Dubai: The World Top 100 Majlis Course at Emirates Golf Club has received widespread praise from the European Tour’s top golfers and international broadcasters throughout the Omega Dubai Desert Classic.
Following multi-million pound investment in the course’s irrigation to enhance the quality and consistency of all playing surfaces, the final tournament of the “Desert Swing” proved the ultimate test for the upgraded facility.
Ken Brown, five-time Ryder Cup player and TV golf pundit, commented directly on the state of the course via Twitter: “…looking up the eighth hole at the Emirates. The course is luxuriant green…amazing”, adding later: “The Emirates course is beautifully manicured...a new irrigation system with 2,208 sprinkler heads keeps it cobalt green”.
Taking more than 150,000 hours to complete, the new irrigation includes more than 40 kilometres of piping and a pump that allows as much as 6,500 gallons of water per minute to travel through the expansive network.
Last year’s Sicilian Open champion and current world No 41 golfer, Dane Thorbjørn Olesen, tweeted after his second-round score of 66: “Have to say I like the #DubaiDesertClassic great atmosphere, great course!”
Bernd Wiesberger, a two-time winner on the European Tour last year, said: “On the Way to Dubai! Looking forward to my favourite course of the Desert Swing”.
Scotland’s Chris Doak and Spaniard Jorge Campillo, who are both yet to secure their first wins on tour, added their praise of the course: “Fantastic course this week in Dubai…” and, “…Omega Dubai Desert Classic, one of my favourite courses of the European Tour!!”
Frenchman Jean-Baptiste Gonnet tweeted: “Really good to be in Dubai this week…to play the Emirates golf course #LoveIt”. Meanwhile, fellow countryman and tour veteran Gregory Havret tweeted from the front-nine: “8th tee #DubaiDesertClassic one of the most impressive and beautiful holes in UAE”.
Craig Haldane, Director of Golf Course Maintenance at Emirates Golf Club, said: “Having spent approximately seven months putting the new irrigation in place, it’s exceptionally gratifying to hear the positive feedback from the players. It is testament to the hard work that went in to making the necessary enhancements, which ensures the Majlis Course remains one the world’s best.”
Christopher May, CEO of Dubai Golf, said: “The Omega Dubai Desert Classic is a perennial favourite of the tour professionals. It remains so because we are dedicated to providing the highest quality playing surfaces.
“Craig [Haldane] and his team worked tirelessly to get the course into great shape for this year’s tournament, as they do every year, but their continual work ensures every golfer, professional or otherwise, can enjoy the same high standard all year round.”
The Majlis Course will see the return of the Omega Dubai Desert Classic in 2014 for the tournament’s 25th outing on the European Tour. For further information about Emirates Club and its sister course, Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club, visit www.dubaigolf.com.
