arjun Gupta who signed for a bogey-free 66 and his best MENA Tour result. Gupta played his final 36-holes in 11-under-par to seal his second amateur title on the regional development circuit after he shared that honour with pal Josh Hill at last November’s Tour Championship.

CHAMPIONS!!
England’s @baileygill1997 (16-under par) and India’s Arjun Gupta are the Professional and Amateur winners of the Ghala Open.
Gill’s reward, apart from the $13,500 cheque, is a spot in next week’s Oman Open on the @EuropeanTour. pic.twitter.com/Ko88ScAd8z

— MENA Tour (@theMENATour) February 19, 2020

But this was Gill’s day, a scarcely believable pro breakthrough after he wasted a golden opportunity at the inaugural NEWGIZA Open last week.

The southpaw started the final round in Cairo just a shot out of the lead but faded to a share of 12th. They say you learn most not from your victories but your disappointments and that clearly proved the case after Gill signed for a closing two-over 74 at NEWGIZA Golf Club, the equal worst score of anyone who finished in the top 40.

“This is fantastic,” said Gill. “I have been waiting for some time now for this to happen. It did not happen in Cairo, but I am glad I could hang on and win here in Oman.

“I was disappointed last week, but I came here knowing I was playing solid. I have been playing good golf for some time now, just struggling to get everything together and I am glad I managed to do that.”

Get it done he surely did, but not without a few nerve-jangling moments down the stretch. Twice on the last two holes weak, pushed drives looked to have cost the Lindrick Golf Club member but he recovered both times with a pair of spectacular chips to tap-in range. Check them out:

With this exquisite chip to less than 2 feet, @baileygill1997 has taken a one-shot lead at -15 going into the final hole of the Ghala Open. pic.twitter.com/928YvaYwVR

— MENA Tour (@theMENATour) February 19, 2020

That brilliant chip by @baileygill1997 left him with his short putt to make a birdie and edge ahead of a fast-charging @DavidLangley59 by one shot… pic.twitter.com/aMI7p7tLlh

— MENA Tour (@theMENATour) February 19, 2020

“Those two were tough shots on the last two holes. I hit a horrible tee shot on the 18th hole and there was a lot of pressure when David holed his putt for a birdie on the last. David really played great despite the poor start he had, especially on that back nine.”

“I’m delighted to win the Ghala Open and I can’t wait to get going next week at the Oman Open at Al Mouj Golf. It will be my first European Tour event so I’m really looking forward to the challenge of playing with some of the best golfers in the world.

“I have only been a professional now for around five months so I’m really happy this opportunity has come to me so soon and I hope I can take advantage of it.”

Langley, seeking a second MENA Tour title inside three weeks, was left to rue a double-bogey start in a topsy-turvy closing 67. The 25-year-old Marlow rookie bounced back immediately with a birdie two but bogeyed the par-5 3rd before reaching the turn in 38 strokes, two over. He triggered a charge by driving it just short of the 375-yard par-4 10th and coolly holing the eagle putt before rattling off five birdies in his final seven holes for a homeward nine played in 29 strokes.

One of our spectators took this video of @DavidLangley59 driving to the edge of the 375-yard par-4 10th green and sinking his eagle putt to get back to even par for the round. pic.twitter.com/fxExKMJtzn

— MENA Tour (@theMENATour) February 19, 2020

Sadly for Langley, the brilliant back-nine left him just shy of playoff although he does have the consolation of a near $10,000 lead over Gill in the Journey to Jordan money-race heading to Bahrain.

“I am gutted, but after that finish, if I had to lose to someone, I’d rather it be Bailey,” said the 25-year-old, also playing his first full season as a professional.

“I was rooming with him last week in Cairo and I know how upset he was after the finish there and credit to him for getting it done.

“I hit a perfect tee shot on the first and made a poor swing with my second. Obviously, the adrenaline was pumping a bit. That double affected me on the fourth hole, which is a par-5 and I could not make a birdie there. Being two-over after four on an easier stretch was not ideal, but I stayed patient and went on a roll on the back nine.

“A win here would have possibly got me two European Tour starts [Oman for winning Ghala Open and Hassan Trophee II for topping the Journey to Jordan at the halfway stage], so there was that pressure. Good to see Bailey getting the Oman spot and I am in a nice position to get into Morocco after this.”

Gupta, who turns 16 in May, showed once again why he is considered one of the brightest prospects in the region as he notched his first top-five on the MENA Tour and came to within one shot of earning his first-ever Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) points.

Arjun Gupta played his final 36-holes in 11-under-par.

“I am happy with my finish. The whole week my short game and my putting was very good. I could have probably driven the ball a bit better, but I can’t complain after such a finish,” said the Dubai-born Gupta, who is coached by Jamie McConnell at the Claude Harmon III Performance Golf Academy in Dubai.

“I want to win the Amateur Journey to Jordan this year and this is a good step in that direction. I also want to win a tournament on the MENA Tour and this gives me confidence that I am close.”

Final scores from Ghana Open:

-16 – @baileygill1997
-15 – @DavidLangley59
-12 – @CraigRoss64
-11 – Arjun Gupta (Am)
-10 – @alf1e_p, @PavanSagooo, Curtis Knipes, Benjamin Jones (Am), @PaulMcBride0

Full scores here:https://t.co/970IwPtaoz pic.twitter.com/ZKEmYkFP5u

— MENA Tour (@theMENATour) February 19, 2020

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While professional Joshua Grenville-Wood was booming 405-yard drives and “flicking” 170-yard wedge shots and Miguel Angel Jimenez’s son made a hole-in-one, it was the Dubai amateur who stole the headlines again in Aqaba

By Kent Gray
MENA Tour pin-up boy Josh Hill is at it again.

The 15-year-old took advantage of unusually benign conditions early on Tuesday then showed his class as a strange wind whipped across Ayla Golf Club to grab a share of the first-round lead at the $100,000 Journey To Jordan Tour Championship.

Professionals Joshua Grenville-Wood (England) and Gabriel Axell (Sweden) later matched Hills opening 66 but it was the Trump International Golf Club Dubai amateur’s six-under circuit that inevitably grabbed the early headlines.

Hill, who became the youngest winner of an OWGR-sanctioned event and the MENA Tour by Arena’s fourth amateur champion when he captured the Al Ain Open by Arena last month, was in the second group out and enjoyed the abnormality calm conditions for his opening four holes.

RELATED: Meet the MENA Tour’s new Boy Wonder

He was still only one under through four after birdieing the par-5 1st and gave it back with a three-putt bogey on the par-3 6th. But the England Boys’ representative then kicked into gear with five birdies in his next eight holes before another gain on 17 to set the early clubhouse target.

The breeze picked up by the time Hill reached the 5th tee but it helped the unfamiliar wind direction made three of Ayla G.C.s four par-5s play downwind.

“I was lucky with the wind for the first four holes and then it picked up. It was strong and from a different direction. But I played pretty solid and kept hitting some very good iron shots,” said Hill who has been nominated for the BBC Young Sports Personality of the Year award.

“Most of my birdies were from inside 10 feet. Just that three-putt on 6th was the only bad part of a good day.”

RELATED: Prodigy Power – The Driver swing that helped Josh Hill wow the golfing world

Hill outscored playing partners Curtis Knipes (73) and Jack Floydd (75) by seven and nine shots respectively, a huge boost in his bid to overtake Knipes atop the amateur Journey to Jordan standings and grab the rich reward of a start in January’s OMEGA Dubai Desert Classic.

Arjun Gupta, who trains alongside Hill on the Claude Harmon 3 Performance Golf Academy range at The Els Club Dubai, held second place in the amateur leaderboard after a one-under 71 for a share of 21st place.

Grenville-Wood ht one drive 405 yards!
Photo: Joy Chakravarty/MENA Tour

Grenville-Wood, meanwhile, took full advantage of the par-5s playing downwind, hitting massive tee shots and flicking wedges in for two eagles – on the 9th and 13th – on a bogey-free day. And Axell, who lost in a play-off at the recent Ras Al Khaimah Open by Arena, continued his good form in a round that featured a hole-out with his second shot from 90 yards for an eagle on the par-4 15th hole, mixed with five birdies and a solitary bogey.

Sweden’s Henric Sturehed, the 2017 Tour Championship winner, and the Yas Links Abu Dhabi-attached Englishman Luke Joy, a two-time MENA Tour winner, were tied for the fourth place at 67.

Grenville-Wood, who is hoping to better his second-place finish in Bahrain earlier this year, said: “It felt like a completely new golf course in that wind but what it also did was make the par-5s a lot easier. I hit a wedge second shot from 170 yards on the ninth, and then my drive went 405 yards on the 13th.”

Gabriel Axell. (Photo: Joy Chakravarty/MENA Tour)

Axell is clearly making the most of his decision to travel to Aqaba a week in advance to escape the freezing temperatures back home in Sweden and get some practice with some sun on his back. 

“I am really surprised that I have managed to play well despite the break after the Ras Al Khaimah Open. I went back to Sweden and it was like -4 and -5 degrees. So, I came here early with a couple of my Swedish mates and practiced for a week. That seems to have definitely helped,” said Axell.

South Africa’s MG Keyser, the Journey to Jordan professional leader, started with a three-under 69 to be in tied seventh place. His closest rival, Australia’s Daniel Gaunt, opened with an even-par 72.

Miguel Angel Jimenez Junior, son of the legendary Spaniard Miguel Angel Jimenez, made a hole-in-one – his first in competitive play – when he aced the par-3 2nd from 194 yards with a 6-iron. The Senior Jimenez has a penchant of making aces and holds the European Tour record with 11.

The post Josh Hill, still just 15, nabs share of early Journey To Jordan Tour Championship lead appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

The 15-year-old MENA Tour regular is one of 70 players from 18 countries set to contest the 54-hole decider, one of junior golf’s most coveted events which is again being personally hosted by six-time major champion Sir Nick Faldo.

RELATED: Gupta’s Faldo Series triumph shows he’s far from the third Musketeer

Gupta qualified for finale after clinching the Faldo Series Middle East title in style, negotiating the same but then windswept Abu Dhabi layout in three-under-par in late March to win the under-16 title by nine shots from fellow Claude Harmon 3 Performance Golf Academy star Toby Bishop and the overall title by two shots from Ziang Xu, the under-18 division champion.

Arjun Gupta

Gupta is flanked by Matthew Faldo and AESGC club captain Anton Van Schalkwyk after winning the Faldo Series Middle East title in March to qualify for this week’s Europe Grand Final.

Since the European Series opened at Al Ain in March, more than 2,000 players have competed across 20 qualifying events around the world. Five respective age group and gender category winners will be crowned on Thursday and Faldo won’t be surprised if a new star or two are unearthed at Al Ain.

Rory McIlroy, European Tour stars Jordan Smith and Eddie Pepperell and Ladies European Tour and LPGA Tour player Melissa Reid are former Faldo Series graduates in a series designed to aid the development of the world’s best juniors through elite competition and grow the game by staging events in less-established golfing nations.

“I’ve kept a close eye on scoring this year, and from some of the numbers posted in qualifying, I think we may have one of the most talented classes yet. I’m looking forward to meeting the competitors and welcoming them to Al Ain,” the 62-year-old Englishman said.

Gupta is in the final threesome out in Tuesday’s opening round at 10.55 am UAE time.

Also in the field are Taiwanese junior Chang Hsin Chiao, who will be aiming to follow her Asia victory with another at the Europe Grand Final. Pavol Mach, winner of the Slovakia Championship at Black Stork Golf Resort which celebrated its 10th Faldo Series anniversary this year, will also compete at Al Ain, alongside Jordan Duminy, this year’s newly crowned South Africa Champion and upcoming Junior Presidents Cup player.

The Faldo Series, in its 23rd year overall and boast 40 events in more than 30 countries, also celebrated 10-year anniversaries in Germany and Czech Republic this year.

Al Ain Equestrian, Shooting & Golf Club takes centre stage for Faldo Series Europe Grand Final

“The Faldo Series dates back to 1996, the year of my sixth and final major,” said Faldo. “That summer, I unveiled a new concept designed to give talented juniors more chances to play in elite competitions, and I’m so proud of how it’s grown to become one of the stand-out events for junior golfers.

“We set out to create an event that all juniors would want, and aspire, to play. One that could prove to be an important role in their development, along with sharpening up their competitive mindset and preparing them for the future challenges they might face in trying to make it in professional golf.

“I think we’re well on our way to achieving our goals with the Series and in the last 23 years we’ve seen some truly great players come through the ranks.”

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