Aqaba: Khalid Yousuf became the first Emirati to shoot under par at an Arab Golf Championship in the 37th edition of the event in Aqaba, Jordan, over the weekend.
Yousuf carded two under par to finish fourth in the individual category, four strokes off the winner, while the UAE finished ninth out of 11 countries in the team standings.
Over 52 players from 11 countries took part in the four round tournament.
Yousuf carded rounds of 69, 75, 73, 69 for a total of 286.
“To shoot two under par and to be the first UAE national to shoot under par at an Arab Golf Championship is a great honour,” said Yousuf.
“I was extremely happy with my game this weekend considering the windy and cold conditions. The fairways and greens were hard but my approach shots were on target and my recovery shots allowed me to make a lot of up-and-downs.
“It’s encouraging to see the level of Arab golf improving each year and it’s always nice to see other Arab golfers doing so well,” he added.
Ahmad Skaik was the UAE’s second best player with rounds of 86, 78, 77, 74 for a total of 315.
Also representing the UAE was Abdul Waheed Al Qassem, who was taking part in his first Arab Golf Championship and totalled 386.
Morocco won the team event with a score of 847, 42 shots better than Tunisia. Egypt finished third.
Moving forward the UAE now turn their attentions to the Emirates Golf Federation Order of Merit events. The next international event will be the GCC Golf Championship in March.
