Have you ever wondered what it’s like to be the best amateur golfer in your country? How about achieving that at just 16-years of age?
For Jordanian Mousa Shana’ah this has become a reality.
Mousa’s introduction to the game of golf wasn’t your typical one, more like a typical millennial one!
“I was born here and I was raised here in Dubai and obviously this was the place where I played all my golf growing up. So it's always been like my home. But when I was younger, about four-years-old, I had this gaming console. It was called the Nintendo Wii.
“It had a variety of different sports on it, one of them being golf. I don't know why, but I was always attached to golf game on there. My dad noticed that and decided, why don't we pick it up outside and see where it goes? And I’ve loved golf ever since really.”
Mousa was then hooked on golf, and his rise in the amateur game has been meteoric. A trophy cabinet full of all his victories throughout the UAE and the Middle East. A feat not possible without the facilities he has become accustomed to in Dubai.
“Some of my most memorable wins include the ones where I broke course records. Those are obviously the ones that stay in your memory for a while.
“One of them being The JA Resort Amateur a while ago when I broke the course record there, and it's my home course where I do my coaching. So it's pretty cool to have that there and I still think about it now, even though it's a little bit ago.”
It’s all systems go now for Mousa, as he continues with his international golfing schedule while proudly representing Jordan. Under the World Amateur Golf Ranking, Mousa is currently 402nd as an amateur globally, and as a Junior he is ranked top 60.
“Very busy and exciting times. Coming up next week, I've got the Asian Games in China, which is a big event this year and then at the end of October it is the Asia-Pacific Amateur in Australia.
“We're going to be playing at Royal Melbourne, which is a world-renowned golf course, so that's super exciting, having a chance to compete in that high level of competition as well. Then hopefully I will get a professional start later on in the year.
Number one Jordanian Amateur
“It's always good to represent your country and to be representing them, especially in these big events coming up it’s pretty cool. I don't really think about the pressure of being the number one Jordanian Amateur that much, but it's a good feeling to be in that position.
“But still the biggest thing for me goal wise is that I really want to be the best player in the world. Everything that happens along the way should just happen on its own. But that's where I want to get to at the end.”
