By Kent Gray
Build it and they will come – slowly but surely. That’s the level of Greg Norman’s conviction in the new Saudi-financed LIV Golf Invitational Series which went from long rumoured to finally confirmed concept overnight, albeit without a single player named. 

Set to debut at The Centurion Club near London in June, the series will feature eight events in 2022 – half of them in the U.S. – with individual and team components and a whopping $255 million in prize money.

RELATED: Intriguing Asian Tour clash as LIV Golf insist new series is ‘100% additive’ to pro game rather than PGA Tour rival

With Norman as commissioner, the events will showcase a fan and broadcast friendly format where 48-player fields (divided evenly into 12 squads for the team aspect) will contest shortened 54-hole tournaments with shotgun starts and no cut.

Trumpeted as the “building blocks of a next-generation golf experience”, the first seven “regular season” tournaments will offer $25 million purses –  $20 million to be shared by the field and $5 million between the top three teams. By comparison, the PGA Tour’s richest ever event was the just-completed The Players Championship at $20 million.

An overall individual champion will be crowned at the conclusion of the seventh event, slated for Royal Greens Golf & Country Club near Jeddah in October, and will earn the majority share of a bonus $30 million pool for the top three players. The series will then culminate with a match-play Team Championship in late October at an as yet confirmed venue but with an eye-popping $50 million purse locked and loaded.

Here’s the schedule released overnight:

June 9-11: Centurion Golf Club – London
July 1-3: Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club – Portland
July 29-31: Trump National Golf Club Bedminster – New Jersey
Sept 2-4: The International – Boston
Sept 16-18: Rich Harvest Farms – Chicago
Oct 7-9: Stonehill Golf Club– Bangkok
Oct 14-16: Royal Greens Golf & Country Club – Jeddah
Oct 28-30: Team Championship (Venue TBC)

The most critical components, namely confirmed players and how and who will broadcast the series globally, were glaring omissions in Wednesday’s announcement from the Norman-fronted and Saudi-bankrolled LIV Golf Investments. But Norman is adamant even some of the most gun-shy stars will eventually find the league’s lucrative charms impossible to resist, despite PR gaffes in recent weeks.

He reportedly emailed invites to 250 golfers, all of them male, on Tuesday night and was delighted with the feedback according to a Golf.com report.

“I’ve got to tell you, from a player’s perspective, the amount of response [has been] unbelievably positive,” Norman said. “I’m talking about single-digit ranked players in the world, emailing me first thing this morning, just so excited to hear about what we have to say and what we’ve got.”

Whether that bravado translates into tangible big-name signings remains to be seen.

The series was recently declared “dead in the water” by Rory McIlroy after a swathe of top-name players pledged their allegiance to the PGA Tour following disparaging comments by pro-breakaway Phil Mickelson against the Saudi Government, in effect LIV Golf Invitational Series’ Saudi financiers. Mickelson also called out the PGA Tour for their “obnoxious greed” and admitted he was effectively using LIV Golf Investments, funded by the Kingdom’s sovereign wealth Public Investment Fund (PIF), as leverage against the PGA Tour.

Sam Greenwood

Mickelson has not been seen or heard from since posting an apology of sorts to social media. PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan, meanwhile, has doubled down on his promise of suspensions and possibly even lifetime bans for players who join the Saudi series and recently insisted the U.S. circuit – and by association its strategic partner the DP World Tour – had “moved on”.

That was before Wednesday’s announcement. Norman remains convinced the Saudi league would win any potential legal battle over the rights of players, as independent contractors, to pick and choose their schedule.

“I believe players will increasingly make progress in achieving their right to play where they want and when they want,” Norman told Global Golf Post.

“We will help in any way possible. But in the interim, we see a global pool of talent we can tap into to develop and promote. In many ways, we’re a start-up enterprise. We have a long-term vision that will start modestly and grow. Mark my words: Players, including the game’s biggest names, will increasingly join us. And make no mistake: We are here for the long term.”

The ability for players to tee it up where and when the want is something Norman has been battling for since the mid 1990s when he teamed with media tycoon Rupert Murdoch in an attempt to create a “World Golf Tour”. The concept was squashed by then-PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem but Norman’s resolve has endured. 

“For decades, I fought for the right of a player to have the opportunity and choice to go play wherever he wants without having restrictions,” Norman said. “I remember when I was the No. 1 player in the world, trying to get the right to go back and play in my home [Australian] tour. And I fought for home-tour release rules. Why do we have to apply for a waiver for that? You know, players can apply for a waiver and get it. And I’ve heard as recently as of this year that some European tour players just went and played without even getting a release.

“The players see their opportunities. They’re independent contractors. They have this freedom of choice. I’ll just sit back and give them the new opportunities.”

LIV Golf is providing more than $400 million in seed capital to ensure those opportunities in 2022.  It is also promising “additional announcements forthcoming”, critical among them sure to be the announcement of players for the London event. The sports world will be watching via livgolf.com – and for the reaction from the PGA Tour-DP World Tour alliance. As Norman keeps saying, “this is just the beginning”. 

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By Kent Gray
The Saudi golf league finally has a brand name, a start date, a substantive eight-event schedule and an eye-popping $255 million in prize money. Still, Wednesday’s announcement left as many questions as it provided answers, chiefly around who will play the LIV Golf Invitational Series and how and by whom the shiny new league will be broadcast.

Even known facts, like the launch event in June, remain clouded in intrigue.

The $25 million series opener is slated for The Centurion Club near London on June 9-11. That raised eyebrows with fans of the Asian Tour who had been looking forward to the second of the Asian Tour’s new and not to be confused ‘International Series’ events – at the very same venue and mooted to start just a day earlier on June 8.

The clash is not totally left field given the International Series is bankrolled to the tune of $300 million by LIV Golf Investments, the company also behind the LIV Golf Invitational Series announced overnight. The Asian Tour investment, over 10 years, guarantees LIV Golf access to Official World Golf Ranking points for its new league, a key lure as access to the game’s major championships and contract bonuses are pegged to a players world ranking. 

RELATED: Norman confident $255 million LIV Golf Invitational Series will prove irresistible to game’s biggest names

At the time of press, The International Series London was still listed as a $2 million, 72-hole event on the Asian Tour website and scheduled for June 8-11. It remains to be seen if it will be played as such, shifted to a new date or morphed into one of the shortened, 54-hole LIV Golf Invitational Series events boasting a 48-player field, shotgun starts and no cut.

What LIV Golf Investments CEO and LIV Golf Invitational Series Commissioner Greg Norman can and has guaranteed is that the new series won’t clash with the game’s big legacy events – just about.

[divider] [/divider]

LIV Golf Invitational Series 2022

June 9-11: Centurion Golf Club (London)
July 1-3: Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club (Portland)
July 29-31: Trump National Golf Club Bedminster (New Jersey)
Sept 2-4: The International (Boston)
Sept 16-18: Rich Harvest Farms (Chicago)
Oct 7-9: Stonehill (Bangkok)
Oct 14-16: Royal Greens Golf Club (Jeddah)
Oct 28-30: Team Championship (TBC)

[divider] [/divider]

The London series opener critically concludes on the Saturday before the U.S. Open, allowing an extra day for players to travel to Brookline, Mass. for the third major of the year. 

The fifth LIV Golf event in Chicago will also easily allow US and International team players to travel to Quail Hollow in North Carolina for the September 22-25 Presidents Cup.

With the PGA Tour’s season-ending and FedEx Cup deciding Tour Championships scheduled for Aug. 25-28, only the first three LIV Golf Invitational Series events clash with PGA Tour events: The $8.7 million RBC Canadian Open (June 9-12), the $7.1 million John Deere Classic (June 30-Jul. 3) and the $8.4 million Rocket Mortgage Classic (July 28-31).

The LIV Golf Invitational Series Team Championship does sit opposite the $10.5m WGC-HSBC Champions in Shanghai (Oct 28-31) although the World Golf Championship events are widely regarded as a declining commodity as golf’s turf war heats up.

The greater concern will perhaps be felt at DP World Tour headquarters in Wentworth given all eight LIV Golf Invitational Series events clash with tournaments on the old European Tour. It goes without saying that the $25 million LIV Golf purses, bolstered to $50 million for the Team Championship, will be far more fiscally appealing than the $2m Scandinavian Mixed (June 9-12), $6m Irish Open (June 30-July 3), €1.75m Hero Open, €3m Made In HimmerLand, €3m Italian Open (Sept. 15-18), €1.75m Open de Espana (Oct. 13-16), €3m Andalucia Masters (Oct. 6-9) and the WGC-HSBC Champions. At today’s exchange rates, the eight DP World Tour events equate to a combined $32.3 million – just a whisker more than the additional $30 million bonus pool LIV Golf is promising the top three players overall in the individual standings of the new Saudi league. 

If OWGR points are confirmed for the LIV Golf Invitational Series, perhaps Norman’s conviction that the world’s biggest players will follow the money isn’t as unlikely as it seemed even a few days ago. 

Greg Norman (Photo: Paul Lakatos/Asian Tour)

“Our events are truly additive to the world of golf,” Norman said in a statement. “We have done our best to create a schedule that allows players to play elsewhere, while still participating in our events. I believe players will increasingly make progress in achieving their right to play where they want. We will help in any way possible and will provide golfers with opportunities to achieve their full potential.”

Norman sent a memo to players on Tuesday pre-empting Wednesday’s announcement and has delivered on his promise of: “We are launching, and we will continue to drive this vision forward. We will not stop.”

“While we respect that some of you may have concerns, know that we will work tirelessly with you to alleviate them,” Norman said in the letter to players obtained by Golf Digest. “Our goal always will be to let you focus on your playing performance while benefiting from new opportunities, whenever you are ready for them.”

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Long on speculation but short on specifics, the Saudi-backed LIV Golf Investments finally put some detail around its relentlessly rumoured breakaway league on Wednesday. 

A media statement announcing the eight event LIV Golf Invitational Series, complete with its $225 million combined prize purse, described the league as “100 percent additive” to the pro game rather than a rival to the PGA and DP World Tours. Indeed, the league has been positioned as the “building blocks of a next generation golf experience”.

MORE
• Norman confident $255 million LIV Golf Invitational Series will prove irresistible to game’s biggest names
• Intriguing Asian Tour clash as LIV Golf insist new series is ‘100% additive’ to pro game rather than PGA Tour rival
• LIV Golf will welcome Mickelson back on Lefty’s ‘time schedule’

“I want golf to grow, players to have additional opportunities, and fans to have more fun,” said Greg Norman, LIV Golf Investments CEO.

“My mission is to help the game reach its full potential and we know the role of golf as an entertainment product is critical to overall participation in the sport. In many ways, we are a start-up. We have a long-term vision and aim to grow. I believe we have a very bright and exciting future.”

So, what is this well-funded “start-up”, which will draw on $400 million in initial seed capital from Saudi’s Public Investment Fund, promising? And how will it appeal to players and fans? 

No ‘I’ in Team Accept When There Is
Greg Norman attended his first Ryder Cup at Whistling Straits last year as a  radio commentator. The event was a lightbulb moment for the former world No.1 who realised what we’ve known all along: team golf is a fan favourite.

Thus, a team component will be at the “heart of the new structure” with $5 million of the $25 million purse on offer at each of the first seven LIV Golf Invitational Series events going to top three placed teams.

There will also be a Team Championship grand finale, played in a match-play format for a whopping $50 million, at the conclusion of the series in late October at a venue TBC. 

With $20 million on the line for individual performances at each event, plus a $30 million bonus pool for the top three players after the opening seven “regular season” events, it will be fascinating to see how the team component plays out in a sport where selfishness has traditionally paid the mortgage.

A (Weekly) Player Draft
We have it on good authority that the league initially planned to incorporate 48-players evenly divided into 12 teams of four, with high profile stars such as Phil Mickelson set to take fiscal and playing captain stakes in the teams. Transfers would have been possible in a transfer window, for injury reasons or at the discretion of Commissioner Norman.

It seems that concept is on ice, at least initially. The draft stays but will happen before each event with captains choosing from a pool of available players. 

It’s a proven concept, borrowed from the successful Aramco Team Series sanctioned by the Ladies European Tour. It won’t generate the fan allegiance to potentially corporate-backed teams, aka F1’s Red Bull v Mercedes. That, we suspect, is part of the “long term vision” Norman has spoken to. 

Shotgun Starts
You switch on TV hoping to watch your favourite players or even the final group in action, only to find said player or players haven’t teed off yet. No such frustrations will ensue in the LIV Golf Invitational Series with all 48 players playing simultaneously.

It should make for quick-fire entertainment, perfect for a condensed broadcast spot. The trick might be keeping up with who is doing what.

54-hole events
Let’s be honest, outside the majors and the Ryder/Presidents Cup, how many people tune into events religiously for all four days? Who has the time? That won’t be a problem for the LIV Golf series where each round will be confined to a shorter period due to the shotgun starts, plus the fact there will be 18 fewer holes to film or consume. In the right time zone, that means your Friday, Saturday and Sunday viewing pleasure will be taken care of in a refreshing change from the vanilla 72-hole strokeplay events we’ve become used to.

[divider] [/divider]

LIV Golf Invitational Series 2022

June 9-11: Centurion Golf Club (London)
July 1-3: Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club (Portland)
July 29-31: Trump National Golf Club Bedminster (New Jersey)
Sept 2-4: The International (Boston)
Sept 16-18: Rich Harvest Farms (Chicago)
Oct 7-9: Stonehill (Bangkok)
Oct 14-16: Royal Greens Golf Club (Jeddah)
Oct 28-30: Team Championship (TBC)

No Cuts
You’ve purchased a ticket to the golf on the weekend, maybe even a costly corporate box. And the superstar/s you hoped to watch is already on his way home, having missed the cut. Doh! 

That won’t happen in the LIV Golf Series where the 48-players will be guaranteed three rounds and a cut of the $20 million individual purse. We wonder what will happen to the scoring (think epic comebacks) with the fiscal pressure off. It will also guarantee big names for sponsors who fly in corporates from around the globe. It’s all about ROI after all.

Show Me the MONEY! 
LIV Golf Investments is providing more than $400 million in “seed money” to launch the series, $225 million of which will be for prize money alone. 

To reiterate, there will be $25 million on the line at each of the first seven events ($5 million to be shared between the top three teams), a $30 million end of season bonus pool for the three leading individuals, plus $50 million for the match-play Team Championship finale. 

Remember also that players have long been linked to lucrative sign-in fees. With Official World Golf Ranking points likely via LIV Golf Investment’s Asian Tour connection, don’t be surprised if some of the recent PGA Tour and DP World Tour aligners do abrupt about-faces and follow the money. If the expected legal challenge to determine the right of players to play where and when they want as independent contractors goes LIV Golf’s way, expect a stampede. 

What’s in the name?
LIV, as in Live and Let Live, just happens to be the roman numeral for 54, as in holes to be played under the new format. It’s also the name of the marketing and consultancy company, Performance 54, peddling PR for LIV Golf Investments and is majority-owned by the Saudis. 

The post The new LIV series intends to be the ‘next gen golf experience’ for players and fans. Here’s how appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Kent Gray
With England locked and loaded and the United States firmly on the drawing board, the message is crystal clear: the Asian Tour suddenly sees all and every corner of the golf world as its oyster.

That much became blatantly obvious at the unveiling of the tour’s new marquee brand on the not so subtle side-lines of the PIF Saudi International last month -– even if Greg Norman was at pains to insists “we’re not in this for a fight”.

The LIV Golf CEO joined Asian Tour supremo Cho Minn Thant and the circuit’s freshly minted Order-of-Merit champion Joohyung Kim to herald the arrival of ‘The International Series’, 10 marquee events being bankrolled by LIV Golf to the tune of $300 million over the next decade.

In attendance at Royal Greens Golf & Country Club were a small travelling press corp, a larger international media audience logged in virtually and a palpable sense of intrigue surrounding LIV Golf’s next move beyond its investment in the OWGR-sanctioned Asian Tour.

By announcing that its shiny new series will visit The Centurion Club on the northern outskirts of London and the Middle East twice – i.e. traditional DP World Tour territory – the Asian Tour’s intentions are clear at the very least.

Fiscally emboldened by its new Saudi-backed strategic partner, the Asian Tour has shed all historical insecurities and any fear of straying beyond golf’s long-since blurred continental boundaries. The olive branch to the DP World Tour and PGA Tour remains extended but knowing it is likely striking out on its own, the Asian Tour delivered its first  “Game on” mission statement.

“Obviously there’s no boundaries anymore in the world of golf,” Thant, the Asian Tour’s dual CEO and Commissioner, said before focusing specifically on the June 9-12 event in England.

“…And yes, it comes as a surprise to many of us in this room, but it’s basically part of our strategy to make the Asian Tour more of a global tour. We have members from all over the world, 25 different nationalities playing on the Asian Tour. It’s not just for Asians. It’s not just in Asia, and we will be playing in other destinations outside such as the Middle East.”

As Lee Westwood mentioned in a media conference the following day, the Asian Tour’s competitors surely can’t have been broadsided by the Centurion surprise.

“Now that the Asian Tour has this backing, it appears to me like they’re just doing what the PGA Tour and the European Tour have been doing the last 25 years,” said the Englishman, an eight time winner in Asia.

Thant went on to defend the Asian Tour’s expansionist strategy and a new-found voice triggered by one of the biggest investment deals in golf history.

“We’ve been vilified as bad boys in the press over the last few months, and I really think it’s unjustified,” Thant said. “Any tour…has a responsibility to its membership to look at sponsorship and partnership opportunities to improve the tour. Likewise the European Tour worked with DP World to title sponsor that tour. I don’t see us working with LIV Golf Investments or any other promoter, any other sponsor throughout the course of the season as a bad thing.

“I’m out here to increase the number of playing opportunities for our members. I’m here to increase the amount of prize money that’s on offer. I’m here to improve the awareness and the experience for the fans of golf in Asia, and I think this is exactly what we’re doing.”

With the 10 International Series events to be broadcast live, the Asian Tour hopes to drive deeper engagement with fans, attract new commercial interest and to “help stabilise professional golf following a sustained period of worldwide disruption and uncertainty.”

“We are on the threshold of a new era for Asian golf,” Thant continued.“The International Series is a new upper-tier of elite events, the likes of which the region has not seen before, that will mark the start of a phenomenal period of growth for the Asian Tour.”

That growth, according to Norman, is long overdue.

“Healthy competition is a great thing, right?” the former world No.1 said.

“So as long as we do that in a respectful, healthy way, everybody is going to be a benefactor. Every bit of the ecosystem for the game of golf will be the benefactor. Every institution should be embracing this new opportunity of unlocking the lost opportunity that’s been left sitting there for decades and decades and decades.”

Those assurances predictably continue to fall on deaf ears as the U.S. and UK media go into bat for golf’s traditional superpower tours in the face of what many see as a hostile competitor. Norman, believes the ire directed towards LIV Golf, which itself is bankrolled by Saudi’s Public Investment Fund, is misplaced.  

“Well, we’re not in this for a fight. We’re in this for the good of the game,” Norman said. 

“It’s disappointing to be honest, personally disappointing to see some of the attacks that have been taking place unwarrantedly. Any time you go into — if you pre-judge anybody without knowing the facts, then shame on you, to be honest with you.”

Norman was asked what return LIV Golf hoped for out of its $300 million investment, a thinly veiled attempt by an interviewer to extract more info on the rumoured LIV league.

“In a nutshell, what have we really done? We’ve identified a new opportunity out of a lost opportunity, and I mean that in all sincerity. We identify virgin space for lost opportunities or people overlooked for decades and decades and decades. The lost opportunity people should be embracing, other institutions should be embracing. 

“We are very, very respectful and will always be open, and I’m always going to be a healthy, friendly competitor, and that’s important to know, because the market is huge and it’s open for everybody, and we’re going to have these open pathways.

“From LIV Golf Investments, this is just the start for us. The 10-event series we’ll be starting off is just the beginning. It’s the beginning of an exciting new journey.”

Another reporter jumped on Norman’s repeated attempts to position LIV Golf, and by association the Asian Tour, as friendly competitors, even if the PGA-DP World Tour alliance clearly don’t see it that way.

“What is LIV Golf Investments doing that you are scared of? Why do you have to have these attacks to the level they do?” Norman posed in response.

“Understand the fact that we have always and continued to be very collaborative and cooperative with any of the institutions right across the board. We want to work together side by side.

“I would encourage them [The PGA and DP World Tour alliance] to sit back and say, maybe it’s a good time to sit down and understand if we can work side by side.”

The post Asian Tour suddenly sees world as its oyster appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Kent Gray
The Asian Tour will stage mixed-gender events for the first time after joining forces with the Ladies European Tour (LET) for a quickfire Thai double-header set to boast a combined $1.5 million in prize money. 

The Asian Mixed Cup and the Asian Mixed Stableford Challenge will be played back-to-back on the Waterside Course at Siam Country Club near Pattaya from April 7-10 and April 13-16 respectively.

Sixty players from each tour, plus 24 sponsor invitees, will make up the 144-strong fields for each of the $750,000 events where the men and women will play for the same prize money and trophy.

Critically, Official World Golf Ranking, Asian Tour Order of Merit and LET Race to Costa del Sol points will be awarded.

The events are to be hosted by Trust Golf, part of the Thai-based technology enterprise TCT Corporation, and are part of the three event Trust Golf Asian Mixed Series to be preceded by the Thai Mixed later this month.

“The Asian Tour is extremely excited to add a new format of play to our tournament schedule,” said Asian Tour CEO and Commissioner Cho Minn Thant in a joint statement.

“We thank Trust Golf for making it possible for the Asian Tour to stage its first mixed events, which will resonate strongly with golf fans in the region. It is also an exciting opportunity to collaborate with the Ladies European Tour for the first time and pay our maiden visit to the highly-regarded Siam Country Club.”

Asian Tour chief Cho Minn Thant

Siam Country Club is one of Asia’s finest clubs and currently the home of Honda LPGA Thailand.

Dr. Prin Singhanart, founder of TCT Corporation and the Trust Golf Tour, is passionate about innovative golf formats. She hopes to drive towards a World Mixed Championship one day.  

“I’m always extremely keen on mixed formats as golf is the only sport allowing people of all ages and genders to play together,” said Dr. Singhanart.

“I would like to provide a pathway for Thai talents, both male and female. If a female golfer wins outright, they will earn membership to the LET, and if a male golfer wins outright, they will earn membership to the Asian Tour. With the Trust Golf Tour affiliated membership programme, it will allow the players to be ranked on both order of merits.

Alexandra Armas, CEO of the LET, said: “We look forward to collaborating with Dr Prin and her vision to nurture the next generation of Thai talent. These new tournaments are important steps in the continued growth of the LET as we offer 33 playing opportunities to our members in 2022 and we look forward to working together with Trust Golf and the Asian Tour at Siam Country Club in April.”

Monday’s announcement comes after The Asian Tour recently announced its new  ‘The International Series’, a collection of 10 new marquee events made possible by a $300 million, decade-long investment by Saudi-backed LIV Golf Investments.

Korean-born American Sihwan Kim won the first of events, The International Series Thailand, at Black Mountain Golf Club on Sunday, ending a string of near misses on the Asian Tour to claim in maiden pro title after 10 years of trying.

The new Asian Mixed events add immediate focus to the 2022-23 Asian Tour schedule which is still a work in progress due to the ongoing challenges of the pandemic. The $500,000 DGC Open at Delhi Golf Club in India is the next event confirmed from March 24-27. 

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By Kent Gray
What do you get when you mix a Harvard Business School education, investment banking experience, the visionary governorship of one of the world’s largest sovereign wealth funds and deep personal passion for golf?

A vastly experienced, business-savvy, globally connected and wholly invigorated new President of the Arab Golf Federation (AGF), that’s what.

His Excellency Yasir Al-Rumayyan ascended to the pivotal role on January 1 and immediately pledged his “full commitment” to helping the AGF’s 19-member nations become even more influential contributors to the growth of golf globally.

The dual Golf Saudi and Saudi Golf Federation (SGF) Chairman’s appointment was part of a double-whammy for the Kingdom as Majed Al Sorour, the CEO at Golf Saudi and Deputy Chairman of the SGF, was announced as the AGF’s new Secretary-General.

Majed Al Sorour

It means the ambitious duo behind the rise and rise of Saudi Arabian golf have now been charged with super-charging the game’s governance and development across the Arab world. 

Further to that noble grow the game mission as an R&A and Arab Olympic Committee sanctioned organisation, Al-Rumayyan believes the AGF is ready to play an even bigger role developing the professional game.

“The Arab Golf Federation represents one of the most important regional clusters in not only global golf development, but worldwide professional golf,” said Al-Rumayyan. 

“Since as far back as the late 1980s, the Middle East has become a catalyst for the game’s growth and enjoys a rich heritage in promoting the sport. This is something I know all members take great pride in and is a driving force in our vision for the future.”

Sport has been a cornerstone of Al-Rumayyan’s career and as the Governor of the Public Investment Fund (PIF) – the sovereign wealth fund of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia – he is responsible for the multi-billion-dollar investment in sporting events forming part of Vision 2030, Saudi Arabia’s transformative economic and social reform blueprint opening up the Kingdom to the world. 

With a Harvard Business School education and subsequent experience in wealth management and investment banking, the organisation stands to benefit from Al-Rumayyan’s business acumen as well as a passion for, and substantial professional expertise in, the development of Saudi golf.

“It is an honour for me to take on the role as AGF President. First of all, I would like to congratulate my predecessor His Excellency Sheikh Fahim bin Sultan Al Qasimi on the fantastic job he has done in leading the Arab Golf Federation and thank him personally for his success in bringing the great game of golf to the Arab people,” Al-Rumayyan said.

“I am not only a passionate golfer, but recognise the true value the sport can deliver, across all our societies. I pledge my full commitment to focussing on how the AGF can support the game’s governing bodies, in their mission to develop the game around the world, as well as mobilising our collective resources to maximise opportunities for Arab nations in our growing participation in game’s global future.”

A keen golfer himself, Al Sorour will be looking to bring his widespread business and sporting expertise in his new role at the AGF.

“Thanks must go to Mr. Adel Mohammed Al Zarouni, who I take over from as the Arab Golf Federation’s new Secretary General,” said Al Sorour. 

“I am incredibly proud to take up this new position, given the ever-increasing prominence of Saudi Arabia in the global golf industry and having already worked closed alongside His Excellency at Golf Saudi, I am confident that we will be able to deliver an inspired strategy for golf in the Middle East which sees the sport’s continued growth in the region.”

golfsaudi.com

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Al Hamra Golf Club’s promotion from a former Challenge Tour site to fully-fledged main circuit venue was confirmed in October with the announcement of the Feb. 3-6 Ras Al Khaimah Championship presented by Phoenix Capital. 

Then, as late as Jan. 18, the DP World Tour announced another $2 million event, the Ras Al Khaimah Classic, would be played at Al Hamra from Feb. 10-13. It is an 11th hour replacement for the 25th Commercial Bank Qatar Masters which has reportedly been postponed until “later this spring” as a result of “ongoing restrictions associated with the global Covid-19 pandemic.”

Set to follow the week after the 33rd Slync.io Dubai Desert Classic, the RAK Championship critically goes head-to-head with the now Asian Tour-sanctioned and $5 million Saudi International. While no marquee players had been announced at the time of press, the DP World Tour can’t hope to match Golf Saudi’s star pulling power but the RAK events are nonetheless important as the circuit continually pivots to ensure its membership playing opportunities.

Al Hamra previously hosted the European Challenge Tour over three consecutive years from 2016–2018. It was initially the venue for the RAK Golf Challenge in 2016 and 2017, before hosting the RAK Challenge Tour Grand Final as the final stop on the Road to Ras Al Khaimah in 2018.

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The Jan. 30-Feb-6 Golf Saudi initiative ran in parallel with the Asian Tour’s new, $5 million season-opening PIF Saudi International powered by SoftBank Investment Advisers at Royal Greens Golf & Country Club. 

As part of Golf Saudi’s Mass Participation programme, itself a key tenant of the Kingdom’s ‘Vision 2030’ socio-economic agenda, National Golf Week saw the Kingdom’s  golf courses and facilities supplied with the “equipment needed to engage with new and existing audiences, enabling them to experience exciting activities across a range of locations.”

More than 350 people signed up for free lessons at Royal Greens and Dirab Golf Club while group and Individual lessons were also taught at Saffa Golf Club. 

Golf Saudi also announced its membership of the European Disabled Golf Association (EDGA), as part of its efforts to make the game fully inclusive.

Other activations at Royal Greens GCC included the “takeover on the famous 16th hole by school children”, plus the display of art printed on course boarding which will be” visible to the world of golf”. More than 600 students visited the Saudi International tournament village as part of school trips. 

As well as encouraging school children to give the game a try, National Golf Week was also targeted at adults of all abilities. 

 

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“At Golf Saudi, we endorse encouraging as many Saudis as possible to get involved in not just golf but other sports too,” said Majed Al Sorour, Deputy Chairman of the Saudi Golf Federation and CEO of Golf Saudi.

“As both a physical and mental activity, golf is a great way to build confidence and playing with others can play an important role in helping to build an active and fun social life.

“Our inaugural National Golf Week will support our Vision 2030 goals in terms of encouraging as many Saudis as possible to get active, regardless of their age, gender or how good they are at golf. We at Golf Saudi want to celebrate the golfing achievements of all those who take part.”

Bouchaib El Jadiani, Head of Mass Participation & National Teams at Golf Saudi, said: “Heading-up Golf Saudi’s Mass Participation programme, I know first-hand the positive impact that golf can play in the lives of young Saudis.

“No place is this clearer than in my additional role with the Saudi National Teams, where each weekend I am lucky enough to see these young Saudi men and women not only compete in international tournaments but also enjoy themselves as golf gives them the opportunity to develop, learn and compete. That is why schemes such as National Golf Week are so important in terms of bringing this great game to the people of Saudi Arabia.”

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By Kent Gray
Golf Saudi has become the latest member of the European Disabled Golf Association (EDGA).

EDGA is considered globally to be the foremost experts on golf for persons of disability and will therefore look to work with Golf Saudi to promote golf for all Saudi players with disabilities, regardless of their ability. 

In the build-up to the announcement at the PIF Saudi International powered by SoftBank Investment Advisers, both parties had been hard at work to develop a joint programme which promotes golf to Saudi citizens with varying disabilities, with the intention of making the game fully inclusive in the Kingdom. 

Speaking during a press conference announcing Golf Saudi’s membership of EDGA, Majed Al Sorour, the CEO and Deputy Chairman of Golf Saudi said: “It is my pleasure to confirm that Golf Saudi has become a member of EDGA, furthering our commitment to make golf accessible to all. As an organisation, EDGA is considered globally to be the foremost expert on golf for people with disabilities and we will therefore look to work with them to promote golf for all in Saudi. I am delighted that we’ve been able to welcome here in KAEC, Mark Taylor, EDGA’s Head of Development, who has over the past week been training our Golf Saudi coaches to deliver tailored training sessions.” 

A two-day training programme was initially held in Riyadh with Golf Saudi’s Mass Participation coaches and other volunteers working in the Saudi disability space. With another two days of training held for other PGA qualified coaches, who are already based in the Kingdom. 

Commenting on both the progress made by the Golf Saudi coaches under his tutelage and the tournament clinics held during the PIF Saudi International powered by SoftBank Investment Advisers, Mark Taylor, the Head of Development at the European Disabled Golf Association, said: 

“My thanks first of all must go to Golf Saudi for not only undertaking this training and hosting these clinics but for also signing up here today as an official member of EDGA. This bold move demonstrates their courage to follow through on their vision, in terms of making golf an inclusive sport throughout the Kingdom. 

He added: “Thanks must also go to the participants who took the time out to join us, as well as the team at the Asian Tour, without whom this clinic would not be possible.” 

 

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As one of the three pillars of the National Sustainability Strategy, the Social Agenda is focused on the creation of education, employment and leisure opportunities for all Saudis from all age groups. Golf Saudi’s membership of EDGA will therefore sit at the heart of this, by creating an access programme for disabled people to attend their nearest golf courses, regardless of where they’re from within the Kingdom.

Amer Al Rumaih, a Saudi war veteran has been in attendance at this week’s tournament as well as the EDGA clinics. By signing-up to the Social Agenda in early 2021, Al Rumaih was the first beneficiary of the Golf Saudi access programme. In the past twelve months, Al Rumaih has been provided with complimentary lessons and equipment to aid his development within the game and as a result has inspired others to follow his lead. 

Steven Troup, Director of Instruction and Education at Golf Saudi, said: “At Golf Saudi we are firm believers in diversity and inclusion being the basis for not only our organisation’s success but the country’s too. Therefore, we are proud to have not only developed a comprehensive Social Agenda for Saudi citizens but to have also worked so closely with EDGA to develop an access programme that offers the same golfing opportunities for disabled citizens too.” 

Over the next 12 to 18 months, Golf Saudi will continue to work closely with EDGA, as well as golf clubs across the Kingdom to ensure that the new access programme is available to all. With expertise from EDGA, assistance from Saudi golf clubs and dedicated resources from Golf Saudi this new programme will provide opportunities for everyone that wants to try the sport of golf.

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 The 25-year-old has risen to No. 70 in the official World Amateur Golf Rankings on the back of victories at the 6th Saudi Open and 40th Pan Arab Championships in Cairo.

Salhab’s victory in the individual standings at Dreamland Golf Resort in Egypt also spearheaded Saudi Arabia to just its second teams gold medal– by a whopping eight strokes over Qatar.

The victory at the Saudi Open, which included a course record 66 around Riyadh Golf Club, earned Salhab an invite to the PIF Saudi International powered by SoftBank Investment Advisers. Though he missed the cut by six strokes after rounds of 75-75, the experience gained teeing it up in a field including the likes of Dustin Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau, Bubba Watson and eventual champion Harold Varner III cannot be underestimated.

It was Salhab’s third Asian Tour start in as many months and he has been the leading Saudi amateur at each stop: 113th at the Blue Canyon Phuket Championship and T109th  at both the Laguna Phuket Championship and the Saudi International. 

 

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A stroke average of 74.83 in his six Asian Tour rounds thus far is a benchmark to work with, just as the eye-catching performances of Ratchanon Chantananuwat are something to aspire to. The Thai 14-year-old amateur has impressively made the cut in all five of his Asian Tour starts thus far, including both Phuket events and the Saudi International where he finished T71.

Salhab is grateful to Golf Saudi for the opportunities to learn at the highest level. 

 “This is all thanks to the continuous support us National Team players receive, whether that’s from the Saudi Golf Federation or Golf Saudi, their backing enhances our chances of performing to the best of our abilities.”

 Saud Al Sharif is up to 371st in the WAGR chiefly on the back of his Jordan Open victory late last year. Al Sharif went on to finish 141st, 130th and 115th at Blue Canyon, Laguna Phuket and Royal Greens respectively. 

 Jamie McConnell, the Director of Instruction at the Claude Harmon Performance Academy Dubai, coaches Al Sharif and is pleased with the progress of the entire Saudi national team.

 “The team have been working exceptionally hard over the last few months with some fantastic results including three victories from Saud and Faisal which was fantastic to see, and more than earned through their hard work and dedication,” said McConnell.

 “I think this year the biggest help has been the schedule that they have been able to play. Mixing a full summer of amateur events with some more recent Asian Tour events allows them to really feel what it is like to play, travel and adapt to different scenarios, climates and courses. This is a huge part of learning to compete at the highest level and I must compliment Golf Saudi on not only backing them to play in these events, but also opening the doors required to do so.”

“The next few months will involve a sit-down review of what we have been through and achieved over the last few months, while also reflecting on what needs to be improved before what will be a hectic period in the late spring and through the summer.” 

The Kingdom’s leading amateurs have pushed Saudi’s pioneering professional Othman Almulla all winter long with the world’s 1697th ranked player recording 113th, 126th and T100 finishes at the two Phuket events and the Saudi International respectively.

Like the amateurs, Almulla continues to work tirelessly towards his dream and posted a poignant message during the Saudi International entitled “keep going”.

 “It will take time; it will take pain; it will break you down and force you to become stronger. But everything you are going through right now will take you to places you could have never imagined. Have faith in your journey and trust in yourself because one day, you will get there. – Walk the Earth.”

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