Dubai: Organisers of the Mena Golf Tour have unveiled a special prize fund to add to the excitement ahead of the Tour’s first Qualifying School, which will be held next month.

In addition to earning playing privileges on the Tour this season, the top 50 and ties will share $25,000, with the winner walking away with a cheque for $4,500.

Added incentives for Mena Golf Tour members include five guaranteed spots in the Omega Dubai Desert Classic, multiple entries in the Asian Tour’s Dubai Open, one in the Hassan II Trophy and exemptions into the Final Stage of the Asian Tour Q-School for the leading three professionals.

Open to professionals and amateurs, the 54-hole qualifier will be held at Royal Golf Dar Es Salam Course in the Moroccan capital of Rabat from March 30 to April 1 ahead of the first event on the 2015 Mena Golf Tour schedule that gets under way on April 3.

Now in its fifth season, the 2015 Mena Tour boasts 10 events on its schedule spread across five countries in the region — Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

“It [the prize money] will give the players extra motivation as they aim to graduate to higher exemption categories to ensure they feature in all Mena Golf Tour events,” said Mohammad Juma Bu Amim, chairman of the Tour.

“With events being oversubscribed in the last couple of seasons, we needed to put in place a system that is transparent and rewarding for top players. The introduction of the Q-School this season is a step in the direction.

“There is no doubt in my mind that the Tour has lived up to everybody’s expectations, but more work is needed to be done if we aim to promote golf in the region and get more people playing the game, because you have some of the best facilities here in the world.”

Darren Clarke, the patron of the Mena Tour, agreed. “The Q-School is just the beginning of big things I see for the Tour. If it keeps going the way it is, it’s a huge pathway for someone from this region to qualify for the Olympics. It gives young professionals and amateurs much-needed experience, which is difficult to gain,” said Clarke, who has won 21 professional titles during his 25-year stint on the European Tour.

“The primary aim is to stimulate the growth of golf in the region. Whatever I have learned through my years of playing, I will be more than happy to share my knowledge. I also want to be involved with it and I want to try to make the tournaments themselves better.”