The Professionals Ready To Reclaim Their Victory at the 2023 Dubai Golf Trophy
Tuesday 26th September 2023; Dubai United Arab Emirates: The UAE’S most prestigious golfing event is set to return to Jumeirah Golf Estates’ Earth Course and Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club’s Championship Course on the 1st and 2nd October.
The 24th edition of the Dubai Golf Trophy will host the top 16 Professionals against the top 16 Amateurs in the UAE in a two-day Ryder Cup-style format. Originally launched by Dubai Golf, the event is rotated across five Dubai Golf courses; Faldo and Majlis at Emirates Golf Club, Earth and Fire at Jumeirah Golf Estates, and the Championship Course at Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club, for a fiercely competitive showcase of tournament golf.
Each team consists of twelve automatic qualifiers from the season-long UAE PGA tournaments and qualifying Emirates Golf Federation (EGF) events across the UAE. In addition, the team captains welcome four ‘wildcard’ picks, and two ladies on both sides. Jack Woods will lead the Professional team and David Guinee will captain the Amateur team.
A highlight of the golfing season, the 2023 event will see the Professionals defend their 2022 win against the Amateurs, their first since 2016 after a 16.5 – 15.5 score during the final day at Emirates Golf Club. A continued feature within the 2023 Dubai Golf Trophy will also include the Ladies Challenge Match of the same format between two Professionals and two Amateur ladies.
Professional Team Captain, Jack Woods, said, it is a real honour to captain the Professional team in the Dubai Golf Trophy. The event is the pinnacle of our season and with the event moved back to October this year, the build-up has been even better than normal. After finally ending the Amateurs winning streak last year, we know they will be desperate to regain the Trophy and we will have to be at our best to retain the win. As always, it will be an amazing couple of days no matter the outcome.
Amateur Team Captain, David Guinee, said, it is a pleasure to Captain the Amateur team this year. We had a tough year last year, losing out by one point, and we will be aiming to win it back this year. We have a great mix of experience and youth in the team this year and I believe we can give the Professionals a great challenge. It is always the best weekend of our tournament season and I anticipate this year will be no different. But, hopefully, with a different outcome to last year.
Chris May, Chief Executive Officer of Dubai Golf, said, The Dubai Golf Trophy was founded on the principle of raising the profile of golf in the region and bringing both amateur and professional golfers from clubs all over the UAE together in a competitive and enjoyable format. The tournament provides a focus for players to aim for throughout the qualifying events counting towards EGF and UAE PGA Order of Merits during the season and culminating in a season-ending spectacle on two of the finest courses in the region – especially exciting this tournament as we host the event during the 2023 Ryder Cup weekend. Best of luck to both teams!
With much anticipation to see if the Professional team can reclaim their victory, the two-day 2023 Dubai Golf Trophy will be played on Earth Course on Sunday 1st October for morning Foursomes and afternoon Fourball matches and will conclude with the Singles matches on Monday 2nd October on the Championship Course at Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club.
Official Schedule
Sunday 1st October 2023 (Earth Course, Jumeirah Golf Estates)
| 7.39am - 8.51am Tee Times | Foursome Matches |
| 12.20pm - 1.40pm Tee Times | Fourball Matches |
Monday 2nd October 2023 (Championship Course, Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club)
| 11.30am - 1.30pm Tee Times | Singles Matches |
Teams
Professional Team - Non-playing Captain: Jack Woods
| Louis Gaughan | Dubai Hills Golf Club |
| Stuart Smith | Precision Golf |
| Sujjan Singh | Claude Harmon Performance Academy Dubai |
| Graham Forbes | Claude Harmon Performance Academy Dubai |
| Matt Rice | Golf-Kraft |
| Tom Ogilvie | Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club |
| Jules Lompech | Abu Dhabi Golf Club |
| David Gray | Golf Souk |
| Michael Major | Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club |
| Sam Mclaren | Sharjah Golf |
| Steven Munro | Prosports International |
| Purna Sharma | Sharjah Golf |
| Wildcard Players | |
| Phil Waine | Trump International Golf Club |
| Mike Bolt | Claude Harmon Performance Academy Dubai |
| Matt Brookes | Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club |
| Tom Hansen | Trackman |
| Ladies Challenge Match | |
| Olivia Jackson | Emirates Golf Club |
| Lea Pouillard | Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club |
Amateur Team Captain: David Guinee
| Sam Mullane | Jumeirah Golf Estates |
| Jay Mullane | Jumeirah Golf Estates |
| Steven Kelbrick | Trump International Golf Club |
| Dominic Morton | Trump International Golf Club |
| Rami Samawi | Els Club Dubai |
| Viktor Kofod-Olsen | Emirates Golf Club |
| Thomas Nesbitt | Abu Dhabi Golf Club |
| Dan Byrne | Els Club Dubai |
| Emanuele Galeppini | Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club |
| Johnathan Selvaraj | Trump International Golf Club |
| Jake Wiltshire | Abu Dhabi City Golf Club |
| Dan Kirkwood | Yas Links Abu Dhabi |
| Wildcard Players | |
| Craig Vance | Trump International Golf Club |
| Max Burrow | Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club |
| Simon Dunn | Tower Links Golf Club |
| David Guinee | Trump International Golf Club |
| Ladies Challenge Match | |
| Jamie Camero | Els Club Dubai |
| Aoife Kelly | Trump International Dubai |
Official Draw: Sunday Morning Foursomes
| Sunday 1st October Tee Times | Professional Team | Amateur Team |
| 7.39am | Louis Gaughan | Dan Kirkwood |
| Graham Forbes | Jonathan Selveraj | |
| 7.48am | Sujjan Singh | Steven Kelbrick |
| Mike Bolt | Simon Dunn | |
| 7.57am | Steve Munro | Max Burrow |
| Stuart Smith | Sam Mullane | |
| 8.06am | Tom Ogilvie | Craig Vance |
| Sam Mclaren | David Guinee | |
| 8.15am | Purna Sharma | Viktor Kofod-Olsen |
| Jules Lompech | Rami Samawi | |
| 8.24am | Phil Waine | Dan Byrne |
| Tom Hansen | Jake Wiltshire | |
| 8.33am | Matt Rice | Jay Mullane |
| David Gray | Dominic Morton | |
| 8.42am | Matt Brookes | Thomas Nesbitt |
| Mikey Major | Alister Parlane | |
| 8.51am | Lea Pouillard | Jamie Camero |
| Olivia Jackson | Aoife Kelly |