Saudi International will tee off investment in KSA leisure sector

The new European Tour season kicked off in Abu Dhabi earlier this month, with my good friend, Lee Westwood winning the first of three consecutive tournaments in the Middle East.

The game has grown so much since I turned pro 20 years ago. The European Tour isn’t just played in Europe now, we play all over the world. Six great tournaments in the GCC alone serve as a reminder of how important the region has become to the interests of the Tour and the Players over the past two decades. 

The Saudi International Golf Tournament now joins the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship, the Omega Dubai Desert Classic, the Oman Open, the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters and the DP World Tour Championship, now the richest first prize in tournament golf, in a run of events that stretch from January to November.

More than $ 13 million in prize money and 15,000 ranking points are on offer during the “Desert Swing” alone, the three-week period in January and February which represents half of the European Tour tournaments now played in the region.

As a global ambassador for DP World, it’s great to see the investment they are putting into growing the game of golf in this region. Since they have started championing the sport, the number of tournaments being held in the Middle East has grown tenfold and is evidence of how accessible the game now is for so many people.

In recent years, a new wave of golf course development has come to fruition across the region, too, with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Oman, all adding to their portfolios. This growth in new courses has matched the growth in professional tournaments.

Innovation is key; companies like DP World use new technology to look at efficiency on levels that I never could imagine. As a global trade enabler, they make it so much easier to import golfing goods and equipment into territories that, 30 years ago, would never have even entertained the idea of building a golf course. The more accessible we make the sport, the more people we can get into golf and the more affordable it can be made for everyone. 

DP World is a business that is characterized by economic and trade development, where you see wealth creation and an emerging middle class, golf naturally becomes a more accessible activity and continues to flourish, evidenced by a continued investment in new courses and concepts across the region, this is why it is so exciting to see Saudi Arabia start on a path of becoming a new golfing market.

With the inception of the European eTour — golf’s first e-sport series — occurring this month, we can expect the region’s influence on the sport to expand further. The virtual series, featuring six events across the year, cements the European Tour’s commitment to innovation and provides a pathway to attracting a new demographic of fans.
The Middle East, once again, will be at the heart of the action.

The eTour began at the HSBC Abu Dhabi Championships and will climax with a season-ending finale in Dubai, in November, giving a newer, younger community a glimpse into what the region has to offer.

With Saudi Arabia opening its doors to the outside world, while at the same time investing huge amounts in sports, entertainment and health, it can only be beneficial to the game. 

It’s fantastic to see local companies such as Saudia Cargo get behind the game and I hope that more Saudi-based firms see the benefits and do the same moving forward.

In 2020, the Kingdom will play host to both a European Tour and Ladies European Tour tournament, while both Jeddah and Riyadh are now home to new world-class courses, with more on the horizon. It is this geographical and commercial growth that underpins the strategic importance of the Middle East to the European Tour — where the golf leisure industry flourishes, so the professional game follows.

As the world’s best descend on the region this month, we will be only too aware of the Middle East’s progress, and we are likely to see even more growth on the tee in the region over the next decade.

• Ian James Poulter is an English professional golfer who is a member of the world's top two professional golf tours.