By Joel Beall
The former Bob Hope Classic, a tournament rumoured to be on the PGA Tour’s chopping block for years, secured its future with American Express signing a multi-season sponsorship deal earlier this fall. Now the event has added some pizzazz, and energy, to the proceedings.

On Saturday the tournament, now called “the American Express,” announced that Phil Mickelson will serve as official host starting in 2020.

Mickelson, 49, has acted as an ambassador for the event the past three years, but this new role will take Mickelson from behind-the-scenes work to centre stage. He has won the tournament twice and finished runner-up at last year’s Desert Classic, and owns a house in the Madison Club in La Quinta.

“It’s always been an important part of my life. I would come out here and play junior tournaments here,” Mickelson told the Desert Sun. “I’ve always been passionate about here, and I love the tournament itself. But more than that, this tournament has meant historically a lot to this area, and I want to bring back the vision of Bob Hope.”

The American Express will feature 156 PGA Tour pros and 156 amateurs playing at three courses in La Quinta, and boast a $6.7 million purse, an increase of $800,000 from last year. The tournament has struggled with its depth the past few seasons, which will be one of Mickelson’s top priorities to address in 2020.

“My role has been get the message out on why and how this tournament is the best place to start the year because we have perfect weather, which is why the courses are by the mountain,” Mickelson said to the Desert Sun. “So we don’t have wind, so that we give the players a chance to build a foundation for the upcoming year.

“The second key element is making the tournament and the amateurs here [be] the CEOs that are decision-makers in the game of golf, that support the game of golf. If you don’t have relationships with Corporate America, [the pro-am] it gives you a chance to formulate relationships. If you do, it gives you a chance to strengthen them. Because we will allow players to play with their partners.”

Mickelson will be searching for a personal shot of vitality as well. He missed seven cuts in his final 14 starts in the 2018-’19 season with a lone top-40 finish, and the fall slate wasn’t much better, a T-28 at the limited-field WGC-HSBC Champions his best showing. His remarkable 26-year streak of ranking inside the world top 50 came to an end earlier this month. Mickelson is hoping a new diet and workout regimen will snap his slump as he enters his Age 50 season on tour.

The 2020 American Express begins on Jan. 16. Adam Long is the defending champion.

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The Xerox Emirates General Manager on the 20th anniversary of the Xerox Corporate Golf Challenge, the dream of golfing in Japan during next year’s Rugby World Cup and his frustrating bid to break 80 on Earth.

Interview by Kent Gray

The Xerox Corporate Golf Challenge celebrates its 20th anniversary in 2018, some achievement given the Desert Classic is only a decade older. What’s been the key to its survival as an amateur icon?
The tournament has evolved, like the game, across the region. The opening of exciting and challenging new courses, supported by an increase in active players has enabled us to continually reach new participants whilst maintaining contact with returning players. It is always exciting to move the XCGC to new venues and tweak the format to stay relevant.

What new XCGC innovations and experiences can we look forward to in 2018 to mark the milestone?
To celebrate our 20th year we are looking at providing more than a corporate golf tournament. We want the XCGC to provide memorable and engaging moments as well. So, we will be incorporating various elements, on and off the course, that will provide integral network and business opportunities, as well as host an engaging, entertaining post-play evening for our competitors.

What’s the standout memory for you personally over the first 19 years of the XCGC?
I think the very first year was outstanding and firmly put us [Xerox] on the corporate golfing map,  especially with having two Emiratis in Ismail Sharif and Jamal Al Mana take out the title.

Tell us about your highlight round in the past 12 months?
Actually, my most memorable round was a game of two halves. I had a shocking front nine on the Earth course at JGE and came in with a 39 on the back! Then the very next round it was the opposite – 40 on the front and a nightmare on the back. I’d like to think that one day I might be able to put the two nines together and finally break 80!

Xerox Emirates has remained loyal to golf while other sponsors have fallen by the wayside. What’s the attraction from a business standpoint?
A long-standing belief behind the XCGC is our commitment to the concept of doing business, where relationships are the cornerstone of the sustainable long-term business. Golf has always been the No.1 sport to provide this given the timeframe to support such a commitment.

Before last season’s XCGC, we pressed you for the best country you’d golfed and if you had any bucket list destinations?
Scotland got your vote for the former but you left us hanging on the latter? Where would you love to golf?  I think I would have to say Japan. It is a golf-mad country and I think it would be an amazing experience. Perhaps I might get my chance as they are hosting the Rugby World Cup next year so I might be able to combine two of my favourite pastimes.

The 20th XCGC starts and finishes at Jumeirah Golf Estates this year. How lucky is the series to have such world-class venues to return to year after year?
We are extremely privileged to have such incredible venues within reach. Jumeirah Golf Estates is an amazing facility, and to have our event begin and end at the home to the Race to Dubai is outstanding and something that we are extremely proud of.

Will Tiger win another major?
A few years ago I would have said I don’t think so but his recent form and consistency would say he has definitely got it in him. I do think the game has moved on and the number of world class golfers will make it much harder.

Visit xeroxcgc.com for the full schedule of 20th anniversary XCGC events and online entry details. And stay tuned to golfdigestme.com for full coverage.

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The 17-year-old Dubai-based Indian amateur was disappointed but not disheartened after missing the cut at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship following rounds of 72-75 on The National.

The Tiger Woods’ headlined Desert Classic from February 2-5 will be the Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club member’s third European Tour start via a second sponsors invite. He qualified for last year’s Qatar Masters before shooting 79-75 in Doha and is clearly making progress after finishing three over in Abu Dhabi, five shots shy of cut mark.

“I’m ok, a bit tired but still pretty happy with it,” Thomas said.

“I was pretty close, [so] a bit disappointed. But I can’t complain. I had a great tournament, learned a lot, played with some great players [England’s Sam Walker and Scotland’s David Drysdale]. It gives me a lot of confidence, gives me a little something to work on.”

A pair of stray drives cost him dearly Friday after an impressive opening round, particularly given the quality of the field assembled for the 12^th edition of Desert Swing opener. He was in exalted company with US Masters Champion Danny Willett (+6) and reigning DP World Tour Champion Matthew Fitzpatrick (even par) also missing the cut.

“It was going pretty steady initially, then on the 5^th hole I blocked my drive right and had to take an unplayable. And then on six, I pulled it left and had to chip out, so two bogeys back-to back killed me on the back nine. And then on the next few holes I was just standing up, trying to keep it somewhere in play,” he said.

“I just need to work on keeping it straighter off the tee and it should be good for Dubai.

“It’s good to have that week break to recuperate and get my head straight. Right now my head’s going to be all over the place, a bit disappointed.

“So just get my confidence back a bit and get ready for Dubai. Talk to both my coaches and my parents and see what we have to do better. This is my second European Tour event, I’ve got my third coming up in two weeks, so getting closer and closer.”
 

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Beyond it’s unrivalled history and longevity, there’s a reason why they call the Omega Dubai Desert Classic the Major of the Middle East. Simply put, it’s the trophy that major champions invariably win. Ernie has three. Rory and Tiger two each. And Fred Couples, the great Seve Ballesteros, Mark O’Meara and Jose Maria Olazabal have all hoisted the famous silverware. “We have an honour roll that is the envy of almost every other tournament on the planet,” says golf in DUBAi’s David Spencer. “The old saying that a major begins on the back nine on Sunday is equally applicable to the Omega Dubai Desert Classic and the Majlis course.”

Tiger Woods made one of the Desert Classic’s most memorable back nine charges on his way to victory in 2008

There will always be surprise winners at the highest level in golf such is the depth of competition (especially in this modern era) but great courses have a habit of producing great champions. Nowhere is this more pronounced than at Augusta National, where winners from outside of golf’s top table are a freak anomaly. Not only have the game’s legends dominated The Masters, they have tended to announce their talent for the first time on Amen Corner. Arnold, Tiger, Phil and Jordan all donned a green jacket before winning any other major.

And to a similar (albeit lesser) extent, the Majlis has produced echoes of this on the European Tour. No less than seven of the Classic’s former champions won their first ever European Tour event here in Dubai. From Ernie Els in 1994 to Rory McIlroy in 2009, stars have been born on the Majlis.

Rory McIlroy walks the 18th hole on his way to victory in last year’s Omega Dubai Desert Classic

“It’s a course that favours the most flamboyant and talented players,” explains Spencer. “We believe it is the finest of the three championship courses on the Desert Swing, and the three par 5s on the back nine lend themselves to the kind of exciting charges that we’re used to seeing at The Masters.”

Rory McIlroy’s relatively comfortable victory 12 months ago was the first time since 2002 that the title was won with more than just a single stroke to spare. And with the Northern Irishman bidding to join Ernie Els as a three-time winner this month, ‘Walking with the Champions’ is a theme that golf in DUBAi has embraced.

“We’re immensely proud of our past winners, and we’ll be reflecting on all they’ve achieved, as well as focusing on delivering even more fan engagement,” adds Spencer. “Two free-to-enter Star Clinics will give fans a special glimpse of golf’s future and a brilliant insight into the Ryder Cup, with the second of these events hosted by the European captain himself, Darren Clarke.”

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The Evolution of Rory McIlroy

Rory McIlroy refers to Dubai as his home away from home, and that’s not a crowd-pleasing platitude; he absolutely means it. The World No.3 and the Desert Classic go back nearly a decade. It is the scene of his first European Tour cut, made as amateur back in 2007, and his first tour victory just two years later as a 19-year-old who spent a lot less time in the gym than the muscular athlete you’ll see in action this week. When he won this title seven years ago, McIlroy bounced along the fairways, wielding a freewheeling swing of raw beauty. That unmistakably exuberant gait may have calmed down in the intervening years, but his golf swing remains the most naturally flowing on tour, harnessed by the frame of a man who has maximised his considerable athletic talent. This is Rory’s turf, and in 2016, he’s unquestionaly the man to beat.

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The Majlis: A Major Stage

The Majlis course at Emirates Golf Club is one of Dubai’s most enduring icons. Now nearing its 30th birthday, the surrounding skyline has shot up around it at a bewildering rate, but the course itself has favoured sensible and subtle changes over any radical makeovers. It has always been a shot-maker’s paradise, with risk and reward options on nearly every hole. If the ability to cut off corners has been reined in over the years (Seve Ballesteros once routinely played 18 back down the 17th fairway, until officials planted a row of trees to stymie even his creative talents) there are still many holes where bravery can pay.

The dogleg par 5 13th has traditionally been the easiest hole in past Omega Dubai Desert Classics

The Majlis may produce a similar winning score to the other courses on the Desert Swing, but it is the fluctuations in scoring that make for such drama. Players can find themselves dropping off the leaderboard like a stone with just a few bad swings, or stringing together some of the most remarkable runs in European Tour history.

Who can forget Stephen Gallacher’s astonishing burst in 2014, when he went 10-under par for the last 10 holes of his third round? The Scot came out the next day and shot a four-over 39 on his front nine Sunday, before rallying to win the tournament for the second time. That’s the Majlis in a nutshell.

The spectacular par 4 eighth is one of the Majlis course’s most recognisable holes

The difficulty ranking of the holes themselves is equally hard to predict. Last year the fearsome eighth was comparitively friendly in seventh place, while the seemingly innocuous 16th hole showed an average of 4.38, tying the long par 4 sixth as the hardest hole. What is no secret, however, is the importance of plundering the par 5s, and no player can harbour hopes of winning the Desert Classic without taking full advantage of four holes that are all reachable in two given the right wind. The dogleg left 13th was the easiest of the bunch in 2015, yielding a stroke average of almost 0.5 under par, with the 10th just behind on 4.62. But before they can attack this vulnerable hole, players will have to navigate the capricious ninth, with its swirling breeze and green that slopes back to the water’s edge. Finding birdies on the Majlis is never usually the problem. It’s the ability to avoid trouble that will equally determine who comes out on top.

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