Jake Martinez, an 11-year-old from Tucson, made two holes-in-one on Saturday at the Palm Springs Open, a U.S. Kids Golf tournament. According to the National Hole In One Registry, the chances of that happening are 1 in 67 million.

It was the first round of the two-round tournament at Weston Mission Hills, and Martinez hadn’t started off with his best stuff. He double-bogeyed the first and the third holes. Standing on the fifth tee, he had 95 yards to the pin. He turned to his caddie.

“My dad said, ‘Hey, let’s hit a pitching wedge,’” Martinez recounted in a post-round interview, which was eloquent enough to sound like it came out of a tour event instead of a U.S. Kids tournament.

“It takes one hop, and it went in,” the young lefty said. “We’re all shocked.”

 

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Martinez continued on and came to the par-3 12th hole.

“It’s 100 yards, so I hit pitching wedge again,” Martinez said. “My dad says the exact same thing, aim left, try to draw it in there. It does the same exact thing as the last one, it hits and then it drops. We were all just in awe.”

He finished with a 74.

“I just want to get more tomorrow,” Martinez said, laughing.

Unfortunately, there weren’t any more holes-in-one for Martinez during the second round. He finished with a 76 on Day 2, ultimately securing 14th place in the tournament.

Sure, getting the win would’ve been nice. But checking off your first—and then second—holes-in-one is a nice consolation.

The post 11-year-old does the near impossible: Makes two holes-in-one in one U.S. Kids tournament round appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

If you haven’t played for very long, the golf swing can seem like an impossibly complicated motion. There’s definitely a learning curve, but you can give yourself a much better chance at success by following a few simple concepts. Instead of trying to remember five or six different mechanical tips—keep your head down!—relax and try to let the club do the work.

What You Need To Know

• Trace a consistent path back and forth with the club with relaxed hands and arms and let the loft built into the club make the ball go airborne.

• When you add tension to your body—either out of stress or because you’re trying to hit it really hard—you throw off the natural rhythm of the swing.

• Solid contact in the middle of the face is better than off-centre contact with a faster swing.

The post WATCH: How To Hit The Ball appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

On Monday night, Ian Poulter shared a video of his son, Luke, converting the short birdie look on his final hole of the second round at the Dye Junior Invitational. But it wasn’t the putt itself that attracted attention, rather what happened immediately before.

As Poulter writes, the “bizarre birdie” came after Luke managed to dislocate his left kneecap reacting to his eagle putt lipping out. This caused a delay in play as paramedics were called to reposition and wrap his knee. Luke eventually holed the putt before hobbling off the ninth green at Crooked Stick. Have a look:

 

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As Poulter noted, Luke was eight over through his first nine holes before going seven-under over his next 27 holes to get within two shots of the lead entering the final round. But his status for Tuesday is uncertain.

“Not sure right now if by icing and compression will allow him to compete tomorrow in the last round,” Poulter wrote.

What is for sure, though, is that both father and son will remember that birdie for a long time.

The post Ian Poulter’s son dislocates knee during junior tournament, manages to make bizarre birdie appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

Just ask the happy, 30-strong intake who recently completed a 10-week course at The Leadbetter Golf Academy Dubai at JA The Resort Golf Course under the tutelage of Yasin Ali.

As a former Asian and European Tour player and fully accredited Leadbetter Professional, Ali brings a unique blend of top-flight knowledge and junior coaching best practice to the Leadbetter Kids Programme.

The great news for aspiring UAE juniors is that Ali is set to deliver two new programmes: a 5-day “Kids Christmas Camp” from December 13-17 and another 10-week “Leadbetter Kids” Programme from January 8-9.

“The Leadbetter Kids Program we deliver at JA The Resort was devised by David himself to promote fun, high energy learning with a keen focus on team spirit, camaraderie, and etiquette,” said Stuart McMurdo, the Jebel Ali resort’s Director of Golf.

“The kids engage and play fun games to subconsciously learn the key golf fundamentals to build a solid skill base, whilst learning the finer points of the game.”

Registrations are now being taken for the two new Leadbetter Golf Academy programmes HERE!

The five-day Christmas Camp costs AED 650 per child while the Leadbetter Kids Programme cost is split: AED 1100 for 10x one hour sessions for level 1 and 2 players and AED 1500 per term for level 3 and 4 players who participate in 90-minute sessions each week.

Check out a sample of what’s on offer in this fun video:

Leadbetter has coached some of the game’s biggest names – Sir Nick Faldo, Ernie Els, Nick Price, Lydia Ko and Michelle Wie among them – but is especially passionate nowadays about junior development.

The Leadbetter Golf Academy Dubai is the first academy in the Middle East to offer a holistic approach to premier golf instruction. At the junior level, kids learn physical, mental and social skills through combined activity stations of golf fundamentals, basic language skills, and other life skills training in a fun and safe environment.

“Leadbetter Kids Golf aims to develop healthy, self-motivated children with the skills necessary to become future champions in golf and in life.”

For more information and to sign up, email: golf.teetimes@jaresorts.com or phone 04 814 5023 or click here.

The post Registration open for Leadbetter Kids ‘Christmas Camp’ and next 10-week junior programme appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

What makes this intriguing is that Florida is a hub of golf in the United States. It boasts more courses (1,200-plus) than any other state. An hour or so up the coast from Crandon is the nexus of the PGA Tour universe, the Jupiter/Palm Beach area, with Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy, Brooks Koepka, Rickie Fowler and Justin Thomas, et. al, calling it home. It takes something particularly unusual to cause folks to watch another golfer hit balls.

Did we mention that Monssoh is 8 years old? Yes, 8.

All of 4 feet, 5 inches tall and weighing 70 pounds, Monssoh has a lower-body move that generates enough speed to produce drives that carry 175 yards. To put that in perspective, most similarly adept kids his age and size hit drives closer to 160 yards. But it’s not just his rhythmic action or the surprising length that impresses. The little whiz kid has an uncanny ability to work the ball in either direction on command while also having deft short-game skills to get up-and-down with the frequency of kids much older.

“I’ve watched tons of juniors and you can see early on the ones who have a gift for swinging the golf club,” says noted instructor Jim McLean, who gave Monssoh a lesson two years ago and still sees him on occasion. “Some people are just more talented and have better athletic skills. He likes to practice, too.”

 

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He’s also had competitive success.

At last summer’s U.S. Kids Golf World Championship at Pinehurst, N.C., Monssoh won the boys’ 7-year-old tournament with a three-day 27-hole total of seven-under 101 at Mid Pines Inn and Golf Club. To put that in context, European Tour player Sam Horsfield posted a 104 when he finished sixth in the same event in 2004 and current PGA Tour Latinoamerica player and former LSU standout Luis Gagne shot a 105 for a T-7 finish in 2005.

In his opening round, Monssoh made seven birdies in nine holes to shoot 29—the lowest nine-hole score in the 20-year history of the event—and his closest competitor for the week finished three strokes back. Monssoh was one of just two players to end the week under par. This year, before the coronavirus shut down most competitive play, Monssoh had won the U.S. Kids Copperhead Classic at Innisbrook Resort’s North Course, the U.S. Kids Desert Shootout at Wigwam Resort in Phoenix (where he shot 31-34 to coast to a seven-stroke victory) and the Junior Honda Classic on PGA National’s Fazio Course.

Records in junior events—particularly in such a young age group—can be dubious and are hardly a predictor for future success. The competition is thin, physical development has yet to take hold, and the road to stardom is rife with pitfalls, everything from pushy parents to injury to simply losing interest among the many obstacles. But there are elements about Monssoh that stand out, from his game, to his ebullient personality and practice habits, to his background.

“He’s special,” McLean says.

Courtesy of the Monssoh FamilyAxel (second from right) celebrates with his family after winning at the U.S. Kids world title

Marie Arnoux, 44, and Florent Monssoh, 58, met a dozen years ago at Golf de Saint Cloud in Paris, where they bonded over the game, fell in love and got married. Florent, who is black and is a native of the Ivory Coast in Africa but moved to the City of Lights when he was just a child, wasn’t the golfer of the two. Marie is from a family of talented players, and in 2009 won the French Mid-Amateur.

Shortly after that, Marie and Florent, the founder of multiple companies in the healthcare IT industry, emigrated to the United States, settling in buzzy Miami Beach and later the leafy and more family-friendly Coconut Grove once they had their first child. They wanted a strong name that was easy to pronounce in French and English, and they liked the meaning of Axel—father of peace. A few years later, they had a second son and for the same reasons named him Victor.

By the time Axel was a toddler, he had a club in his hands, first a plastic one and then a real one, designed for kids. “He was very natural at first,” Marie says. “I didn’t teach him a lot. He also watched a lot of golf on TV. His dad was taking him to the golf course a lot, just to be there, be around it and have a club and a ball in his hands. By 2½ years old, he was using real clubs and chipping and putting on the course. It went gradually from there.”

At 5, Axel played in his first tournament, a parent-son event. He was hooked.

“Right after he turned 4 his dad brought him out to [Crandon Park], but he could already hit the ball,” says Zach Newell, Monssoh’s coach. “He already had knowledge of the game that 8- and 9-year-olds have.”

To the point, when asked what his favorite course is, Axel blurts out, without hesitation: “Pinehurst!” Then he expounds. “It’s always fun to play there because of the greens,” he says. “I don’t like golf courses that are always flat.” He adds that he doesn’t like them easy, either, which explains why the background for his Zoom interview for this story is the 12th hole at Augusta National. Like a lot of kids, he plays other sports, including tennis, soccer, basketball and swimming, but golf is the one he is most gifted at.

“The first time I played with him he was 5 years old and we played a half-dozen holes,” Newell says. “I brought him back to his mom and told her that he’s got something I’ve never seen before.”

• • •

Such praise can, of course, be overblown, if not precarious. Youth sports is fraught with unrealistic expectations and domineering parents. Even at an older age, unpredictability still looms—according to the NCAA, out of the 141,000 boys who participate in high school golf only 8,500 of them go on to play in college. The numbers only shrink the higher you go.

There are the prodigies that do pan out, however.

Justin Thomas grew up in Kentucky, the son of a golf professional, and by age 5 it was obvious he was doing things kids his age normally aren’t capable of, according to Mike Thomas, Justin’s father and coach. Still, he and his wife Jani proceeded cautiously, even as their only son became the third-youngest player to make the cut in a PGA Tour event as a 16-year-old and went on to have a standout collegiate career at the University of Alabama.

“I had no shortage of people telling me, Here’s what’s gonna happen,” Mike Thomas said. “I’m like, Really? You have no idea what’s gonna happen. ”

Of course, it worked out. Now 26, Justin Thomas is one of the biggest stars of the sport, with a dozen career victories on the PGA Tour, including a major, and has been No. 1 in the world. Not that his dad, who coached him since the beginning, ever told him that’s where he was headed.

“I knew he was way ahead of his time, but we continued to keep things fun and see where it went,” Mike Thomas said. “If you asked Justin when he was 10, he’d say, ‘I’m gonna play on tour.’ As parents, we never discouraged that, but we never talked about it, either.”

Instead, they let events play out on their own.

When Justin was 8, he didn’t have the power, even at a relative level, to dominate. He was too scrawny and couldn’t reach most par 4s in two, resulting in scores around 40 when playing from the forward tees. Playing layouts adjusted for kids his age and size, though, he broke out, regularly shooting four and five under. That boosted Thomas’ confidence, he continued to develop physically, and his game progressed, eventually leading to a stellar amateur career.

But his dad acted cautiously and was mindful not to overdo things, particularly early on.

“I have a lot of kids show up that are not often as good as the parents think they are,” Mike Thomas said. “It’s natural. Every parent thinks that way. But I look real close at the relationship the kids have with their parents. I’ve seen more than one damaging parent.”

In that area, Axel and Victor, (who at 4, according to Newell, is further along with his game than Axel was at the same age), seem to be doing just fine. Although Axel has his own website, Instagram and Facebook accounts, when it comes to golf, at least, it’s not the parents who are doing the piloting. It’s the other way around.

“Their parents aren’t hovering over their shoulder,” Newell says. “It’s almost the opposite from what we usually see in junior golf. The kids show up after school and their parents have to drag them away at sunset. I’m not asking them to listen or pay attention when I’m teaching them. Sometimes, I’m asking them to take a break.”

Courtesy of Monssoh FamilyAxel (far right), practices beside his younger brother, Victor.

One case in point was a recent lag-putting session. Every drill Newell presented, Axel routinely rolled his ball to within two feet of the hole. On it went for two hours, at Axel’s insistence. Then there are the chipping and pitching drills when Newell has each of the boys hitting different distances and using varying trajectories. Even after Axel completes the drills, he wants to keep going.

“When Axel has a weekend off, he’s like Why do I have a weekend off? ” Newell says.

With Victor showing similar potential to that of his older brother, the sibling rivalry only pushes each of them further. And their enthusiasm hasn’t waned, even during the pandemic and with golf courses in the area shut down.

“We practice chipping and putting,” says Axel, who is an A-student in his second-grade class, dabbles in chess and piano and goes to Kumon, a structured, self-learning math and reading program that focuses getting kids to think critically and learn new material independently.

There’s also an infectious attitude when it comes to the stars he sees on television and aspires to be like. Axel has little trouble rattling off his favourite players and his face lights up when doing so: “Tiger, JT, Rory and Rickie.” Then he expounds about a recent trip to the Honda Classic, where he also thought it was “cool” to see Jhonny Vegas, Ryan Moore and Sungjae Im, before adding that he, too, hopes to be on Tour one day.

“Something inside him drives him,” Newell says of Axel. “He outworks everyone around him.”

The same was often said of Axel’s favourite player—Tiger Woods—during his prime. Axel got to meet Woods during a U.S. Kids tournament earlier this year at Club Med’s Sandpiper Bay Golf Course in Port St. Lucie. The two crossed paths in the parking lot and Woods, who was there to coach and caddie for his own son, Charlie, gave Axel a high-five.

“That was a special day,” Axel’s mom says.

A lot more figure to be ahead.

The post Florida golfer Axel Monssoh gets raves for his skill, work ethic and attitude. Did we mention he’s only 8? appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

Reigning boys’ green jacket holder Mousa Shana’ah kicked on from where he left off at the season opener at Yas Links – and last season – with a stunning 68 at the Jebel Ali 9-holer. The two-under-par round is a junior course record and helped the 12-year-old (12!) Jordanian up-and-comer to an eight-stroke victory over British 15-year-old Thomas Taylor-Cross. Third in the boys’ event was another Brit, Josh Bibby, whose seven-over 77 was a shot shy of Taylor-Cross.

UAE national team player capped a memorable day for the boys when he scored his first hole-in-one on Jebel Ali’s tricky par-3 8th.

Abdulla Kalbat is rewarded for his hole-in-one on Jebel Ali’s tricky 8th hole.

Kate Bibby backed up her season-opening victory in Yas Links with a two-over-par 72 to again win the girls’ title, this time by four strokes over Indian player Eshna Bhargava. Third place went to the British player Lili Brecken with an 84.

RELATED: Bibby off to brilliant start on Junior Masters Open Tour

Shana’ah easily won the boys’ net prize from Diego Ojeda and third-placed Savansh Chopra. The girls net division went to last season’s green jacket recipient Siti Latifahin ahead of Belgium’s Sien Demelker and Bibby.

The main champions at JA The Resort Golf Course including girls champion Kate Bibby (left) and Mousa Shana’ah (second from right).

The four on-course prizes went to:

– Hole in one: Abdulla Kalbat (UAE)
– Nearest the pin: Jay Pangarkar (India)
– Longest drive for boys: Josh Bibby (UK)
– Longest drive for girls: Kate Bibby (UK)

The Junior Masters Open Tour offers players aged for eight to 19 years old the lure of Global Junior Golf Rankings (GJGR) and Junior Golf Score Board ranking points. It has expanded in its second season with new events in Egypt and Oman.

“It was a great tournament at JA The Resort Golf Course as we see everything you could wish to see in a golf tournament,” said Abedallah Shana’ah , Managing Director of Golf Events Management, owners of the Junior Masters Open Tour.

“The results are amazing and the competition is high between all the players. I am so happy to see a hole in one this season. Our juniors are playing very good golf and I am sure that they will reach to the best position in the ranking globally in a short period. 

RELATED: The Junior Masters Open Tour’s green jacket goals

“We are so proud of all the players and we are happy to see that in each tournament we have more players from different countries which show that the tour give the players what they required, and we will keep encouraging them to reach to the best places over their peers from around the world.

“We are also so proud that we are the first we establish a  tour with the global ranking in the Middle East and also the first we establish the same in Africa, and we add some tournament in Oman as the first round will begin in January, and we will keep developing the tour to be one of the best and biggest junior tours not in the region only but in the world.”

Abu Dhabi Golf Club will host the third round of the 2019-2020 season on November 30.

Winners were grinners at JA The Resort Golf Course.

The post Mousa Shana’ah, just 12, fires 68 to star in latest Junior Masters Open Tour event appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

The 16-year-old left-hander from Wake Forest, N.C., wound up hanging on to win by one stroke over Frankie Capan in what has become on of the premier boys’ tournaments in the country. This despite a final-round 76 that included bogeys on his final three holes. Lucky for Bhatia, he had built a four-stroke lead so the late stumbles.

“I told myself all day that I’m still in control of this golf tournament no matter how many bogeys I made,” said Bhatia, who started the day up by four strokes on his nearest competitor. “That’s how you have to think about this. Any time you’re leading like this on this big of a stage, it’s hard to keep it going. I’m definitely proud of myself.”

He also probably feels a bit relieved after what happened during Thursday’s opening round. Bhatia had made birdies on two of his first three holes when he was playing the par-5 fourth. Standing over his third shot, the high school sophomore did what he’s accustom to in many junior and amateur tournaments and pulled out his rangefinder to lock in the precise yardage for his approach (turned out he was 40 yards away). However, the tournament stipulated that distance measuring devices were not permitted.

Montana Pritchard/PGA of America

Bhatia realised his rangefinder mishap quickly (“It’s my fault. I should have taken it out of my bag [before the round],” he told Golfweek.), but was assessed a penalty for his mental mistake. It turned out to be his double-bogey 7 on the hole was his only blemish of the day as he posted a four-under 68 (with three birdies on his final four holes) to grab a share of the lead.

Last August, Bhatia impressed when he broke the PGA of America scoring record with his 22-under total to claim the Junior PGA title. This offseason, the lanky teenager has bumped his swing speed from 101 mph to 115, in part due to work with new instructor Chase Duncan.

Bhatia’s future is bright if a bit uncertain. He has yet to commit to the notion of going to college, and has played in a handful of PGA Tour Monday qualifiers. He’s playing in a pre-qualifier next week for the Wells Fargo Championship in Charlotte in hopes of potentially get into the Monday qualifier.

Ed’s note: Dubai-based Indian amateur No.1 Rayhan Thomas, 13th last year, battled an un-cooperative driver as he finished 34th at Sage Valley. The Dubai Creek member carded rounds of 78-81-73 to finish +16, 18 shots adrift of Bhatia.

The post Rising junior gets penalty for rangefinder mishap, hangs on to win prestigious title appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

The Ajman schoolgirls enjoyed an introduction to the royal and ancient game at Al Zorah Golf Club as part of a programme that will see more than 400 students exposed to the game over the next month in conjunction with the UAE Ministry of Education (MoE).

Ajman’s Nicklaus-designed course as well as Ras Al Khaimah clubs Al Hamra and Tower Links will host 50 children a week from six MoE schools in a push designed to identify and develop young Emirati golfers while “building good character through the structure of rules from the game of golf”.

The lure for participants are spots in the EGF’s National Junior Development Program with “more competitive” UAE national teams the ultimate goal for the sport’s national governing body.

“Our relationships with the northern golf clubs and the Ministry of Education has been a focus for the National Junior Development Program over the past six months as the EGF feels that our National database is stronger in these areas,” said Khalid Mubarak Al Shamsi, the EGF’s Secretary General.

“Over next four weeks, these golf clubs will be introducing the game of golf to over 400 students. In return we will expect to get a handful of these students to start taking up golf as their everyday sport.”

Students will be transported to the club nearest their school uring their normal Physical Education classes.

“Instead of playing the same sports [Football, Basketball, Rugby] the students will have the opportunity to try and play golf at the golf club,” Al Shamsi said.

John Frost, Lead PE Trainer for the MoE, welcomed the programme.

“It’s wonderful to see local children being introduced to the game of golf who may not necessarily have had the provision or opportunity to do so before. This project in conjunction with the EGF has already developed their skill set and confidence in the game.

“For some, this could be their first step on a pathway to excellence, and for others, we hope that it will instil a passion for lifelong learning in physical activity.”

To find more information about the EGF’s National Junior Development Program email info@egfgolf.com or visit egfgolf.com.

The post ‘More competitive’ UAE national teams ultimate goal of EGF’s junior push in Northern Emirates appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

In a great grow the game initiative by the title sponsor, the top performing juniors in the Emirates Golf Federation’s Order of Merit series will contest a ‘Junior Luckiest Ball on Earth Grand Final’ on October 28, incidentally on the Fire course at Jumeirah Golf Estates. The winner will then join the two traditional adult ‘Luckiest Ball on Earth’ winners in a DP World Tour Championship Pro-Am fourball on Earth – in the company of one of the European Tour’s top-60 players.

The Pro-Am is scheduled for November 13, the Tuesday before the 10th DP World Tour Championship from Nov. 15-18. The chance to tee it up with the likes of Rory McIlroy, Tommy Fleetwood and reigning champion Jon Rahm is certainly a great excuse to play hookie from school for the day.

The junior grand finalists will be be made up of the top 10 players from each of the boys and girls gross and net order of merit standings (40 players in total) following the Al Ain Junior Open on April 28.

“The Luckiest Ball on Earth grows bigger and better every year and we are thrilled to be giving junior golfers in the UAE an opportunity to play with some of their heroes,” said Nick Tarratt, Director European Tour International, Dubai Office. “We wish all the competitors the very best of luck as they aim to secure a spot in the DP World Tour Championship Pro-Am and send our thanks and appreciation to the clubs and the EGF for continuing to support this amazing initiative.”

Details of the adult series are to be released soon.

The post UAE juniors given shot at DP World Tour Championship Pro-Am spot in ‘Junior Luckiest Ball on Earth’ initiative appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Kent Gray
Al Ain might be the home of the Faldo Series’ Middle East Championship but you can bet there will be a gaggle of proud Jumeirah Golf Estates members following Thursday’s final round action 150km away in Dubai, not to mention three very interested Butch Harmon School of Golf instructors in nearby Dubai Sports City.

That’s because JGE clubmates Josh Hill, Arjun Gupta and Toby Bishop are locked in a fascinating battle for not only the U-16 title but the overall crown at Al Ain Equestrian, Shooting & Golf Club in the first event of the 22nd season of Sir Nick Faldo’s global junior series.

A day after shooting 69 on his 14th birthday, +3 handicapper Hill signed for a best of the week 65 Wednesday to move to -6 for the championship. The Englishman will take a two-stroke advantage into the final round over Bishop (Wales) and Gupta (India) who fired 66s in the second round of the 54-hole event.

Hill plays one of his 65 strokes at AESGC in the second round.

Denmark’s Mikkel Mathieson, the overnight co-leader with Hill, is fourth on even par after a one-over 71 but leads the U-18 division by four strokes over Italian Sasha Sparacino.

Hill’s prowess has come to the fore in recent weeks after his Emirates Golf Federation Open men’s heroics at Trump International Golf Club Dubai and a runner-up finish at the Faldo Series Asian Grand Final in Vietnam.

Related: Josh Hill, just 13, fires Trump course record en-route to third successive EGF title

Gupta, playing off a +1 handicap, is another rising star. In fact, he was part of the “Constellation Clinic” during January’s Omega Dubai Desert Classic where he received a lesson (and a shiny new set of TaylorMade clubs) from Rory McIlroy and rubbed shoulders with boy band golfer Niall Horan and golf’s social media queen Paige Spiranac.

Related: 7 takeaways from the Desert Swing

Getty Images
Rory McIlroy watches Gupta during the Constellation Clinic.

Gupta is coached by Justin Parsons. The Butch Harmon School of Golf Director of Golf, currently in Texas working with PGA Tour rookie Peter Uihlein at the Houston Open, speaks highly of the young Indian lad, indeed all three front-runners; Bishop (+ 0.9 handicap) and Hill are coached by Parson’s BHSG Dubai colleagues Jamie McConnell and Joe Marshall respectively.

“We’ve worked with young Arjan at the golf school for three or four years now, an incredibly talented young player,” said Parsons.

Arjun Gupta’s sister Natalii is in contention in the under-16 girls division. Some family!

“He works at the golf school most days. I’ve been personally working with him coming up two years now and he shows an awful lot of promise and potential. We’ve got a great crop there with obviously Josh Hill, Spencer Goodin and young Toby Bishop. There’s Krishiv Tekchandani too who is one of the lads in our high school programme. We’re excited about all those young lads.”

Toby Bishop

Elsewhere, a second round 73 sees India’s Arkesh Bhatia lead the U-21 men’s division with a +7 aggregate, three shots clear of UAE national team player Abdullah Al Qubaisi who slipped with a Wednesday 76.

A single shot separates England’s Billie-Jo Smit (74-73) and Kenyan Kellie Gachaga (74-74) in the U-21 girls championship while South Korean Hyeonji Kang (73-73) takes a three shot buffer into the final round of the U-16 girls division over Natalii Gupta (76-74), Arjun’s sister.

The post JGE teen trio Hill, Gupta and Bishop set up epic Faldo Series finale at Al Ain appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.