RIYADH: Riyadh weather forecast for Thursday: partly cloudy with temperatures in the high 35 degrees to low 24 degrees. Just about perfect weather for golf in the Kingdom. Players raved at Wednesday’s practice day about the excellent setup of the course.
Against this backdrop the Saudi Oger Amateur Golf Championship tees off Thursday, the biggest event to be hosted by Dirab Golf Club since the Pan Arab Golf Championship in February 2008.
Saudi Golf Federation President Khaled Abunayyan, who is also the owner of the Dirab golf course, said he is glad sponsors have come forward to support a golfing event of this magnitude.
“I would like to express my thanks to Saudi Oger for their generous sponsorship. I am looking forward to their support in next year’s tournament, “said Abunayyan.
Abunayyan said the growing support of golf from the corporate world means more and bigger tournaments at Dirab and this early the Saudi Golf Federation is planning to stage the King’s Cup golf championship next year.
A full field of 123 players will tee it up in groups of four starting at 6:30 a.m. The players include members of the national team led by Kingdom No. 1 Othman Almulla, seven from Bahrain and expatriate golfers across the Kingdom.
Almulla, who makes no bones about his dream of being the first Saudi professional golfer, is oozing with confidence. “I’ve been playing the best golf of my career,” said Almulla on the eve of the tournament.
The former Saudi junior No. 1 Khaled Attieh, 14, is seeing action for the first time as a member of the Saudi regular men’s team. Attieh made the trip to Riyadh from Dubai where he is now based to pursue his golf career. Like Almulla he joined the rest of the competitors that had a practice round Wednesday and liked what they saw at the course - from the lush fairways to the immaculate greens that played a little faster.
The other Kingdom players to watch are Ali Sahli and Fahd Al Mansour, the tournament manager who will be competing along with his younger brother and junior standout Abdulrahman. Not to be missed as well is the veteran Saudi golfer and now coach of the national teams (men’s and junior) Ali Balharith.
“I am hoping one of the members of the national team to win the tournament,” said Abunayyan.
The champion of the 2001 Saudi Amateur Golf Championship, Nasser Yaqoub, played practice round on Wednesday along with fellow Bahrain national team member Sultan Abdullah.
Dirab Golf Club under the baton of its manager Bouchaib El Jadiani organized the tournament in cooperation with the Saudi Golf Federation, with Saudi Oger Co. Ltd. as the major and title sponsor.
Royal Air Maroc, Radisson Blu and Almarai Company are the sponsors. Helping Bouchaib and Al Mansour run the show are Nasser Uddin Siddiqi, Dirab Golf Committee chairman, Gary Richardson, Organizing Committee member and Andrea Corbett, marketing and sponsor coordinator.
The major prizes are for the first five winners in the Best Gross and Best Net categories in the men’s division, first three Best Net in the ladies and one in the junior division.
