By Joel Beall
After two months of closure, the Home of Golf is back.

In a letter to its membership, the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews announced it is re-opening four of its links on May 29. All courses in Scotland have been closed due to the coronavirus pandemic since March 23.

The Old Course, New Course, Eden and Balgove will be in the first wave of openings, with the Eden turned into two separate nine-hole layouts to encourage nine-hole rounds. The Jubilee, Strathtyrum and Castle will not open at this stage but “will re-open in a phased manner in the future. The St Andrews Links will advise 2 days before these courses open,” according to Ford Horsfield, head of golf services.

It will not be business as usual. The letter states that “at this time all courses are available for Yearly Ticket holders only.” Tee times will be made in 12-minute intervals with two golfers per tee time.

There will also be no walk-ups, so if necessary there is a track and trace record of who is on the links.

Last week Scottish Golf confirmed that May 29 would be the earliest return date for Scottish courses. However, a number of courses, especially those in Edinburgh, are targeting June 8 for re-opening.

As of May 26, there are over 15,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Scotland, according to the NHS Board.

The post Old Course at St. Andrews announces re-opening date appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Kent Gray
Dubai-domiciled Indian international Rayhan Thomas has made an impressive – albeit topsy-turvy – start to his European summer campaign, firing himself into early contention at the prestigious St Andrews Links Trophy in Scotland.

The 18-year-old world amateur No. 28 signed for a two-under 69 on the New Course at the home of golf on Friday to share seventh place nearing the completion of the first round of the 72-hole strokeplay event.

Thomas was just two shots off the clubhouse lead set by England’s Olly Huggins after the Frilford Heath G.C. player also took advantage of the relatively benign conditions to card a four-under 67. Reigning MENA Tour amateur champion Todd Clements (ENG) opened with a 73.

Things could have been so much better for Thomas with the MENA Tour history-maker mixing an eagle and four birdies with four bogeys in his opening round.

“I hit the ball solid, just missed a couple of putts on the back nine but the worst I could have shot was two under today so I’m looking forward to tomorrow,” Thomas told GolfDigestME.com ahead of Saturday’s second round on the famed Old Course.

“I think the Old Course is a little tougher than the New Course but there are birdie opportunities, there’s a score out there so I can’t wait to get stuck in.”

Since its inception in 1989, the St Andrews Links Trophy has attracted the world’s leading amateurs, many of whom have gone on to enjoy success on the PGA and European Tours, notably Ernie Els, Lee Westwood, Trevor Immelman, Geoff Ogilvy, Padraig Harrington, Justin Rose and Rory McIlroy.

It is Thomas’ first time playing St Andrews and he’s clearly savouring the scared atmosphere plus the lofty position in the 144-strong field made up of scratch handicappers or better.

“It’s playing very fiery and very fast so it’s a new challenge but I love links golf, love St Andrews so it’s a good start. The preps gone well, I’ve been working on my bump and run, trying to keep everything low but the whether has actually been pretty good this week and today was really calm with just light winds.

“Light winds for St Andrews is a windy day in Dubai but it was a good day today.”

Thomas’ UK summer will also see him contest the 123rd Amateur Championship at Royal Aberdeen and Murcar Links from June 18-23. He cruelly missed the cut for the matchplay phase of the British amateur by a stroke last year but it did spur him to a historic semifinal showing at the 70th U.S. Junior Amateur.

Related content: Thomas thrilled by India call-up for 18th Asian Games

The post Thomas itching for Old Course bow after fine start to St Andrews Links Trophy appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

Entering to win is simple. Just fill in your details and answer the question below. We’ll draw the winner at random on 25th January 2017. Good luck!

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Photo by Farooq Salik

The post WIN a round of golf at The Trump International Golf Club Dubai appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

Story by Robbie Greenfield

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even long years have passed since an 18-hole golf course opened in Dubai, but its newest addition will turn the clock back much farther than that when it opens for play in just a few months time. With its crumpled fairways, swathes of native grasses, generous open spaces and flowing teeing grounds, the Trump International Golf Club Dubai exhibits many of the same characteristics as an ancient Scottish links.

It also has plenty in common with another recent Gil Hanse creation that made full use of undulating ground and was met with rave reviews – the Rio Olympic Golf Course. It’s a style that can best be described as modern-classic, and refreshingly, the club have not rushed their opening date. These exclusive pictures show a course that not only has the style of a classic, but the appearance too.

HOLE 17 | PAR 3 | 156 YARDS

The short par 3 17th hole will be one of the highlights of a round at the Trump International Golf Club Dubai. Says director of golf operations, Craig Waddell: “Holes like Troon’s Postage Stamp and the 12th at Augusta National prove you don’t need excessive length to make a challenging par 3, and this golfing truth is evident on the 17th here. This short hole will place a premium on your accuracy with a mid-to-short iron. From an elevated tee, a large expanse of native ground contrasts beautifully with the well-protected green, offering an enticing but nonetheless intimidating target.

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HOLE 5 | PAR 3 | 224 YARDS
The linksy terrain of the Trump International Golf Club Dubai is evident once more on the par 3 fifth hole, which offers players plenty of room to bail out to the right, but a stiff penalty for those who attack the flag and overdo it. “The fifth is a fantastically challenging par 3 and with the residential development as a backdrop it gives the sense of a stadium feeling to this part of the course,” says Waddell. “The tournament pin position will definitely be tight left, with any player short-siding themselves faced with a very difficult up-and-down.”

HOLE 1 | PAR 4 | 439 YARDS (left) – HOLE 8 | PAR 4 | 343 YARDS (right)
A view looking back down the first hole (left) to the clubhouse, with the green complex on the eighth hole pictured right. Gil Hanse has designed a course with generous, open playing areas, but the undulating ground will provide a links-like challenge. Hanse says of the opening hole: “An ample fairway, flanked by beautiful palms, narrows toward the green into a tightly mowed approach. The shorter tif-grand bermuda grass approaches found property-wide promote ground-game play and provide an added level of shot creativity.”

The par 4 eighth hole is a short hole but one that can easily catch you out. “This par 4 has the most distinct elevation change on the property and players need to navigate an impressive bunker on the left and a potential blind second shot into a well guarded green,” says Hanse.

HOLE 9 | PAR 5 | 561 YARDS

“The ninth offers a huge wide fairway shared with the first that is reminiscent of the opening drive at the Old Course at St Andrews, but any false sense of security can quickly evaporate,” says Waddell. “Water hugs the right side and a large sand barranca stretches all the way along the left. Birdies are definitely there to be had, but no golfer, no matter how skilled, will complain with a par.”

Golf Digest Middle East: FIRST TAKE

nderstatement is perhaps not what you would expect to see in a golfing creation borne from the fusion of brand Dubai with Donald Trump. But whatever your opinion of Trump as a celebrity, businessman and presidential candidate, the tycoon-turned-politician’s growing international golfing empire is inarguably impressive.

The Trump International Golf Links in Aberdeen is generally regarded as one of the best links courses in Scotland, and his company’s reworking of Turnberry’s classic Ailsa course has been hailed as a brilliant upgrade. In the soft-spoken architect Gil Hanse, Trump has the perfect foil, a man at the very top of his profession who is happy to let the quality of his courses speak for themselves.

Any judgments on a course that is yet to open must be made with plenty of scope for future improvement in mind, but what is eye-catching about the Trump International Golf Club Dubai (located within the AKOYA by DAMAC development) is just how ready it is. The course has actually been playable for the best part of a year, and as it prepares to make its bow in the golf market, this maturity is certain to pay off. After waiting seven years for a new course to open in Dubai, golfers will have a finished product to look forward to.

The Trump International Golf Links in Scotland has built a reputation as one of the best links courses in the world

Stylistically, the layout has many links-like characteristics without of course being a genuine links. It’s a progressive design, too. Hanse is clearly mindful of the fact that for a recent period of golf course development, designers obsessed over difficulty while forgetting what features make the game fun to play. The Trump International Golf Club Dubai has generous open spaces, but plenty of nuances too. It’s a modern course with a traditional feel. In the golfing ballot box, this one gets our vote.

For more information, visit trumpgolfdubai.com

The post Exclusive First Look: Trump International Golf Club Dubai appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

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It may have hosted a top European Tour event for nearly 20 years now, but the growth of golf in Qatar has effectively been dormant for the duration of this time.

That is set to change in a big way this year however, as the Qatar International Golf Club facility (with its Pearl Coaching Programme featuring SNAG Golf already in full swing) is well on schedule to open for play in early 2017.

Golf Digest Middle East travelled to Qatar to check out the progress of the course and meet with its famous designer, José María Olazábal, an accomplished architect as well as one of the game’s legends, and a man who prides himself on leaving a legacy – and not just a signature – on the design projects he undertakes.

We arrived to find Qatar not just rising from its golfing slumber, but positioning itself at vanguard of the game’s future. Not only is the QIGC a globally unique concept, but how many other courses under construction have invited a large group of school kids already signed to their junior programme to help a two-time Masters champion seed the greens?

Energised by the welcoming committee, Olazábal strode the immaculate turf of the 13th fairway, stopping to offer chipping advice to youngsters and encouraging a group of other kids and parents to help him evenly disperse the sprigs of paspallum grass across the newly shaped putting surface.

Jose Maria Olazabal shares the secrets of his famed short game with one of the Peal Programme’s juniors

Even in this constructional phase, it is clear that when open, the Qatar International Golf Club will be a very high calibre proposition. The turf is already among the finest we have seen in the region. Paspallum has always been the ecologically preferred choice, but scientific improvements now mean it’s no longer a compromise as a playing surface.

Located in Education City and comprising of an academy, a state-of-the-art practice area, par 3 course, unique six-hole course and the championship course itself, the QIGC promises to provide a worthy home for every level of player, and bring many more new recruits into the game on a local level.

With his impromptu lesson on golf course construction complete, we had the chance to sit down with Olazábal and find out more about the project.

FEATURED: 2016 Top 10 Golf Courses in the Middle East

What we are doing here in Qatar is unique on a global level

This is no ordinary golf course project, is it? how have you found your experience here in Qatar so far?
JMO: It’s been interesting. Obviously it has taken a little bit of time, but the progress has been good, especially over the last few months. The grass has taken really well on the back nine. We’ve already started seeding the greens, and in that regard it has been remarkable to see things start coming together. To hear that 2,000 kids have already signed on for the golf, I’m extremely happy with how the Pearl Programme is taking shape.

The idea of the golf course here in Education City was to incorporate the entire journey, from the very beginning when you start with your first lesson, to the chipping area, to the par three course and the six-hole golf course and finally onto the championship course. On top of that, we’ve taken it a step farther by going to the schools and bringing the game to more people. Our goal is to reach 4,000 kids by the time the club opens. We are bringing professionals to teach those kids the basics of golf, and I’ve heard that some of the schools have taken golf into their own programs, which is a huge step, considering that there are less than 100 active Qatari golfers.

The Qatar International Golf Club is the two-time Masters champion’s first design project in the Middle East

Have you ever come across a golf project like this one?
To the best of my knowledge, what we are doing here in Qatar is unique on a global level. For a club to go to the schools before even opening for play and actually take the game outside of its boundaries, and then to provide such a thorough path of development from within the game, that is an exciting thing to be involved with.

Was the idea for a six-hole course born out of the current focus on speeding up the game?
Everyone in golf now is fixated on solving the issues of slow play, and cutting the time it takes to play golf recreationally, but our concept for the six-hole course began way before this was topical. The idea behind it is the fact there are a lot of business people or family members who don’t have five hours of spare time.

Playing a six-hole course gives you the chance to experience all those elements of a full course, but at the same time you could bring your family and finish the round in a reasonable amount of time. On top of that, if you’re working and you have a break of a couple of hours, the six-hole course is there for you. Maybe it’s not as demanding as the championship course, but it’s very close.

What type of layout is this going to be? There looks to be plenty of sand and water, as you would expect with a course in the Middle East.
While there are plenty of bunkers and water hazards to contend with on the course, in general the playing surfaces are generous. We have big fairways and big greens. It’s not like you need to have pinpoint accuracy. On the greens there will be plenty of different pin positions to choose from. In this part of the world, where there are a lot of beginner golfers, or players that just want to relax and have fun, we don’t want a golf course that is going to be too difficult. At the same time, we have the room here to bring a championship, by letting the rough grow in and making it much more demanding off the tee.

What features stand out for you?
The wadi area of the course is going to be the highlight. It runs through the fourth, fifth and sixth holes and used to be a palm garden in the old days. We are trying to keep it as close as possible to its original form. That will be the only area of the course that will have palm trees, to maintain that heritage. The 13th on the back nine will also stand out, as a par 5 with two distinct fairway options from the tee. Everything we’ve done is in line with Education City’s focus on sustainability. The grass we have used is not only the best strain of paspallum, but it copes well with poor quality water.

The post Olazabal interview: Qatar poised for a golfing revolution appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.