The latest world amateur golf rankings have revealed that 24-year-old Emirati Ahmad Skaik has moved up to No. 51 in the standings.
The rankings were introduced in 2007 to quantify the comparative performances of elite amateur golfers — men, women, boys and girls — playing around the world in different events, in a rolling cycle over the previous 104 weeks.
The men’s rankings are led by Japan’s Keita Nakajima, who won the recent Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship at Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club. Skaik made the cut and finished a creditable 42nd on four-over in this 72-hole event.
England’s Alex Fitzpatrick — younger brother of DP World Tour player Matt — is in fourth place, with American Sam Bennett — the top player on the PGA Tour University Velocity Global Ranking, who recently participated in the Slync.io Dubai Desert Classic — in sixth spot.
Skaik will complete his final year of university studies in May, and will then be able to focus more on his golf game, as he currently juggles and struggles with the challenges of trying to study and play competitive golf both at the same time. This week, as is typical, he was studying and taking exams before playing golf in this week’s DP World Tour’s Ras Al Khaimah Championship at Al Hamra Golf Club.
General Abdullah Alhashmi, Vice-Chairman of the Emirates Golf Federation, the local sanctioning body for all four events on the DP World Tour’s early season ‘UAE Swing’, said: “It is tremendous to see the global recognition for the performances of Ahmad over the last few months, starting at the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship and moving on to the AVIV Championship at Jumeirah Golf Estates on the DP World Tour as well as the Arab Golf Championship in Egypt and more recently on the ‘UAE Swing’ on the DP World Tour. It was always part of the EGF’s Vision about 18 months ago, when we were awarded the hosting of the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship and the Women’s Amateur Asia-Pacific Championship, to plan for UAE nationals to get into the world’s top 50. We have nearly achieved that short-term target ahead of expectations. These are exciting times for golf in the UAE and we hope this local, regional and global recognition provides momentum for our next generation of UAE youngsters playing golf here in the UAE, to show them what is possible with some hard work, talent and some guided mentoring and professional coaching.”
