Why Aramco is putting its energy behind Saudi’s golf push

In what is its inaugural year, the professional women’s golf competition, which is part of the Ladies European Tour, is set for a thrilling finale, with the first three rounds already complete and the climax event set to tee off at the Royal Greens Golf & Country Club, north of Jeddah, in Saudi Arabia, next month.

And Aramco’s public affairs general manager, Talal Al-Marri, told Arabian Business the plans were to grow the event even further.

He said: “Certainly, the European and North American markets are important parts of our global presence in energy markets. I would also add that we have strategic ties to these regions not just in energy supply terms, but also in terms of key marketing, services and research subsidiaries.

“Our plans for the Series, and for promoting women’s golf more broadly, go beyond just these markets, however. We also plan to take the game to Asia in 2022 – after all, we are a truly global business.”

Already in 2021 the London leg at Centurion Golf Club was won by Marianne Skarpnord in July; the US’s Alison Lee claimed the Spanish round at La Reserva Club, in Sotogrande; and earlier this month Charley Hull, from England, took the top spot at Glen Oaks Club. Each took the lion’s share of a $1m prize fund for the separate events.

While the team event allowed mid-tier women players to get picked in an ‘NFL’ style draft by the top players to also give them a chance of winning valuable prize money.

Aramco’s public affairs general manager, Talal Al-Marri.

How the Aramco Team Series works:

• The tournament is a team competition with a total of 36 teams playing, each team consisting of three professionals and one amateur.
• A draft is used to form the teams for the tournament. The 36 team captains are seeded based on the official Women’s World Golf Rankings. In a random order, the captains select the first additional player to join their team. Each team is then randomly assigned an amateur player and another professional from the remaining field.
• Scoring is on a ‘two-from-four’ basis which sees the best two scores on each hole counted for the team competition. With this format, the amateurs may contribute to the result of the game. In addition, the professionals complete every hole and the score is used for the individual competition.

Al-Marri explained the reason behind launching the competition. He said: “We knew we had to make the Aramco Team Series different and we have: it is the first time that amateurs can play with professionals in mixed teams, and the size of the prize pot – at $4m for the Series – is changing the landscape of the women’s game.

“Aramco has the history, the resources, and the commitment to ensure the Series delivers on its ambition to help women around the world, not just those who are associated with our company.”

The world’s biggest energy and chemical company, which initially signed a two-year deal to promote the Series, has been championing the sport of golf among its employees since back in the 1940s and built the first golf course in the kingdom in 1945, near its headquarters in Dhahran.

“We even run an annual tournament for staff and their families. At the same time, we work hard to empower all our female colleagues who are employed right across the business, from our engineers, researchers, traders, and product developers, right up to the board,” said Al-Marri.

Golf has been chosen as a vehicle to help Saudi Arabia achieve its Vision 2030 socio-economic goals and last year Golf Saudi unveiled a ‘Ladies First Club’, an initiative that will offer complimentary membership – inclusive of golf lessons, driving range access and full 18-hole rounds – to local women, with the initial membership intake capped at 1,000 registrants.

“Putting this all together, we saw that the time was right for an innovative women’s golf competition that catalyses greater female participation,” said Al-Marri.

Saudi Arabia announced on Saturday a plan to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2060, while Aramco themselves went further to reveal a net-zero target by 2050.

And golf will play a role in that sustainability drive. Al-Marri explained: “We are partnering with Golf Saudi as it builds more golf courses in Saudi Arabia to help apply environmentally friendly practices. We plan to share our environmental engineering expertise with them and advise on managing native vegetation, protecting biodiversity, regenerating the ecosystem, and sustainable water use.

“The preservation of our natural environment for future generations is vitally important to us and something we take very seriously.”

The Saudi Grand Prix is scheduled to be held as a night race on a street track around Jeddah in December.

As well as golf, Saudi Aramco has also invested heavily in Formula 1, with a long-term deal signed in March 2020 – the company’s first global sponsorship of a major sporting event.

The deal features Aramco trackside branding and title rights to the most recent US Grand Prix in Texas, and was seen as instrumental in securing the inaugural Saudi Grand Prix, which is scheduled to be held as a night race on a street track around Jeddah in December.

And Al-Marri did not rule out taking any further sporting sponsorship opportunities in the future.

He said: “Aramco is committed to helping its staff and society be healthy and happy. When it comes to sponsorship opportunities, we assess them on a case-by-case basis.

“We have made significant commitments to Formula One and now the Aramco Team Series. We will continue to examine similar potential sporting partnerships to see if they align with our values, as and when they arise.”