Robbie Williams has just been unveiled as the first general manager of the new-look MENA Tour – at the age of 26. The former schoolboy football star talks about his Dubai upbringing, finding his niche in golf, working alongside his teaching professional father James and his ambition to make the developmental circuit the best feeder tour in the world.

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I played a little as a child, occasionally at Emirates Golf Club when my father was in his first stint at the club, and during the summer holidays back in the UK. I actually made a hole in one on my first full 18 holes on a golf course at the age of 10 during one of these summer trips. Sadly, I haven’t had one since.

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I didn’t really play again until I was playing professional football at al Nasr at the age of 19. Only training for two to three hours a day, I had plenty of time on my hands and this was when I truly caught the bug and became a little bit of a range rat, spending most mornings and afternoons on the practice tee up at Jebel Ali.

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After school I took a gap year to pursue my football career and ended up signing for Al Nasr Club in Dubai, playing in the youth and reserve teams. Due to the Arabian Gulf League regulations, only a certain number of foreign players could play for the first team in one particular season and at that time they had a host of foreign players including a World Cup winner in Luca Toni. Unfortunately for me, they were a lot better than I was. I played as a centre midfielder or a number 10 for most of career.

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I attended Jumeirah English Speaking School by Safa Park. Then, at age 11, after spending a year at Dubai College, I moved back to the UK having signed schoolboy forms with Wolverhampton Wanderers. During my final year of school, I was selected to play for the England Independent School representative team and we played against the Australian and Scotland schoolboys teams. Unfortunately, I was released from Wolves at age 15 for being too small.

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Like most people at the age of 22, I didn’t really know what I wanted to do as a career. My only real plan was to try and become a professional footballer. That was why I thought I’d try and do as many things, in as many different industries as possible, to find a career path. It just so happened that I managed to find it in the first industry I tried.

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I happened to be playing golf with Chris Turlik, who was working on the Omega Dubai Desert Classic at the time, and told him that I didn’t think my career in football was going to amount to anything; he asked if I’d be interested in working as an intern for 25th anniversary edition in 2014 and I jumped at the chance. It was really a baptism of fire.

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I’m very fortunate that I’ve found my passion at 26. The region has given so much to my family, being our home for over 30 years, providing incredible opportunities for my father, and now me. I feel a great responsibility to support the game in this part of the world.

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We have a very close relationship and as many are aware, my father [Emirates G.C. teaching professional James Williams] has a great affinity for conversation. He’s great to be able to bounce ideas off and has been very supportive of me and my sister in our respective career paths. My sister, Anna-Louise, is a physiotherapist in London.

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He’s been a huge influence but by his very nature, I don’t think he’d like to take any of the credit in this regard. He’s very conscious of not getting too involved with what I’m doing and to letting me find some things out on my own. But it is comforting to know that if I ever do need any advice or assistance, I don’t just have David Spencer [the MENA Tour’s strategic advisor] and [tour founder] Mohamed Juma Buamim to turn to.

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It’s a huge honour to become general manager of the MENA Tour, and I’m very grateful that David and Mohamed have entrusted me with such a responsibility. They have been great mentors and have included me in all aspects and discussions regarding the tour from the very beginning. We’re a young tour made up of young players, in a region that in a golfing sense is still quite young, so it’s quite fitting that we have a young general manager, brought up in the region to take the tour on its next steps.

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I wouldn’t say star-stuck, but there are a few moments when you have to pinch yourself doing what I do. Spending a couple of days with [former Open champion] Darren Clarke, our patron… I got to hit balls with him on the range, compete in chipping competitions, play on the course with him. That was a pretty incredible moment. Darren’s been great at imparting his wisdom, not only with me but with players on the MENA Tour and we wish him well as he embarks on his career on the Champions Tour.

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The best part of my game is probably my short game, in particular, bunker play. My father is probably the best bunker player I’ve ever seen and that includes tour pros and Pete Cowen, so it’s something I’ve always enjoyed working on.

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I’m a relatively straight driver of the ball but lack in distance, a fact that annoys me given I play a lot of golf with MENA Tour players and my girlfriend…all of whom hit it longer than I do. My girlfriend is a good golfer, currently playing off one handicap. She works as a cabin crew for Emirates Airline and is looking to head to LPGA Q-School in August.

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We’ve got a lot of work to do with the MENA tour over the next few years and I hope to see this through to the end. Dubai is my home and I see myself staying here for a long time to come. The game is still young in this part of the world and I wish to continue the work of David, Mohamed and my father by contributing to its development as best I can.

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It is a bold ambition to become the finest feeder tour in the world and so should it be. The MENA Tour is headquartered in a city that was built on bold ambitions and lofty goals. We have the opportunity to introduce the game to more people in the region and offer a pathway for those in the region, expat or local, to progress.

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David Spencer is a great ideas man and for him to be so open and approachable is one of the reasons I love what I do. David’s been around the golf industry so long and is really on the pulse of what is happening in the world of golf. He’s a mentor and I can’t wait to work even closer with him in the years to come.

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I’ve known ‘MJB’ [Juma Buamaim] since I was a young child and he was GM at Emirates Golf Club. To work with him over the last few years has been a true insight into Dubai’s story and golf’s story in the region. His passion is evident in everything he’s been involved with and he’s constantly encouraged me to put myself in uncomfortable positions and to understand I have a responsibility to grow the game in this part of the world.

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The tour has so much potential and this is starting to be recognised throughout the region. There is no reason that we can’t be staging 15-18 quality tournaments a year, with prize funds north of US$100,000. We also have ideas of a mini MENA Tour and other grassroots programmes that we’re looking to implement as we progress too.

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I’ve never really been a gamer despite being from that generation. In fact, the only console I owned was the original PlayStation. Strangely though, I have recently taken an interest in eSports as it’s an exciting industry. The ties with the traditional sporting world grow ever closer.

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“It can get quite frustrating for my Mother, with the constant golf talk, however, she has a remarkable amount of patience, and a good knowledge of the game considering she has never had any interest in playing.”

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I was aware of how respected and popular dad was as I encountered others in the industry who know him, but I was still amazed at the amount of praise he received after rejoining Emirates G.C. (earlier this year). He’s a great character and one certainly of the old-school, and I think the genuine care and passion he has from the game is infectious and resonates with people.

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We actually don’t work on the range together that much anymore. He knows my swing so well, having been there when I first started, that we often have a lesson over the phone or a cup of coffee. Whether I put his advice into practice is another story though!

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Like most people working in the golf industry, he doesn’t often get the opportunity to play much. In fact, I don’t think we’ve ever played a full 18 holes together. Since returning to Emirates he’s had a little more time to work on his own game and it’s great to see him hitting balls on the range out of our office window. He’s a hugely talented sportsman and his golf swing is a joy to watch. I hope he can get back to playing competitive golf again. — with Kent Gray