By Kent Gray
Rayhan Thomas is determined to turn his recent Desert Swing frustrations into a fitting MENA Tour farewell.

The 19-year-old world amateur No.17 will make his much-anticipated return to the regional Pro-Am circuit at the $75,000 Troon Series–Al Zorah Open starting in Ajman today.

After bypassing last week’s season-opening Journey to Jordan-1 event in Aqaba, Thomas is set for his first MENA Tour appearance since the 2017 Dubai Creek Open where he finished T-2 in a highly creditable defence of the Dubai Creek Open title that launched his career a year earlier.

It also marks the likely beginning of the end for the Dubai Creek member on the developmental tour. He plans to play the remaining ‘spring swing’ events until mid-March before taking up a scholarship at Oklahoma State University, the No.1 team in NCAA, later this year.

“Once I join my college, I am not sure how many events I will be able to play on the MENA Tour. I will surely miss all this,” Thomas told the MENA Tour website. “This tour has meant a lot to me and my golfing career so far.”

The former amateur order-of-merit champion has exempt status for Ajman and is one of 13 amateurs in the 120-strong field. As ever, he’s quietly confident of contending after learning from missed cuts in the European Tour’s Omega Dubai Desert Classic and inaugural Saudi International.

He missed the weekend at Emirates Golf Club by two strokes but closed with a pleasing 69 and before mixing an eye-catching opening 67 at Royal Greens Golf & Country Club to outshine four of the world’s top five players with a 77 to eventually miss the cut by four shots.

“I do want to leave on a high. I am playing well and even though I missed the cut in Dubai and Saudi, I did have my moments there and thought I was pretty solid in patches,” Thomas said.

“Now I just need to make sure I have three consistent rounds and I should be in a good place.”

The MENA Tour by Arena has returned to the world schedule after a year of restructuring and features 10 tournaments in 2019, split into two five event spring and autumn swings. With increased purses and Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) points, it is a launch pad for ambitious young professional to the bigger tours, and for the players from across the Middle East eyeing the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo.