Emirates Golf Federation Charts Path to Global Competition

The Emirates Golf Federation has put together a development strategy to help national players acclimatise to international competition ranging from participation programmes for juniors to invites for professional tours.
At the foot of the pathway is Future Falcons, the federation’s national junior development programme set up in 2016 to bring young players into the game and spot rising stars. It feeds into the Golf Sixes League, a junior team competition developed with The R&A, which this year expanded from Abu Dhabi into a national rollout with leagues in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Six venues host the rounds, including Trump International Dubai, Emirates Golf Club, The Montgomerie, Abu Dhabi City Golf Club, Yas Links and Al Ain Equestrian, Shooting and Golf Club, with teams competing in a six-hole Texas scramble format and the leading sides qualifying for the Abu Dhabi Challenge.
Above the junior tiers, the federation fields four national teams, at under-15, under-18, ladies' and senior levels, competing in international tournaments under the guidelines of the UAE's sports authorities.
At the elite end, the UAE Cup, the federation's flagship amateur event at Al Ain Equestrian, Shooting and Golf Club, carries an Elite Division open to top amateurs from international federations, offering World Amateur Golf Ranking points. The winners receive invitations to a Challenge Tour event for the leading man and a Ladies European Tour event for the leading woman. The federation also hosts Challenge Tour events on home soil, with the UAE Challenge at Al Zorah Golf and Yacht Club in Ajman and the Abu Dhabi Challenge at Al Ain, delivered in partnership with the DP World Tour and The R&A, and supports the MENA Golf Tour, whose leading players gain access to HotelPlanner Tour status.
Several national players have progressed through the pathway. Ahmad Skaik has moved into professional golf after winning the GCC Championship, while Joshua Grenville-Wood, Jonathan Selvaraj, Mohamed Skaik and Rayan Ahmad are now competing internationally. The women's programme includes Sara Ali Abubaker, Aassiya Saleem, Intissar Rich, Jamie Camero, Hannah Alan, Lara El Chaib and Anca Mateiu.