With so many world-class golf courses to choose from in the UAE, and all within two hours from Dubai International Airport, it can be hard to pick one to play. We have compiled a UAE signature hole guide to help you choose. We’ve also teamed up with UAE golf courses to provide you with the chance to win a four-ball at 15 of UAE’s top golf courses. The grand prize is four VIP tickets to DP World!
Category: Travel
Yas Links: Excellent Links Course Architecture
Yas Links, ranked 46th in the world this year by Golf Digest, truly is a must-play when you come to town. The Abu Dhabi golf course is based on Yas Island and is part of a huge Arabian Gulf entertainment development. On this island, that can be reached by boat, plane or car, is The Ferrari World Abu Dhabi Stadium, Yas Waterworld, and Yas Viceroy where many of the UAE’s biggest acts perform in concert.
This world-class championship golf course was designed by Kyle Phillips, also designed Kingsbarn just outside St Andrews in Scotland, currently ranked 69th in the world this year by Golf Digest. The championship course is located on the west shores of Yas Island and includes a 5,750 m2 (57,000 ft2) luxurious clubhouse and world-class, floodlit practice ranges and academy of golf. Phillips transformed the course from desert to links by using two million cubic yards of sand dredged from an adjacent marina to and give the layout the shape and contour, then covering everything with Paspalum turf. In the words of Golf Digest Middle East:
Bali Welcomes Bukit Pandawa Golf Course
Welcome Bali’s latest addition and only 18 hole championship-caliber par-3 golf course on the Island – Bukit Pandawa Golf Course. Bali’s newest arrival is now the most southern golf course on the peninsula, looking out onto the world-famous surf breaks of Bukit Peninsula. 10 of the 18 holes have views of the Indonesian Ocean, while other fairways offer backdrops of historical architectural ruins. The golf course emerges from limestone landscape. Characterized by its elevated ridges, weaving cliff edges, and laid with Paspalum grass. The challenges of this course are defined by the intricate greens complexes and rock outcroppings. Although it differs in many ways from the other five courses Bali now offers, it still maintains its natural landscape theme.
Travel Stories: A Foodie on the Fairways
At golfscape, we like to send our in-house experts out into the field and explore all parts unknown of the destinations we serve from the golf to the culture. Therefore, It wasn’t hard for the team to convince our co-founder at golfscape, Michael, to get on a plane and spend the weekend exploring Cape Town during April’s Autumn harvest season. Michael happens to be the best golfer on our team but his passion for the sport is being rivaled in recent years by his love for food.
Discover Cape Town
Cape Town is rich with history and beauty. A landscape that has some amazing natural sites, with the large Table Mountain and stunning waterfront. The history of South Africa is brought to life with the museums located throughout Cape Town. Here are a few of the key locations in Cape Town, including a few golf courses.
Sport in Dubai
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Golf in Dubai, as we have mentioned, has improved massively. But it isn’t just golf that is thriving in Dubai, sport as a whole is blossoming.
Horse Racing
The Dubai World Cup was first held in 1996, and is an annual horse racing race. In 2010, the prize money was raised to $10 million dollars, and one of the past winners includes horse racing legend Frankie Dettori.
The race is held at the Meydan Racecourse, which also features a golf course, The Track, Meydan Golf. As well as this race, there are loads of horse racing events throughout the year, and Camel racing offers a unique and exciting alternative.
The Most Expensive Courses in the World
Golf is a game enjoyed all over the world by both players and fans. Many of whom enjoy to travel overseas to boost adrenaline into their golfing adventures. If you’re one of these, you may have walked the same steps as some very well known names. It’s no red carpet, but nonetheless is still pretty damn cool! There is a handful of luxurious golf courses around the world, all of which are of the highest pedigree. Unsurprisingly, these courses are very popular hot spots for both professional golfers and celebrities, all those who wish to hone their skills with the iron.
We have found out which of the world’s golf courses ask for a hefty fee and which celebrities have taken on these challenges
Other Than Golf: Dubai Edition
The landscape of Dubai has changed drastically over the past five years. This has completely transformed the experience of a trip to Dubai, as it is now something very different to what it used to be. Too often dubbed a ‘melting pot’ for many different cultures, the term fails the true environment of Dubai, which shouldn’t just be known as a mixture of other places, but a world of its own.
Modern Golfer Travel Essentials
The ardent golfer would play Mount Everest if somebody put a flagstick on top of it. – Pete Dye, Golf Architect
But whatever lies next to conquer as your golf version of “Everest,” the most essential quality after adaptability is a high level of preparedness. That’s why we have curated a collection of the must-have travel accessories that will help you make the most of your next destination golf experience.
Make Sure Your Clubs Get There Safely Play Global and Track Every Shot
Playing a new course that you want to track shots on and save forever? The Arccos Golf Tracking System (R) will make the most of your experience using the swing you have. It does so with an army of 14 sensors that attach to each of your clubs and talk to the companion app while you play. Using GPS info from your phone, it knows how far you’re hitting each club, as well as how far you are from the green, and can use that to make in-round club recommendations (right on your wrist if you’re wearing an Apple Watch).
Let’s Look Beyond Borders
Putting the Poor Domestic TV Ratings from The Masters in Perspective
CBS released ratings from The Masters Final Round coverage on Sunday where Bubba Watson cruised to victory in a rather subdued back nine to capture his second green jacket by three strokes.
On Tuesday Sport Media Watch reported the Final Round coverage earned a 7.8 overnight rating down 24% from last year (10.2), and the lowest overnight for a final round since 2004 (7.3) when another lefty, Phil Mickelson, captured his first green jacket. The rating equates to ‘million’s of viewers’ meaning this year attracted 7.8 million viewers. This is well off the record in 1997 when Tiger Woods took the world by storm capturing his first Masters that attracted 15.8 million viewers to tune in.
What was not reported to give this ratings story more balance was that The Masters is now televised in over 200 countries worldwide, and in regions where golf is growing like never before. Did you know there could be in just a few years time over 40 million core golfers in China?
While the data is spotty on how many viewers actually tuned in globally to watch The Masters, you can bet that a conservative estimate would be one or two times the domestic market. When accessing the most densely populated counties in the world where golf is growing the fastest it’s China, South Korea, Brazil, Argentina and India that come to mind. Furthermore, when you convert even a subset of new golfers in those respective countries into eyeballs it becomes a significant amount that were no doubt watching golf’s most celebrated Major this past weekend.
This is the reason Augusta National Golf Club is making such efforts abroad with the recent invitation to the Asian Amateur Champion to play The Masters as they look to extend their brand worldwide and grow the game concurrently.
These are constant reminders that golf is a global game and the industry encompassing it whether it is events, golf courses, resorts or travel companies must be continually looking at the current state of the game with this mind set. In the end it’s what is going to keep it healthy and evolving.