Golf continues to be an education for Dubai-based youngster Toby Bishop

Toby Bishop, one of Dubai’s hottest golf prospects, is gearing up for a huge year in 2022. The 18-year-old Welshman is heading off to the United States on a golf scholarship at the University of Florida next year. But while he has big goals and high standards, he is keeping his feet firmly on the ground.

Bishop is coached at the Claude Harmon III Performance Golf Academy at Els Club and he plays out of Trump International, where he is a member, and already knows how to take setbacks — on and off the course — in his stride.

During the summer, while the sun baked the UAE, he had been selected for the annual series of Home Internationals in the UK, where his Welsh boys squad were to compete against teams from England, Ireland and Scotland in a round-robin format over three days of golf, with Bishop looking forward to time with his teammates and also gaining valuable experience in the prestigious tournament.

“It was a bit of a strange year for golfers in 2021 due to Covid. We weren’t sure about schedules and we were all taking it day by day,” Bishop told Gulf News in an exclusive chat at Emirates Golf Club.

“In the summer, I had planned around and prepared for my main event — the Home Internationals. It is always good, with me living in Dubai, to get back in with the Wales team as they spent the whole year together but I only get that short time in the summer to see them.

“We played against Scotland on the first day, and I played a great match against the Scottish Under-18 champ, winning one-up on the 18th. The game was feeling good and we were looking forward to play England the following day where I could have faced my good Dubai friend Josh Hill — that would have been amazing.”

Fate — and Covid — however, intervened.

“We were at breakfast in the morning, getting prepared and one of the players was eating a bowl of cereal, and he told the coach he couldn’t taste anything,” Bishop explained. “He was sent straight up for a lateral flow test, which came back positive and the R&A instructed us we had to quarantine until we got the PCR result, which was also positive and the team had to withdraw.”

Never one to dwell on failure, Bishop took the opportunity to sign up for a few more competitions while in the UK, and turn a negative situation into a positive. “It was a bit of a shame but it kind of worked out,” he said. “I mentioned to my parents that I was disappointed I was not able to play as much golf as I wanted to. So they flew back to Dubai, but allowed me to stay on a bit longer.

“I played three Junior tournaments in preparation for a EuroPro event — I got an invite from my club, Studley Wood, to play — and I won two of the Junior events, one of them to qualify for the junior European Open in Spain this February, which gave me something to look forward to after everything that was going on. So it worked out nicely.

“I was finally playing good golf outside of the UAE and then I played in the EuroPro, which was a great experience. I didn’t play my best golf, but it was a all about the experience and making sure I take the next chance.”

The Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship is coming up next month and Bishop just missed out on the chance to be rubbing shoulders with the top players in the world as he was beaten in the Abu Dhabi Amateur Championship, where the winner earned an invite to play on the DP World Tour Rolex Series event at Yas Links.

“I woke up on the first day to play and I wasn’t sure if I was even able to make it as I was seriously ill,” Bishop said. “My parents suggested I give it a miss, but I had a clear PCR in order to compete so I knew it wasn’t Covid, and wanted to give it a go given the chance to qualify for the HSBC.

“I managed to shoot three rounds under par but it just wasn’t enough to get the job done and Josh Hill played great to win. Hopefully, one day I will get there and get the chance to play on the big stage in my home country.”

Bishop is also quick to praise the facilities in the UAE, which have helped shape his game and secure his place at the University of Florida on their golf programme.

“I will play my last junior season before heading out to the States for college,” he said. “Some exciting times for me to prepare for. The scholarship is great as college in America is not exactly the cheapest. My coach told me I am only the second player in history to get a full scholarship on the programme, and former graduates include Sam Horsfield, so to have that calibre of player, they are obviously doing something right to get players from college to the professional level.

“We are super lucky where we live in the UAE. The facilities are second to none in my opinion and we have perfect weather all year round. Even when it gets too hot in the summer, the European and US seasons are in full swing and you can play there. So you can get tournament golf all year round. I am at the CH3 Academy at Trump and I couldn’t ask for any better facilities to get my game in the right shape and I have no excuse to not be playing well.

“I don’t think there is a course I haven’t played in the region and they are all brilliant.”

While the bright lights of the PGA Tour may be tempting, Bishop has a clear plan to finish his four years at college and get a proper education to go alongside his talents.

“Both my parents are teachers, so education is a big part of my life,” he said. “I certainly will finish my four years. If the game goes well I will get some opportunities to compete while studying and then the PGA is certainly a possibility after that. They have also introduced the PGA Tour University, which helps graduates. You have to complete four years to be eligible and it is a ranking system to help get players straight from college on to tour in a kind of graduate programme. We shall see how that progresses. Time will tell but I’ve just got to focus on the present right now and worry about that when it comes.”