14 moments that made Dubai a bucket-list golf destination
Kit Alexander looks at the moments, on and off the course, that made Dubai one of the best golf travel experiences in the world.
1988 The Majlis becomes the first grass course
The flagship course at the Emirates Golf Club was the first grass layout in the Middle East when it opened. Created on land donated by His Highness General Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, who asked that the desert flora was maintained in its natural state. American golf architect Karl Litten designed the par-72 layout that now measures 7,301 yards off the tips. The course gets its name from the Arabic word for ‘meeting place’ and one of the most prominent features on the courses is the Majlis building between the 8th and 9th holes.
1989 The European Tour comes to Dubai
Not only was the 1989 Dubai Desert Classic the first time the European Tour had held a tournament in the United Arab Emirates, it was also the first time it visited Asia. It put Dubai firmly on the golfing map and led to the event being given the moniker ‘the Major of the Middle East’. The inaugural tournament was a huge success with England’s Mark James taking the title by defeating Australian Peter O’Malley in a play-off on the Majlis at Emirates GC.
1993 Dubai Creek Golf Club is opened
Dubai Creek was the second grass course to open, five years after the Emirates GC. People realised what a golfers’ paradise Dubai was and how much potential it had as a destination. There was plenty of demand for another championship course in the city. The course was also designed by Karl Litten and it would host the Omega Dubai Desert Classic in 1999 and 2000 – the only two times is hasn’t been at Emirates GC. The famous clubhouse is designed to look like the sails of the traditional Arab dhow, a sailing vessel with one or more masts, and it’s one of the most photographed landmarks in the city.
2001 Tiger Woods visits for the first time
The world number one had just become the youngest ever player to complete the Career Grand Slam and held three of the majors – the US Open, The Open and the PGA Championship – when he travelled to Dubai for the first time to tee it up in the 2001 Desert Classic. The event and Dubai had become well-established on the European Tour by this time, but the arrival of Woods brought the eyes of American golf fans to the Middle East. He finished T2 behind Thomas Bjørn, but he played well and enjoyed the experience on and off the course. Woods would go on to play in the event eight times, winning it in 2006 and 2008.
2002 Henrik Stenson moves to Dubai
The fact Henrik Stenson chose to relocate his family to Dubai full-time demonstrated that it was a great location to live, as well as play golf. He spent 10 years based in the city, during which time he won seven times on the European and PGA Tours, climbed into the top 10 of the world rankings and appeared in two Ryder Cups. Many world class golfers have followed the Swede’s lead and called Dubai home in the years since.
2004 Woods hits balls from top of the Burj Al Arab
In the build-up to Woods’ second appearance at the Omega Dubai Desert Classic, he went to hit golf shots off the helipad at the top of the Burj Al Arab, one of the tallest hotels in the world at 321m. The sensational pictures and videos of the stunt spread around the world. Since then, Roger Federer and Andre Agassi played a tennis match on the helipad in 2005 and Rory McIlroy his bunker shots on it in 2011.
2005 Ernie Els completes Omega Dubai Desert Classic hat-trick
South African Ernie Els is the only man to have won the event three times: in 1994, 2002 and 2005. He holds the course record at the Majlis, with a scintillating 61 that included 12 birdies in the first round in 1994. Els has become synonymous with golf in Dubai, and the four-time major winner opened the Els Club in 2008. The course is described as ‘desert links’ and features characteristics from his favourite layouts around the world.
2008 The ‘Race to Dubai’ is born
The European Tour announced its 2009 schedule, including the creation of the ‘Race to Dubai’. This season-long points list replaced the Order of Merit and positioned Dubai as the ultimate destination every golfer on the circuit aspired to reach at the end of a successful season. As well as adding another high-profile tournament that attracted the world’s top players back to Dubai each November – the DP World Tour Championship at Jumeirah Golf Estates – it also meant golfers, broadcasters and fans would be talking about the ‘Race to Dubai’ throughout the year. Every year since, many of the world’s best golfers have started and ended their seasons in Dubai.
2009 Rory McIlroy gets his first win
All eyes have been on the Northern Irishman from the moment he entered the paid ranks, and he claimed his first professional victory at the 2009 Dubai Desert Classic. At just 19 years old, McIlroy held off Justin Rose and a star-studded field to get his hands on the beautiful trophy with a -19 total. A global audience tuned in to see Tiger’s heir-apparent secure his breakthrough triumph and got to see Emirates GC as the backdrop. McIlroy won the same title again in 2015 and 2023 and also won the DP World Tour Championship in 2012 and 2015.
2009 The inaugural DP World Tour Championship
The European Tour held its season finale outside of Europe for the first time on the Earth Course at Jumeirah Golf Estates in 2009. Lee Westwood romped to a six-shot victory in the tournament, which also secured him the inaugural Race to Dubai title. The Englishman said: “It’s a fantastic tournament, the best ever. Seriously, if you ever wanted a tournament to burst on to the scene, that’s probably as good as it gets. I think Dubai, the golf course and the European Tour have come out of it looking fantastic. I think it’s a great effort for golf in this region and it’s a great advert for golf on the European Tour.”
2017 Garcia and Lahiri play on Skydive runway
Sergio Garcia, fresh off winning the Masters, took on Indian number one Anirban Lahiri in a unique challenge that saw them driving balls down an 800m tarmac runway flanked by water on either side at Skydive Dubai. Lahiri won with a driver of 642m. The friendly competition was arranged to help raise awareness of Dubai as a golf destination – and it certainly did that. Although there’s no video evidence that either of them jumped out of a plane!
2019 The first night-time pro event
The Omega Dubai Moonlight Classic became the first professional event to be played at night under the floodlights of The Faldo course at Emirates GC in 2019. It is one of the headline tournaments on the Ladies European Tour and it attracts a world-class field, including many of the top players from the LPGA Tour. Spain’s Nuria Iturrioz won the inaugural night-time version of the event and world top-10 player Minjee Lee took the crown in 2020. The popularity of night golf has exploded recently and it’s an experience not to be missed when visit Dubai.
2019 Dubai Hills named ‘World’s Best New Golf Course’
The most recent layout to be opened in Dubai was recognised as the best new course on the planet in 2019 at the prestigious World Golf Awards. Dubai Hills is a par-72 championship course designed by European Golf Design. It can stretch to 7,220 yards but there’s an emphasis on playability for all standards of golfers, with a variety of tees and welcoming fairways. It has stunning views of the famous Dubai skyline, with the par-5 5th playing directly towards the iconic Burj Khalifa.
2021 Topgolf comes to Dubai
The first Topgolf location in the Middle East opened at Emirates GC at the start of 2021. Topgolf is essentially a driving range on steroids. You can play games with microchipped golf balls and a variety of targets and challenges, your shots are displayed on a TV screen and fantastic food and drinks are available. Topgolf Dubai has three tiers that have been extremely busy since day one. It’s a fantastic environment to enjoy golf in a more casual way and introduce new players to the game, which should help further increase the number of people playing the game in Dubai.