Jha produced a bogey-free, seven-under-par 65 Monday to sit at the summit of the $30,000 Golf Citizen Classic leaderboard.

The 30-year-old from the southern Indian city of Bengaluru is two shots clear of Pakistani Hamza Amin and South African MG Keyser who carried on from where he left off at the Creek after capturing his maiden MENA Tour title.

“It could have been a great one [round] but I missed a few putts coming home. That’s golf. You can’t complain after opening with a 65,” said Jha who turned professional in 2010.

“I drove the ball well all day and holed some nice putts. Making those four birdies in a row from the third kind of kick-started my round. Overall, I played a good, solid round.”

Another South African, Teagan Moore, was solo fourth after a 68 while seven players carded three-under 69s, RAK Classic winner Peter Stojanovski (Australia), reigning order-of-merit champion Craig Hinton and his English compatriots Jamie Elson and Zane Scotland among them.

The steady start will be especially heartening for Scotland after the 10-time MENA Tour winner and the circuit’s only fully exempt player was forced to withdraw from the Creek Open after just 27 holes due to an on-going back injury.

Elson led this season’s order-of-merit race into the tour’s 10-week summer break but missed the resumption at Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club last week as he successfully survived the first stage of European Tour Q-School in Scotland.

The 36-year-old former European Challenge Tour winner has stolen an early march on Fredrik From at The Els after the Swede took over top spot on the OOM with his T-4 finish at the Creek.

From signed for a even par 72 Monday to share 26th place with, among others, English amateurs Todd Clements (second equal last week with Presidents Cup-bound Indian No.1 Rayhan Thomas), Michael Gilbert and Jamie Richards. Sharjah Golf & Shooting Club amateur Michael Harradine opened with a 73 but it is the German, Marcus Toennessen, who leads the amateur leaderboard after a 71.

UAE’s Ahmed Al Musharrekh, three under through 13, had his chances to hit the front page of the leaderboard but dropped a couple of shots coming home and that left him sharing 26th on level-par.

The post Indian ‘ace’ Jha two ahead at Golf Citizen Classic after opening 65 at The Els Club appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Kent Gray
Fredrik From would dearly love to be the player to snap the MENA Tour’s streak of first-time winners when he tees it up in the Golf Citizen Classic at The Els Club, Dubai on Monday.

The 27-year-old Swede took full advantage of the absence of Jamie Elson and Luke Joy from last week’s Dubai Creek Open, leapfrogging the Englishmen all the way to the summit of the developmental circuit’s order-of-merit standings courtesy of a T-4 finish.

South African MG Keyser captured his maiden MENA Tour title following a tense battle with Junior Presidents Cup-bound teen Rayhan Thomas to become the 10th new winner in as many events this season.

From, who won the weather-shortened Pattana Golf Championship in May thanks to a closing 63, will be aware there is no better time to change that at The Els, especially with Joy against absent as he contests the multi-tournament first stage of European Tour Q-School in Austria.

Related: No KLM Open Joe as Luke eyes European Tour Q-School

Elson, however, is back and certainly wouldn’t mind keeping the first-timers streak rolling.  The 36-year-old Englishmen brings form with him to Dubai having advanced to the second stage of European Q-school courtesy of rounds of 70-72-68-72 at Roxburghe Hotel and Golf Course in Kelso, Scotland last week to finish T-11 at -6 (the top 22 advanced).

Related: Elson eyes the MENA Tour’s big prize

From can also anticipate a tough fight from Keyser who established the Creek course record of 61 last Monday (a -10 score emulated by Thomas the very next day). The South African is clearly comfortable going low, having recently looped The Els in 62 strokes in a friendly game.

MG Keyser arrives at The Els fresh from victory at last week’s Dubai Creek Open.

“I love this Els course and know what it takes to string together a low round. Hopefully, local knowledge will come in handy,” said Keyser, who considers the Els his “home club” and is playing the MENA Tour on a special Tour invitation.

“The confidence is there as I have been playing some good, solid golf for the last six months or so. I am really enjoying playing on the MENA Tour [but] there are a plenty of quality players who all can win on their day.”

Zane Scotland, handed the tour’s first and thus far only lifetime exemption during last season’s Omega Dubai Desert Classic, will play after withdrawing from the Creek last week with a reoccurrence of a back injury. The Englishman, who holds a record 10 MENA Tour titles, last won at the 2016 Royal Golf Mohammed Open in Morocco.

Also confirmed are 2016 OOM champion Craig Hinton and fellow Englishmen Andrew Marshall, Jake Shepherd and Lee Corfield, who all have all won a minimum of two MENA Tour titles previously.

England’s Todd Clements, T-2 with Thomas last week, will be the amateur to watch this week with Thomas headed for New Jersey for the Sept 25-26 Junior Presidents Cup. Saudi Arabia’s Othman Almulla, who emerged as the best amateur from the MENA region last week, and the UAE’s Ahmed Al Musharrekh will be the Arab players under the microscope in a event that attracted 130 entries (including 30 amateurs) from 26 countries.

The post From brings form to Golf Citizen Classic at The Els, Dubai appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

Luke Joy will again have overcome a frustrating start if he is to maintain his buffer atop the MENA Tour order of merit standings.

The 29-year-old Abu Dhabi-based Englishman signed for a 74 to share 62nd place after the  opening round of the Jo’burg City Masters Tuesday. Joy was eight shots adrift of leader Jacquin Hess after the South African traded eight birdies and two bogeys in his pace-setting 66.

Hess was a shot clear of countryman Sean Bradley (67) overnight while four more South Africans and three Englishmen shared fourth place at -4 in the Big Easy Tour event which is co-sanctioned by the MENA Tour. Among the latter was Jamie Elson who is second in the MENA Tour points standings – 1715 points adrift of Joy through seven events – and will be hoping to kick on from his encouraging 68.

Joy moved to the top of the MENA Tour money list following this third place finish at last week’s South to East Challenge, the first of the MENA Tour’s three-tournament South Africa swing.

RELATED: Luke thinks long term Joy ahead of Jo’burg City Masters

But the Yas Links-attached pro had to overcome another two-over par opening round in Benoni and that followed a weekend off the Zambia Open on the higher level Sunshine Tour. Earlier in the season he sandwiched two second placings either side of another missed cut.

Joy’s putting had been the problem heading into this week’s 54-holer at Country Club Johannesburg but on Tuesday an uncooperative driver was the cause of the Dorset man’s angst on a firm and fast Woodmead course.

“I actually really like the course this week…and if you hit the fairways you have some good opportunities to attack some very firm and crusty greens,” Joy said in his latest blog post.

“Unfortunately today I couldn’t find a fairway to save my life and had little to no hope of hitting [it] close out of the rough. I had to settle for 30-50 foot putts all day long and with a few three putts, all I could manage was 74 (+2).

“It was a poor performance and my consistently inconsistent performances at the moment are frustrating but a work in progress. I’ve got to stay positive with it but my scores at the moment are very dependent on how my putting is on the course.

“I’m hoping to improve tomorrow [Wednesday] and find some fairways. I have a very early start so hopefully the course will set up a little softer so I can hit some close and make some birdies to get back on track.”

Meanwhile, South to East Challenge winner Breyten Meyer was well-placed after an opening 69 Tuesday, a shot clear of reigning Jo’Burg City Masters and MENA Tour order of merit champion Craig Hinton.

Dubai-based Brazilian Tiago Lobo carded a one-over 73 to lead the amateur standings by three shots from South African Evance Vukeya (76).

The post Different day, same old story for Joy at Jo’burg City Masters appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

Had it not been for American 15-year-old Victoria Tip-Aucha’s historic appearance in Hau Hin, Thomas’ return to the MENA Tour would have undoubtedly generated the main interest ahead of the $50,000 MahaSamutr Masters at Banyan GC.

Regardless of how Tip-Aucha fares as the developmental tour’s female pioneer, Thomas’ performance will garner much attention after his growing reputation enabled the Dubai-based Indian amateur No.1 to bypass the first three events of the season for better things – the very purpose of the MENA Tour.

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American teen set for historic MENA Tour start in Thailand

Thomas created headlines when he made the cut at February’s Dubai Desert Classic and played alongside 2016 Masters champion Danny Willett in the final round. It followed a practice round tee time with Rickie Fowler in Abu Dhabi and earned the teen a late invite to the Hero Indian Open, his fourth European Tour start (after playing the Qatar Masters in 2016).

Since then Thomas has focused on the prestigious Junior Invitational at Sage Valley GC near Augusta National where a closing 68 saw him finish a credible T13 in what is widely regarded as the world’s leading junior tournament.

The invaluable U.S. experience, coupled with his emergence in Thailand last season when he finished second at the Mountain Creek Open and third at the MahaSamutr Masters, has Thomas raring for this week’s 54-holer.

“It feels good to return to golf courses where you have enjoyed some good finishes,” said Thomas who kicked on from Thailand to become the MENA Tour’s first amateur winner at his home Dubai Creek Open last September.

“I have been working very hard with my coach Justin Parsons and the good thing is that I am feeling confident about my game.”

Thomas won’t have it all his own way in Thailand, of course. Englishman Zane Scotland, a 10-time winner, is back after a back injury saw him skip last week’s Ras Al Khaimah Classic. Bahrain-based Daniel Owen will look to rebound from a disastrous final round 82 at Tower Links after leading through 36-holes with a pair of 66s.

Other notable contenders include Lee Corfield, Craig Hinton and Andrew Marshall, all multiple winners on the tour, and cricketer-turned-golfer Craig Kieswetter, who graduated from the tour’s qualifying school earlier this year.

They’ll all be mindful of Wolmer Murillo, the 36-year-old Venezuelan star who won the Mountain Creek Open by Golf Citizen by three shots and followed it up with a second-place finish in the MahaSamutr Masters a week later when the tour travelled to Thailand for the first time in 2016.

Murillo, who is attached to Banyan Golf Club, will be keen to pick up where he left off last year, but will have to contend with a 139-player field including 13 MENA Tour winners. The tournament will have a distinct Thai flavour with a strong home contingent of 25 golfers.

UAE’s Ahmed Al Musharrekh will spearhead the challenge in the MENA Division, confident of racking up some good results.

“I am working on certain aspects of my game and hope to get things dialed in sooner than later. It’s always a work in progress,”Al Musharrekh said.

The post Rayhan Thomas ready for 2017 MENA Tour bow appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

The Bahrain-based 27-year-old touring professional will take a five stroke lead into the final round of the Ras Al Khaimah Classic on Wednesday over a group of five players including three-time MENA Tour winner and European tour veteran Stephen Dodd.

Dodd (70-67) was joined by joint overnight leader Max Williams (66-71), fellow Englishmen Jordan Garnish (68-69) and Jamie Elson (71-66) and Australia’s Peter Stojanovski (68-69) at -7.

After mixing two eagles and five birdies against three bogeys in Monday’s opening round, Royal Golf Club-aligned Owen had his driver going to rattle off six birdies in a flawless six-under circuit to be -12 for the tournament.

“I have been coming here since 2011 and know the course pretty well. It suits my eye. I did miss a couple of greens, but never really got into much trouble. I gave myself good opportunities and made a few putts,” Owen said of his sizzling second round on a steamy RAK day.

Owen will be looking to kick on after racking up a string of top five finishes on the tour.

“Obviously, it’s hard to ignore where I am, but at the same time the game plan doesn’t change. I will try and make some early birdies to kind of settle the nerves and, hopefully, get the job done this time around.”

As a three-time European Tour winner Dodd, who mixed six birdies with a lone bogey on the tough 3rd hole in his second-round 67, stands as a significant threat to Owen.

The Welshman made his European Senior Tour debut at the Senior Open Championship last July and went on to win the 2016 Senior Italian Open, a feat which showed his hunger remains as keen as ever.

Elsewhere, Spain’s Francisco Perez and England’s Paul Dwyer, who were among a four-way tie for the lead overnight, left themselves with work to do after carding respective rounds of 73 and 72 to be at -6.

England’s Lee Corfield, a four-time winner on the MENA Tour, moved into a tie for 10^th on -5 after a second round 71, one ahead of Craig Hinton, the winner of the 2016 MENA Tour Order of Merit title, as experienced Andrew Marshall settled for a tied 17^th after a shooting a two-under 70.

England’s Todd Clements carded a 69 to top the amateur division on -3, four shots ahead of Switzerland’s Dubai-based Michael Harradine, who backed his opening 71 with a 74.

UAE’s Ahmed Al Musharrekh returned a second-round 75 for 36-hole total of seven-over-par 151, missing the cut, which was made at two over, by five shots. A total of 54 professionals and nine amateurs have made it to the final round.

The post Bahrain-based Englishman Daniel Owen takes five stroke lead into RAK Classic’s final round appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

Dutch teen Pierre Junior Verlaar became just the second amateur to win on the developmental Pro-Am tour when he came from three shots back to capture the Royal Golf Mohammedia Open in style at Royal Golf D’Anfa Club Tuesday.

The 18-year-old got off to a fast start in the final round with six outward nine birdies en-route to a flawless 65 to reach nine-under, 204, for the tournament and finish two shots clear of Morocco’s Ahmed Marjan and England’s Andrew Marshall.

Verlaar follows Thomas who won his home Dubai Creek Open in September while his closing 65 equalled the lowest final round by a winner, matching Joe Heraty’s (England) title-clinching effort at the 2016 Sahara Kuwait Championship.

“I am really very, very happy with the way I finished against a strong field. I think I played some amazing golf on the front nine,” said Verlaar after receiving the winner’s trophy from Fouad Akasbi, president of Royal Golf D’Anfa and Vice President of the Royal Moroccan Golf Federation.

“I may not have picked up a shot on the back nine, but played very steady. The MENA Tour is doing a great job in providing a perfect platform for amateurs likes me to compete alongside professionals which is great,” said Verlaar, who joined the tour last year.

Marshall, who started the final round five shots adrift, matched Verlaar’s 65 to surge up the leaderboard as Marjan, the only Arab winner on the MENA Tour, topped the MENA Division, one shot ahead of his compatriot Mohamed Belaroussia.

Overnight leader Lee Corfield (England) slipped to tied eighth on four under after carding a final round 73 while Zane Scotland, a 10-time winner on the tour, moved into a six-way tie for 43rd after closing with a 75 along with Danny Poulter, the elder brother of European Ryder Cup hero Ian.

Elsewhere, former England cricketer Craig Kieswetter settled for 52nd on +10 after signing for a 77 as Craig Hinton, the winner of the 2016 MENA Tour Order of Merit title, settled for tied 50th on +7, six shots ahead of India’s Rayhan Thomas, who carded a final round 79.

Thomas, for the record, carded rounds of 74-73-79 to finish 56th on 226 and has work to do ahead of the prestigious Sage Valley Junior Invitational in the U.S. in April.

The next event on the MENA Tour schedule is the Ras Al Khaimah Classic at Tower Links Golf Club from April 24-26.

The post Dutch prodigy Pierre Junior Verlaar becomes second amateur to win on the MENA Tour appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

Joy rattled off four birdies in his last six holes to fire a blemish free five-under 66 Tuesday and seize the early initiative from countrymen Lee Corfield and Jordan Loft and Sweden’s Henric Sturehed who carded 68s on a day when 20 players broke par.

Reigning MENA Tour order of merit champion Craig Hinton left himself with plenty of work to do after opening with an eight-over 79 to lie in a tie for 78th place. The Englishman dropped all the shots in his first 10 holes, including a triple-bogey on the par-3 7^th.

Of the other notables in the 137-strong field, 10-time tour winner Zane Scotland returned a 74 while fellow Englishman Danny Poulter, the elder brother of European Ryder Cup hero Ian, shot a 72. India’s Feroz Singh Garewal, who graduated via last week’s MENA Tour Q-school, fired a 71.

Joy was happy with his first day of work on the 2017 MENA Tour after the disappointment of missing an Asia Tour card earlier this year.

“I played very nicely today, solid off the tee and solid into the greens which made it a stress free day overall,” Joy said in his blog overnight.

“The course is fairly open off the tee but has some of the best greens we will see all year which makes it a fun course to play from the fairways. I tee off at 7.30am tomorrow [Morocco time] so will be taking every item of clothes I own out with me as I’m sure it’s going to be a chilly start to the day.”

Joy was paired with former England wicketkeeper-batsman Craig Kieswetter who carded a 75 in his professional debut after safely negotiating last week’s Q-School, also in Morocco.

“He is always in good spirits,” Joy said of the former cricketer. “Now that he has earned his MENA Tour card for this season, I hope he will be a regular on the tour.”

Corfield, a four-time winner on the tour, mixed eight birdies, three bogeys and a double bogey in a topsy-turvy 68 while Sturehed almost kept it clean, offsetting a bogey on the 7^th with four birdies in his last 11 holes.

“It was kind of an up-and-down round,” Corfield said. Made lots of birdies and bogeys. I may have left some shots out there, but can’t complain after opening with a 68,”

“There are plenty of scoring opportunities if you can drive the ball well off the tee and avoid bunkers. The greens are just excellent,” he said.

Dutchman Pierre Junior Verlaar carded a 72 to lead the amateur division, one shot ahead of Ayoub Saidi and two clear of Amine El Kharraz, also of Morocco.

Moroccans also made their presence felt in the MENA Division for the Shaikh Maktoum Golf Foundation Award with Mustapha El Maouas hitting the front after signing for a one-under 70 as Younes El Hassani and Faycal Serghini shared second on level par.

The post Luke Joy fires opening 66 for two stroke Casablanca Open lead appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

Moroccan professional Faycal Serghini expects the biggest bombers in the 136-strong field will have an advantage at Palmeraie Country Club but is confident the $US40,000 Casablanca Open will ultimately be decided on the greens.

Patience is often a virtue with the flat stick but Serghini believes it will be even more so this week as the Palmeraie putting surfaces are still bedding in.

“The course is fairly wide open and will definitely favour the long hitters if they can hit the fairways, but the greens will be tough to read since they are too young and tricky,” said Serghini who has played the course many times since its opening six months ago.

“You can always expect the unexpected as it will be the first professional event on this course, but I do feel players will have fun playing on this course which provides a fair test of shot-making skills.”

Serghini, who runs a golf academy in his native Casablanca, is a three-time MENA Tour runner-up but believes his game ready for the first event of the developmental tour’s season.

“Like the golf course, my game is also in great shape. I am working hard on my putting and if it clicks I can expect good scores,” he said.

The season’s first field includes 19 amateurs and players from 25 countries including defending order of merit champion Craig Hinton and fellow Englishmen Zane Scotland, Luke Joy, Andrew Marshall and Joshua White.

A notable absentee at the 6571-yard Palmeraie Country Club will be Rayhan Thomas with the Dubai amateur taking the week off after missing the cut in this week’s Hero Indian Open on the European Tour.

Thomas, who created history by becoming the first amateur to win a MENA Tour event at his home Dubai Creek Open last September, is scheduled to make his 2017 debut at next week’s Royal Golf Mohammedia Open, also in Casablanca.

The post Putting patience will be key in Casablanca says Moroccan MENA Tour star Serghini appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

The 33-year-old Swiss national team representative carded a second successive 73 at Suvarnabhumi Golf & Country Club Thursday to miss the cut in the final stage of qualifying by six shots.

Harradine’s heartache was matched by reigning MENA Tour order-of-merit champion Craig Hinton after a second round 74 saw the Englishman also fade to +2 and an inconsequential share a 193^rd place.

Middle East interest is now focused on two-time MENA Tour winner Luke Joy who snuck into the weekend on the number, -4, following a second successive 70. Joy was one of 30 players in a share of 92^nd place; the top 80 and ties made the cut.

Australian Todd Sinnot backed up his opening 64 with a seven-under 65 to remain atop the leaderboard in Thailand where the top 35 and ties earn tour cards for 2017. Sinnot was joined at -15 by countryman Richard Green following a sizzling 63 from the former Dubai Desert Classic champion, and Japan’s Junya Kameshiro.

Harradine was close to abandoning his dream of a professional career six weeks ago but found some surprising form in the first stage of qualifying, finishing equal top of his section B tournament on a different course at Suvarnabhumi.

But the short game he used to finish -22 in the first stage deserted him the past two days and left him contemplating the future.

“To be honest, I am not too sure,” said the Sharjah Golf & Shooting Club member of his next move.

“Like I said, I was set on putting away the clubs a few months ago but now I am not too sure. I would love to be able to play golf professionally and actually make a living out of it but who wouldn’t. I am going to have to have a think about it when I get back to Dubai and see. “

Harradine had been worried about an uncooperative driver heading into the final stage but it turned out to be the rock of his game.

“I only just missed two fairways yesterday which got me into way more trouble than they should have and hit every fairway today,” he said.

“The strongest part of my game last week [his short game and putting] was what I really struggled with these two rounds. My distance control was horrendous, couldn’t get any wedges close enough for an easy birdie.

“Last week it felt like I couldn’t miss a putt, instead now I felt like I had no feel whatsoever… that’s golf I guess.”

Two three putts in his first four holes Thursday was a deflating start for Harradine in a round where he knew he needed to go low.

“I slowly managed to get it back to -1 after 10 and at that point I thought that if I could get another four birdies, I might have a chance of making the cut. But I stupidly went for a pin that I shouldn’t have on 11 with a 3 iron which ended up in a double.

“That took any wind I had left out of my sails that and wasn’t able to get it back on track. I made a birdie on 15 but then three putted again on 17 to finish one over.

“I’m just very disappointed, especially after having played and putted so well last week. I can’t be anything but disappointed with that.”

Joy went to bed Thursday four shots outside of the top 35 and ties but is a positive mood after reaching the final stage of qualifying for the third time.

“I’m playing nicely so I’ve just got to be patient on the greens. I’ve just got to get stuck in,” he said.

The post Harradine’s Q-School heartache appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

The Dubai-based Swiss amateur shot a one-over par 73 in the opening round of the 72-hole finale at Suvarnabhumi Golf & Country Club for a share of 178^th place among the 222 starters.

American William Cannon (pictured above) and Australian Todd Sinnot shared the overnight lead after impressive eight under 64s. Eight players shot 65s while Australian left-hander Richard Green, whose three European Tour wins include the 1997 Dubai Desert Classic, was among eight players at -6 in a share of 11^th place.

Two-time MENA Tour winner Luke Joy battled his putter and finished with a bogey but still signed for an encouraging 70 to be T91 at -2, while fellow Englishman and reigning MENA Tour order-of-merit champion Craig Hinton carded an even par 72.

The top 35 and ties earn Asian Tour cards for 2017 but Harradine and co must first make the 36-hole cut, set at 80 players and ties. There were 90 players at -3 or better after the opening round Wednesday which means the 33-year-old Swiss needs a birdie fest Thursday to keep his pro dream alive.

Starting on the 10^th, Harradine started his fifth attempt at Asian Tour qualifying with a bogey before dropping to three over with a double on 13. The Sharjah Golf & Shooting Club member fought back with birdies on the 1^st and 6^th and will draw positives from the first stage of qualifying on a different course at the same club where he finished -22.

“I’m obviously pretty disappointed,” said Harradine. “Basically from tee to green I hit it quite well. I only hit two bad drives which weren’t that much off line but both managed to get me into a lot of trouble.

“Unfortunately the putter was very, very cold today. A complete contrast to last week. I didn’t hole one putt outside 10 feet. Nothing wanted to go in.”

Luke Joy in action during the 2015 Asian Tour School – Getty Images

Joy, who has reached the final stage of qualifying for the third time, this year via a MENA Tour exemption, was frustrated with his flat stick early and a wet bogey late but still sleep soundly on his 70.

“I played really nicely today but didn’t hole my fair share of putts. Lots of lip outs on the front nine and then very solid on the back but unfortunately found the water with my second on the par 5 last,” Joy told Golf Digest Middle East.

“That led to a six unfortunately but the game is feeling good, it just feels like a little bit of first day back at the office. The course is wet and playing rather soft.”

The post UPDATED: Harradine left with much Q-School work to do appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.