 |
You’d think most golfers would have seen enough sand to last a lifetime. But the game is booming in Dubai, with several great courses already built and more on the way. Peter Ellegard reports.
I stood over the putt and pictured my line, shutting out the huge spectator stand looming behind it from my mind. There was no need to measure it: I was in almost the identical place Ian Poulter had putted from two days before in his play-off match with Robert Karlsson for the Dubai World Championship title.
Replaying the par-five 18th hole of the Earth course for the second time after they had finished all square, Poulter was left with a 12-metre birdie attempt while Karlsson’s was little more than a metre away.
Poulter’s putt came up agonisingly short – but it would not have counted anyway because he had accidentally dropped his ball onto his marker, causing it to flip over and incurring a one-shot penalty. Karlsson rolled in his birdie and snatched the glory.
The crowds may have gone, but with the stand, press centre, hospitality marquees and giant scoreboard all still in place, I could imagine just how it must have been for Poulter, putting for the Ä910,349 (AU$1.23 million) first prize. I stroked the ball, watched it take the double break…and in it went! I raised my arms to acknowledge the cheers from the non-existent spectators. Eat your heart out, Poults!
Sadly, that was almost the only memorable moment of my round, but the day itself was amazing. I was taking part in a special ‘Ultimate Golf Experience’ staged by the European Tour, which allowed weekend golfers like me to play Greg Norman’s superb Earth course in competition just after the big event, with the pins in the final day position, greens and fairways conditioned as they were for the pros and even playing from the same tees as the stars.
The day also included using the same lockers as the pro players, a personalised name badge, a caddie bib with our names and prizes given out by former Ryder Cup player David Howell.
Part of the Jumeirah Golf Estates complex, the Earth course opened in time for the 2009 Dubai World Championship and is now the final stop on the European Tour’s Race to Dubai, the renamed European Order of Merit. It is a challenge even from the regular tees, although at least they play a far friendlier distance of 5,918 metres as opposed to the gargantuan 7,017 metres we endured.
Water doesn’t come into play until the par-three sixth hole, but returns intermittently after that to test your nerve and accuracy. In the meantime, watch out for hazards including the pine needle-strewn desert scrub, with thick bushes just waiting to snaffle your ball, and the gaping, sculpted bunkers, some with brutal overhangs. The contoured greens also ask serious questions of your putting skills, especially running as fast as they were for us.
The star turn is the finishing three-hole stretch. The long, dog-leg par-four 16th is skirted by a lake, while the par-three 17th has an island green with no bail-out shot (I couldn’t make the 224-metre carry into the wind, even with my driver) and the 18th is a delight, with a meandering stream running from a lake by the tee boxes, splitting the fairway and edging the green.
The course is one of two at Jumeirah Estates, the other being the Fire course, also by Norman. Another two are planned, but are currently on hold (as is Tiger Woods' proposed course) as Dubai recovers from the economic crisis of the past three years.
Not that you would think there has been any crisis in this tiny Arabian Gulf emirate. Everywhere you look, glass-and-steel structures reach for the sky. True, many towers are unfinished and are topped by idle cranes. However, confidence is returning to Dubai, underlined by the opening last year of the world’s tallest building, the 828-metre Burj Khalifa.
From the observation deck, 124 floors up and reached in just 60 seconds by the world’s fastest elevators, special Viewfinder scopes in place of traditional telescopes highlight Dubai’s phenomenal growth. Point them in any direction and view the spider web of highways threading between needles of commerce and high-rise living, and even spanning waterways. Press a button and you see the same scene from photographs taken 30 years ago, virtually all of it bare scrubland criss-crossed by dusty tracks and the odd road.
The skyline has changed dramatically from my previous visit 10 years earlier, as has the sea view from the beach hotel I stayed in then. Today that view has been replaced by an artificial palm tree-shaped archipelago of colossal proportions, built on reclaimed land – The Palm Islands.
During my latest visit I also played the Majlis course at the Emirates Golf Club, host of the annual Dubai Desert Classic and pioneer of the Gulf golf boom when it opened as the Middle East’s first all-grass championship course in 1988. I also tackled another stalwart, the Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club course. Both are operated and managed by Dubai Golf.
The 6,270-metre, par-71 Dubai Creek course is a gem, with several holes right on the creek. The tee box for the par-four sixth hole is actually built on a platform set over water and reached by a bridge while the 17th and 18th holes, both par-fours, have the creek running down the left and a lake to the right. The 18th green also has a lagoon in front, giving a majestic view across it to the iconic clubhouse, which resembles the sails of a traditional Arab dhow sailing boat.
Originally designed by Karl Litten in 1993 and remodelled by Thomas Bjorn in 2005, the course has hosted the Dubai Desert Classic but limited spectator viewing areas saw it removed from the European Tour calendar. However, that does not detract from its playability nor its delightful setting.
Skyscrapers form the backdrop of the Majlis course, very different to the open vistas when I played it a decade earlier. But it is rightly regarded as one of the must-play courses in Dubai and is a real class act.
The 6,676-metre Majlis is one of two 18-hole courses at the Emirates Golf Club, the other being the 6,719-metre Faldo course, which opened as the Majlis before a redesign by Sir Nick Faldo in 2006. Both are par-72 and use the natural, rolling desert terrain to serve up a serious test of golf.
Majlis means meeting house in Arabic and the signature clubhouse, fashioned like Bedouin tents, is one of the most recognisable in the region. The ninth and 18th holes on the Majlis course play to a double green in front of the clubhouse, approach shots to both needing to negotiate the protecting lake, which can dash the hopes of pros and amateurs alike.
Besides the water on these and several other holes, expect to play a number of shots from the course’s extensive bunkers and desert waste areas. You may even be unlucky enough to find your ball lodged in the crown of one of the many palm trees dotting the course, as happened to Lee Westwood in this year’s Dubai Desert Classic when he was challenging for the lead.
A fellow golf writer from Korea was playing in the group behind, and his audible reaction when he saw each of the holes laid out before him was: “Wow!”
If you have time, there are some other top-notch courses to play in Dubai. They include the 6,677-metre oasis-themed Al Badia Golf Club layout by Robert Trent Jones II at Dubai Festival City; the Els Club Dubai in the Dubai Sports City development that was designed by Ernie Els; and The Montgomerie Dubai, created by Scotland’s Colin Montgomerie.
But wherever you play in Dubai, you will be guaranteed a real wow factor.
at a glance
Getting there:
Emirates operate flights from Sydney, Melbourne, Perth and Brisbane to Dubai. 1300-303-777; emirates.com
Accommodation: Atlantis The Palm is a huge resort complete with water park, fish-filled lagoon, tunnels based around the Atlantis myth and a dolphin habitat, plus restaurants including chic Nobu. atlantisthepalm.com
The Park Hyatt Dubai has 225 rooms and is alongside the Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club. dubai.park.hyatt.com
Getting around: Local taxis are the best way to get around Dubai. They charge by the kilometre. The Dubai Metro has two lines with 15 of the eventual 47 planned stations now open. dubaimetro.eu
Green fees: Jumeirah Golf Estates: Earth course. AED595 (AU$160).
jumeirahgolfestates.com
Emirates Golf Club: Majlis course. AED915 (AU$245); Faldo course AED543 (AU$145). dubaigolf.com
Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club. AED543 (AU$145). dubaigolf.com
Things to do: Visit the observation deck on the 124th floor of the world’s tallest building, the Burj Khalifa. Tickets cost AED100 – 400
(AU$27 – 107). burjkhalifa.ae
Aquaventure, Dubai’s largest water-themed attraction, at Atlantis The Palm. Full-day tickets cost AED200 (AU$54). atlantisthepalm.com
Shop till you drop at downtown Dubai Mall with more than 1,200 shops.
thedubaimall.com
Go on a Sundowner 4x4 dune safari and dine under the stars in a desert camp. Price AED33 (AU$89). arabian-adventures.com
For more information on Dubai, visit dubaitourism.ae
|
Comments
|
|
|
|
|
