Dubai: Edoardo Galeppini and Kim Chiang held their nerves to pull off exciting wins in their respective divisions in the first Golf Citizen Open at the Arabian Ranches Golf Club on Saturday.
Galeppini, who grew up playing with Italy’s famed Molinari brothers — Edoardo and Francesco — carded a consistent 35 points to take the honours in the men’s section while the 12-year-old Chiang upstaged a strong field in the ladies division, scoring 34 points.
The individual stableford tournament was part of golf in DUBAi’s ambitious drive to promote GOLF CITIZEN, a new golf reservation website (golfcitizen.com) that helps its members to book rounds at courses of their choice. Many major courses in the UAE are part of the fast-expanding network of GOLF CITIZEN and more are being added to its portfolio in Thailand and Vietnam, making it one of the most comprehensive worldwide golf reservation websites.
Golf enthusiasts from any part of the world can sign up to become a ‘GOLF CITIZEN’ for free and can book rounds at courses of their choice. They can easily browse the site and all available options are easily found with a click or two.
As an added incentive, members of GOLF CITIZEN can take advantage of a special 15 per cent discount on ticket and hospitality packages for the forthcoming Omega Dubai Desert Classic, which will be held at the Emirates Golf Club from January 31 to February 3.
With a spot in the Omega Dubai Desert Classic Pro Am at stake for the winner of each division, the first GOLF CITIZEN Open at the Arabian Ranches produced a close affair. Galeppini, who plays off a four handicap, could not have asked for a better result ahead of next week’s Volvo Tournament of Champions Pro-Am in South Africa, where he has been invited to join the line-up.
It was, however, Chiang who stole the limelight with a commanding performance, which came after she shot her best score, a gross 77, in the Rivoli Monthly medal the previous day.
