Golfers heading to the Middle East will have a variety of new options to consider, with several new projects announced in the past month.
In Abu Dhabi, golfing legend Gary Player has signed up to design one of two courses planned for Saadiyat Island. The course will be the first in the Gulf to have several beach-front holes, and will be constructed in the Saadiyat’s Beach district.
It is scheduled for completion in 2009, and a second ‘ocean style’ course will also be built on the island.
Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority (ADTA) director general and Tourism Development and Investment Company (TDIC) managing director Mubarak Al Muhairi said the island’s beach was a “dramatic setting for any golf facility, with the clubhouse and the course planned to offer sweeping Gulf and beach views”.
“Our research has shown that golf is a key ingredient in the meetings and tourism sectors, which we anticipate will account for one third of our targeted three million annual tourist arrivals by 2015,” he said.
TDIC chief executive Lee Tabler said the beach was master-planned to include five-star resorts, a dedicated sailing club and private beach clubs.
“The Gary Player course will be a key component of this overall celebrity ‘see-and-be-seen’ environment,” he said.
In Egypt, guests at the Hyatt Regency Taba Heights Resort are now able to access an 18-hole championship course, designed by John Sanford. The course measures 7100 yards, and has the dramatic Sinai Mountains in the background.
Hyatt International Hotels and Resorts Middle East area marketing director Thierry Bertin said contemporary travellers were not interested in “generic holiday destinations”.
“They are looking for holidays where they can experience natural attractions in peaceful environments,” he said.
In Dubai, developers of The Dunes championship course are confident it will be ready for play by the end of this year, with progress described as “at an advanced stage”.
Located in Dubai Sports City (DSC), the official opening is scheduled for December 2007, with developers planning to give the course adequate time to mature before being played.
DSC chief executive U. Balasubramaniam said The Dunes would be a “world-class course”.
“From enabling Ernie Els to realise his vision in the design, through to working with leading developers and managers in the construction and organisational strategy, we’re pulling out all the stops to make this a fantastic golfing experience,” he said.
“The construction effort has been considerable, but we can see that the results are going to be exceptional. The Dunes will be a course that golf enthusiasts around the world will talk about.”
Almost 50km of irrigation piping have been used to construct the course, with a pump station capable of supplying the course with more than two million gallons of water every eight hours. Almost two million cubic metres of earth have been moved to construct the course, which has utilised GPS technology to ensure the designs are created faithfully.
The course has been built by Septech Emirates, and will be managed by Troon Golf.
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