“That’s what I am talking about,” she said with a huge grin after becoming the first-ever female to contend in the Ryder Cup-style event last month.

The two-day event at Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club and EGC saw the 16 top amateurs take on the leading pros, with Jackson contributing to the latter’s points total in a nail-biting finale that came down to the last putt. 

Stepping away from the celebrations, England’s Jackson spoke to Golf Digest Middle East to reflect on her landmark achievement and also stress the importance of mixed events such at the Dubai Golf Trophy in helping female golfers share an equal spotlight with their male counterparts.

Jackson is thrilled to see more and more mixed events such as the recent back-to-back Trust Golf events co-sanctioned between the Asian Tour and Ladies European Tour, where male and female players contend for the same trophy and prize money.

Alongside this is the expanded Aramco Team Series, which is now up to five events a season — with a new venue and bigger purses — where female golfers compete in an innovative simultaneous team and individual competition format. Jackson believes that the changes are slowly being put in place to help the female golfers, and it is not before time.

The ATS introduced four $1million tournaments to the LET last year, with some of the biggest names in golf contending and attracting millions of new viewers around the globe.

Now Bangkok has joined the party and teed off the 2022 series. It was a roaring success, with local heroes star Patty Tavatanakit, world No. 14, former world No. 1 and two-time major winner Ariya Jutanugarn and sister Moriya competing alongside some of the biggest global stars. 

“The likes of the Aramco Series is great as it gives us more exposure,” Jackson told Golf Digest Middle East. “We go into these new, innovative competitions to push the game forward and help inspire the next batch of hopefuls. Sometimes they are put in the shade as the male game is on TV all the time, but these events show we can compete and entertain just as well, if not more so. 

Jackson also points to the Trust Golf events in Thailand.

“We also have so many mixed events these days to show we really can mix it with the boys, just like the Dubai Golf Trophy, where I qualified on merit. The LET and Asian Tour just had two recent mixed events with male and female players going for the same trophy and I see that as the way forward to inspire the next generation of kids, both girls and boys.

“One hundred per cent we need more of these. It is becoming more equal and we just need more. It would be lovely to, say, get a mixed DP World Tour and LET event. We have all the facilities right here in Dubai and it would be a great piece of entertainment.”

While there are hopes for the future, Jackson herself knows she is playing her part for change.

“I was really excited to play in the Dubai Golf Trophy as I play with the boys almost all the time and so to me mixed golf is commonplace,” she said. “We just need to see more events — big and small — give female golfers of all abilities the chance to compete and give them the opportunity to take their game to the next level.

“The LET is proving it wants to lead the way to give players different experiences and increase popularity, both among players and viewers. 

“Showing the young girls I coach, showing I can play against the boys and win against them will hopefully give them a little fire, a little drive, to show them what they themselves can do.”

With the summer upon us, Jackson is looking to play a few tournaments back home in England, and she is aiming for the mixed events to prove that she can continue to hold her own. 

“While the LET is doing its part, we need to see mixed golf at all levels,” she said. “I will compete in some mixed events in the 2020 Pro Golf Tour, which is great to see. Everyone has so much to learn from each other and the only way to improve is to play against the best and most varied opponents that you can. Events like these 2020 Pro Tour ones in Yorkshire, and then more events all around England this summer will help provide the female golfers with more and more opportunities. 

“In the past, women have not been allowed to play in certain tournaments, and I think I have played my part in helping to change that by qualifying to play in the Dubai Golf Trophy in my own right in the Order of Merit. 

“I do not really see much gender difference when we are out there, these guys are all my friends first. And I know I can beat any of them on my day. 

“This is another step on the journey. I just wanted to get the points and help the team. I was just another match against another player. For me, the girls need to play against the boys without a glass ceiling or any patronising and that is the way it needs to be. We are all equals. 

“The amateurs all need the same treatment. They are so many impressive amateurs and they can pit it easily against these guys. Easily. We just need more combined events for them to prove themselves. Emphasis and investment will help this journey but we still have some way to go.”

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By Matt Smith
Every year, just as the heat rises to remind us all that another summer of sweat is on the way, the finest golfers in the UAE gather for one of the most popular events on the calendar — the Dubai Golf Trophy.

Now in its 23rd year, the event sees the top 16 amateurs in the UAE and the finest professionals battle it out for the bragging rights in this Ryder Cup-style event. And 2022 carried more weight than usual as the ‘Ams’ were going for an unprecedented seventh consecutive triumph over the ‘Pros’.

Fans hoping for another gripping encounter — this tournament has served up many classic clashes over the years — were not disappointed as Mike Major’s Pros finally stopped the rot to reclaim the coveted prize from their rivals after six long years. 

Played over two days at Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club (Sunday) and Emirates Golf Club (Monday) in Dubai, the competition closely follows the format of the Ryder Cup, with Day 1 seeing eight foursomes and eight fourballs matches, before 16 individual clashes on Day 2.

Chris May, CEO of organisers Dubai Golf, was on hand to watch the spectacle unfold. “It is such a privilege to host this great event that is steeped in UAE golf history,” he told Golf Digest Middle East. “It raises the game and the standards of golf for the UAE. We are delighted to be involved in such an occasion.

“There used to be such a gap between the pros and the amateurs, but we have really seen that gap close up due to the competition and the quality of facilities and academies on offer in the UAE. In recent years we have seen a few kids come through like Josh Hill, Toby Bishop, Ahmad Skaik and Khalid Yousuf. You see this flurry of quality come through as they push each other. But they seem to be coming along more frequently after the likes of Rayhan Thomas, who has done very well and is now in the States. The others take inspiration from that, saying: ‘If he can do it, or she can do it, I can do it to.’

“The Dubai Golf Trophy really plays a key role in this as we get everyone together and they can really see how they compare, regardless of upbringing, race or even club. It is a really meaningful team format, and reflects how far the amateur game has come.”

While the pros held the advantage after the action at Dubai Creek — with the most slender of leads at 8.5-7.5 — they held their nerve when it looked like they might throw it all away.

Khalid Yousuf’s amateur team were so quick out of the blocks on Day 2 at EGC and had their noses in front when Yash Majmudar and Hugo Garcia thumped Michael Bolt and Steven Munro 6&4 and 4&3 respectively.

The other two early matches between Sujjan Singh and Max Burrow, and Jackson Bell and Craig Vance were halved, and the amateurs were scenting another victory.

But then came the blue wave of Pro scores as Graham Forbes thrashed Jay Mullane 4&2, Tom Buchanan denied Yousuf 2&1 and Thomas Ogilvie chalked up a 3&1 win over Ali Parlane.

History-making Olivia Jackson showed her mettle as the first ever female to play in the event as she saw out a see-saw battle against Sam Mullane to snatch a vital half-point.

“To see Olivia come through to become the first female to compete at this tournament is wonderful,” added May. “It is great for us all as she is our pro here at EGC, but she is such a great role model and inspiration for the next generation of boys and girls.

“She can definitely hold her own against the boys and I think she is going to play more competitively this summer in tournaments back in England, so she is only going to get better.”

Back out on the course, just when it was looking all rosy on the blue side for the Pros, the red army charged back as amateurs Toby Bishop (3&2) and David Guinee (2up) saw off Nathan Kernaghan and Jack Woods respectively.

Loius Gaughan (4&2 v Raghav Gulati) got the pros back on track, but wins for Tom Nesbitt (4&2 v Sam McLaren), and Jonathan Selvaraj (4&3 v Luke Plumb) meant that the two-day epic came down to the last game and the last green.

Barry Pavic held a one-hole advantage with three to play, which would have meant a 16-16 tie and the amateurs retaining the trophy as defending champions. But up stepped Purna Sharma for the professionals, winning on 16 before halving the last.

That triggered a wave of celebrations from the Pros, and the Ams graciously accepted defeat 16.5-15.5 in one of the closest ever Dubai Golf Trophy clashes. Amid a sea of buggies, Sharma was embraced by his teammates before going on to lift the trophy.

“That was the hardest two-putt in my life,” Sharma told Golf Digest Middle East just after coming off the final green. “I can’t believe I held my nerve there.”

It was quite the celebration to end a dramatic day. Major, the non-playing Pro captain reflected on a tumultuous weekend, having been on the receiving end for the past six years as a player.

“I guess we can take a hint. I don’t play and we finally win,” he joked, an ACL operation taking him out of this year’s playing capabilities. “But every player was tremendous today and every single one of them contributed points over the two days. For it to be so close shows you the quality on both sides of the ‘divide’. The Ams were brilliant but we managed to find that little bit more when needed … at long last. I must thank Dubai Golf for putting on such a great event, with both the Creek and the Majlis in impeccable conditions. It has been a long, long journey to get here this weekend and we are so glad to win.”

Losing captain Yousuf was gracious in defeat. “They were tremendous,” he said. “We thought we had a chance there at the end but they held on. It was a great two days but sadly we have to give up the trophy after six great years. We will regroup. There is a whole new batch of youngsters coming through and we will see who will make the grade. We are losing a few guys like Josh Hill, Toby Bishop, Yash and (non-playing UAE No.1 amateur) Ahmad Skaik. But as we have proved time and again, there are always more and more players coming through and, each year, the quality gets better and better. Congrats to the Pros, it has been a long time for them.”

So now, the rebuilding process starts all over again, with new faces emerging and older ones bidding farewell ahead of 2023. Will the Pros or the Ams prevail? The Pros’ Buchanan perhaps explains it best. “It has been a long time coming,” he said. “It is always nice to play here and it was great to put on quite a show. Who knows who will win next time around, but this is the best weekend in UAE golf, bar none.”

What they said

Olivia Jackson, Pros
“They will be hurting having lost. Last year I was around the team even though I was not playing. We did not want to go out after the defeat. We just wanted to go home and I think they will be feeling the same. But we will all be friends again tomorrow and they will regroup as it was such a close thing.”

Toby Bishop, Ams
“It was unfortunate to get the loss, but everyone tried their best. Obviously the pros got the win but it was a fun weekend and that was the main part.”

Tom Buchanan, Pros
“The team spirit was fantastic out there and every player contributed to our points, showing how we were pulling for each other. The crowd at the last and the buggies everywhere shows you just what this means. A fantastic day once again.”

Khalid Yousuf, Ams captain
“I have been part of this event for so long. It was nice to finally captain the team. We tried our best. We came up slightly short but it was nice that it came right down to the last match and the last shot. Shows you what it meant to everyone involved.”

Mike Major, Pros non-playing captain
“It was great until the final hour. That was a horrible time as I was not playing so I couldn’t do anything about what was going on. It has been six years to get here and it is much down to the guys who didn’t play today, pushing up the standards, that has helped us finally win.” 

Yash Majmudar, Ams
“It was a great event, we were behind from the get-go yesterday, but each session was so close and a few things didn’t go our way — a few putts here and there. But I am really proud of how we performed.”

More
Sensational finish at Dubai Golf Trophy
The best weekend in UAE Golf
Olivia Jackson makes a little bit of history
Your players to watch at the LIV Golf opener in London
All you need to know for the LIV Golf Invitational Series opener
Dustin Johnson to headline LIV Golf field in London
Stellar line-up set for Newcastle
The Gulf Club: The latest golf news from around the UAE

The post Home is where the heart is: Looking back at the dramatic Dubai Golf Trophy with captains and players appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

The heat is rising in the UAE as the action heats up across Europe and the United States.

Our latest edition of Golf Digest Middle East reflects on Justin Thomas’ triumph at the PGA Masters, while looking ahead to the US Open at Brookline, and focusing on the mulleted star Cameron Smith, who has made it to the top in his own way.

There is also the small matter of the LIV Golf Invitational Series, as Greg Norman’s money-spinning brainchild tees off at Centurion Club near London in England.

Closer to home, we had one of the most dramatic Dubai Golf Trophy tournaments in its 23-year history, and we chart the journey of Amelia McKee, from youngster in a strange land in Dubai to turning professional.

Emirates Golf Club’s Olivia Jackson discusses the need for more mixed and team events to boost the ladies’ game, while we have a solution for all your putting and chipping woes.

All this and much more in the June 2022 edition of Golf Digest Middle East.

The issue is again free to our loyal audience. You can scroll through the ISSUU link provided here or download to your favourite device for later. Alternatively, pick up a copy at your favourite club. Whatever option you take, we hope you enjoy the read.

The post Get the June 2022 edition of Golf Digest Middle East FREE here! appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Matt Smith
The Aramco Team Series is back for 2022 – along with a new format, a new location, bigger purses and five events on the Ladies European Tour, with Bangkok up first.

The ATS introduced four $1million tournaments to the LET last year, with some of the biggest names in golf contending in both a team and individual format, and attracting millions of new viewers around the globe.

The Series stopped in London, Sotogrande in southern Spain, New York and Jeddah, inviting more than 30 team captains at each spot to make an NFL-style draft pick for their first teammate, before being given another randomly selected Tour pro, then being assigned a local amateur player to complete their fourball.

The ground-breaking event has deservedly given the ladies’ game more exposure — and Olivia Jackson, the Emirates Golf Club pro who just helped the Pros reclaim the Dubai Golf Trophy from the Ams after six years on Monday, becoming the first-ever female to contend in the Ryder Cup-style event, was very animated about getting the females on the main page.

“Definitely, the Aramco Series is great as it gives us more exposure,” Jackson told Golf Digest Middle East. “We go into these new, innovative competitions to push the game forward and help inspire the next batch of hopefuls. Sometimes they are put in the shade as the male game is on TV all the time, but these events show we can compete and entertain just as well, if not more so. We also have so many mixed events these days to show we really can mix it with the boys, just like the Dubai Golf Trophy, where I qualified on merit. The LET and Asian Tour just had two recent mixed events with male and female players going for the same trophy and I see that as the way forward to inspire the next generation of kids, both girls and boys.”

For 2022, the ATS returns, this time starting in Thailand as the series expands to five events.

Being played at the Thai Country Club May 12-14, the Aramco Team Series Bangkok will add another $1million to the season prize-fund, and will tee-off the ATS’ second year on the LET calendar.

AT A GLANCE: ARAMCO TEAM SERIES

A new format set to speed up play

Last year saw the ATS become the first team event series of its kind on any professional tour with a new format that uniquely combines individual and team format. This year will see the revised format with the team event that includes 26 teams of four (3 professionals and an amateur) taking place over the first two days only with the best two scores per hole counting with a $500,000 prize fund up for grabs. Running concurrently will be an individual strokeplay event with the third and final round for individuals making the cut in a last-day shootout and another separate $500,000 on offer.

Local talent and international stars

This week sees a trio of Thailand’s top golfing superstars in Bangkok with international star Patty Tavatanakit, world No 14, former world No. 1 and two-time major winner Ariya Jutanugarn and sister Moriya are some of the local headliners. They are joined by local 18-year-old talent Chanoknan ‘April’ Angurasaranee, the leading female player at the recent Trust Golf Asian Mixed Cup at Siam Country Club and Chonlada Chatanun. England’s Charley Hull and breakout US star Kelly Whaley are the big overseas stars alongside a host of LET leading lights. Last year’s Aramco Team Series saw stars such as Georgia Hall, Nelly Korda, Anna Nordqvist, Danielle Kang, Alison Lee and Lexi Thompson all compete.

Elevated events to bigger global audiences

‘From the quality of the courses to the build, facilities and the hospitality the Aramco Team Series is elevating the standards across the board,” said Alex Armas, LET, CEO. “To many of our members, these events feel like majors — and they look forward to playing in them almost as much.”

This year’s broadcast distribution will see the ATS shown in a record 117 territories to an estimated reach of 330 million households.

Partnerships

Aramco’s continued partnership for 2022 makes it the biggest backer in women’s golf. The Aramco Team Series will support up and coming women’s golfers who need extra support to make it to the next level with partnerships with local charities and golfing associations planned at every stop to make a difference.

More
Sensational finish at Dubai Golf Trophy
Sergio Garcia ‘can’t wait to quit PGA Tour’
LIV Golf: Bland’s British Masters title defence takes a twist
Westwood and ‘many more’ request release to play LIV Golf Invitational Series
Look: Phil Mickelson spotted on golf course
Tiger Woods plays Southern Hills ahead of PGA Championship
LIV Golf Invitational Series continues to take shape
Trump to host LIV finale
Greg Norman rejected by R&A for Open Championship
Report: First PGA Tour player request to play LIV Golf events

The post Olivia Jackson: Aramco Series, Bangkok and mixed events point to the future of golf for all boys and girls appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Kent Gray
The Emirates Golf Federation (EGF) amateurs are on the cusp of yet more Dubai Golf Trophy glory- and this time with a feel-good silver lining.

Following an afternoon of near utter dominance on the Faldo course at Emirates Golf Club, the EGF team will take a formidable 11-5 lead over the UAE PGA Tour pros into Sunday’s singles at Jumeirah Golf Estates.

The Mike Bolt-captained UAE PGA pros will need something special on Earth to reverse the six-point deficit in today’s 16-singles showdowns if they are to avoid a sixth successive loss in the Ryder Cup-style matches administered by Dubai Golf.

It will be no mean feat given the EGF players are also determined to seal Ahmed Skaik’s place in folklore as the event’s first Emirati – and winning – captain.

Things started well enough for the desperate pros as Saturday’s morning foursomes were shared 4-4 despite a mammoth 8&7 socking for Dong Lee and Jonathan Craddock at the hands of amateur talisman Josh Hill and Jay Mullane.

But it went horribly pear-shaped in the afternoon fourballs on the Faldo as the EGF amateurs won 7-1. Only Luke Plumb and Louis Gaughan saved the pros from an embarrassing whitewash courtesy of their 3&2 win over Max Burrow and Arjun Gupta. At the top of the order, their was another lesson for Lee and Craddock who were beaten 5&3 by Hill and Mullane.

Lee and Craddock will be happy to see the back of Hill and Mullane with veteran Dubai Trophy player Malcolm Young handed the task of taking on Hill in the singles while Mullane will face Pro Sports’ Graham Forbes.

HISTORY-MAKERS: Hyeonji Kang, Natalii Gupta, Anneke Strobach and Olivia Jackson.

It was also a tough day for the UAE Pro women who are playing the Dubai Trophy for the first time – this year in an exhibition match ahead of being incorporated into the event proper in 2022.

Olivia Jackson and Anneke Strobach were edged 1up by Hyeonji Kang and Natalii Gupta in the morning foursomes and then beaten comprehensively, 5&4, in the fourballs.

Jackson will play Gupta and Strobach will meet Kang on Sunday knowing they need to both win their singles encounters to level the exhibition.

But the focus will be on how Bolt’s pros responded to being cornered on Earth.

The post What on Earth can the UAE pros do to prevent a EGF amateur six-peat? 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.

[divider] [/divider]

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 23-year-old Englishwoman slipped into Dubai earlier this year with quite the pedigree after accepting a teaching internship at Emirates Golf Club.

COVID-19s problematic spread meant there was a slight delay between her January 3 start and last month’s date with destiny on the Faldo when Jackson’s talent became evident to a wider Middle East audience. Shooting a 67 on The Faldo to become the first woman to win on the UAE PGA Tour, by three strokes no less, certainly is a fun way announce your arrival.

“I had no clue how significant my win was until after I’d finished playing,” said Jackson whose role at Emirates G.C. was teed up by Nick Huby, her coach at the Peter Cowen Academy in Rotherham, with a handy assist by Cowen himself who now has academies across the Dubai Golf network.

“I had a few lessons [to deliver] after the tournament and after the third lesson in the afternoon, I went to check my phone and had over 85 notifications. I was shocked to see how many people had reached out and congratulated me. It was pretty surreal.”

It turns out we shouldn’t be surprised at all by the historic win last month. Jackson’s talent has already taken her all the way to the U.S. to play division 1 golf for the University of Tulsa Oklahoma, to a Faldo junior series title before that and more recently to the 2018 Yorkshire County Championship. Few can lay claim to a course record at the Home of Golf but Jackson has that on her CV too, a giddy waltz around the New Course in 67 strokes, eight-under.

What didn’t surprise Jackson was her ability to compete with the male members of the UAE PGA.

“I don’t think gender matters. I had been prepping for it as I would usually do for a tournament and in the end it’s you against the course. It’s great to see that I can put myself up against the guys.”

Jackson intends playing all the 2020-21 UAE PGA Tour events her work commitments will allow and, all going well, breaking another barrier by making the Pro team for next year’s Dubai Trophy. The pros could do with the help after losing the last five editions of the Ryder Cup-style matches to the EGF’s leading amateurs.

Next up though is a return to the Faldo for the OMEGA Dubai Moonlight Classic. Jackson is “super excited” to take up an invite to represent Motivate Media Group, publishers of Golf Digest Middle East, in the Nov. 4-6 day-night Pro-Am.

“It will be a great week,” said the LPGA Tour teaching apprentice. “I hope to learn from some of the best in the game and connect with some great people. It will be interesting to see how I perform against the tour players and where I can improve as a player.”

You could even call the inside the ropes opportunity at the Ladies European Tour event a dress rehearsal for the real thing.

“I still have aspirations of playing professionally but I get a huge amount of enjoyment growing the game and seeing people fall in love with it like I did,” said Jackson who was introduced to the game by her father at age 11.

“I would love to make my position here more permanent. Dubai is awesome and I can see myself coaching and playing here for a very long time. I could never imagine throwing my coaching shoes in.”

Jackson is working towards an LPGA-sanctioned coaching qualification. When she’s not logged into the online lessons being delivered from LPGA headquarters in Daytona Beach, Florida, or delivering lessons at Emirates G.C., you’ll find Jackson hard at work on her own game. Even between lessons you’ll likely find her on the range or in the gym.

“I try to practice as much as I can. It’s about finding the time even when you don’t necessarily want to or don’t feel like doing it. I definitely feel like university prepared me for this, in being good with my time and trying to prioritise the right things.”

That discipline paid dividends in the UAE PGA event with Jackson able to claw her way back two over through four holes.

“The best part of my game is probably my driving, I rarely miss a fairway. But I would say I’m very good at grinding through a game. I know even when I’m not hitting it great I can still get it round and score.

“The worst part of my game is probably staying in the moment. Sometimes I tend to get ahead of myself instead of focusing on what I need to do. It’s something I’m constantly working on.”

The post History Lesson: Olivia Jackson hasn’t taken long to make her mark on the UAE golf scene appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Kent Gray
Alison Muirhead emerged from her own wild game of snakes and ladders on The Faldo to be among the early contenders at the OMEGA Dubai Moonlight Classic. Olivia Jackson’s scorecard, meanwhile, was more turvy than topsy but she didn’t finish too far adrift of Muirhead on the unofficial happiness leaderboard.

Together the Dubai-domiciled pros, South African-born Scot Muirhead in just the seventh start of a stop-start rookie season on the LET, and new Emirates Golf Club intern pro Jackson in her bigtime debut, produced a hometown narrative of note on Wednesday.

Muirhead overcame a watery triple-bogey to sign for a 69 to sit four adrift of Swedish pole-sitter Caroline Hedwall’s seven-under lead. Englishwoman Jackson, offered an 11th hour spot in the 56–strong pro draw after three positive COVID-19 tests reshaped the field, battled bravely after four successive bogeys to start her round to finish with no further damage in a four-over 76.

Starting the morning shotgun on the 16th, Muirhead overcame an opening bogey with a great birdie on the 18th before three successive gains from the 2nd to get to -3. She then fell off the front page of the leaderboard with a bogey on the 5th and a triple bogey seven after reportedly finding water twice on the 7th. Muirhead mounted an immediate recovery with birdie on the par-3 8th, added another on 12 and then drove the green and holed an eight-footer for eagle on the 278-yard 13th to get back to -3.

“Yeah, I am pretty pleased with the 69 considering I had a triple bogey as well,” Muirhead said. “I am happy with how I brought it back and gave myself loads of chances on the course… just a sloppy decision on the 7th hole cost me a couple of shots.”

Muirhead reportedly lives near the 11th fairway on the Majlis, the Faldo’s sister course at Emirates Golf Club, and is determined to make the most of her local knowledge this week. She’s banked just €1,890 in her six previous LET starts, highlighted by a best finish of T-57 at the SA Women’s Open in March. Wednesday’s 69 bettered her best round on tour by two strokes.

“Growing up in Dubai definitely has been an advantage this week but you are playing against the best players in the world, which makes it an even playing field, particularly as anything can happen on this course. There are some tough holes and tough pin positions. I feel like it will equal itself out over the three days but I do have a little bit of an advantage having grown up here.

“Obviously tomorrow is another day and that will be under the floodlights this time. I have prepared for the different format so I am pretty confident but at the same time anything can happen and I am just looking forward to playing tomorrow.”

Emirates Golf Club intern pro Olivia Jackson.

Jackson, meantime, finds herself in the midst of a giddy golfing whirlwind. After creating history by becoming the first female winner of a UAE PGA Tour event recently, on The Faldo no less, Jackson was invited to play for the Am prizes in the Motivate Media Group II team to be captained by LET winner Meghan MacLaren. But she quickly found herself promoted to captain of the EGA 1 team when European Solheim Cup captain Catriona Matthew was among the three  to test positive for COVID-19 on the eve of the $285,000 event.

Jackson was teaching kids on the range Tuesday when she took a call from the Emirates G.C. Golf Academy to say Dubai Golf CEO Chris May wanted to talk.

“My phone was in my pocket and it kept ringing and ringing. I could see it was the Golf Academy so I thought something must be wrong. It was Chris May on the phone and he said he was coming over to take me to the hotel. I thought what hotel?

“It was all a bit of a shock, as I had to rush over to the [players] hotel before 5pm in order to get my COVID test done. Obviously, I am just so excited to be now playing this week.

“I struggled a bit at the start of today, not shaky but I was more reserved in my play than I normally am. As I warmed up, I became more comfortable and actually my score today doesn’t reflect how I struck the ball in the end. I just now want to get as much experience as possible from the rest of the tournament. I know I can play this golf course well. So I’ll just enjoy it as moments like this don’t often come around.”

German-born England amateur Chiara Noja, who has just moved to Dubai and earned a late invite into the main draw, signed for a five over 77.

Chiara Noja.

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