UAE’s Khalid Yousuf is encouraged by his tied fourth-place finish at the Arab Golf Championship in Aqaba, Jordan last weekend, which saw him become the first Emirati golfer to shoot under par in the history of the event.
The UAE national team finish ninth overall at the Ayla Golf Club with Yousuf putting together a promising performance among 52 golfers from 11 Arab countries.
With rounds of 69 – 75 – 73 – 69 for a championship total of 286, Yousuf finished only four shots back from the leader and ended his championship two-under-par.
شاهد ملخص فعاليات النسخة ال37 من البطولة العربية للجولف والتي أقيمت نهاية الأسبوع الماضي على ملعب آيله للجولف بمدينة العقبة بتنظيم من الاتحاد الاردني للجولف وبمشاركة 12 دولة عربية #البطولة_العربية_للجولف #معلب_آيلة_للجولف #الاردن #جولف @AG_Federation @jordaniangolf pic.twitter.com/kwk5UCRXvf
— Jordan Olympic (JOC) (@JordanOlympic) December 4, 2017
The tournament witnessed a thrilling finish with Moroccan duo Dahmane Soufiane and Omar Ayoub both shooting final rounds of 66, but it was the former who clinched the individual title from his fellow countryman with a total of six-under-par 282. Issa Abu Al Ella of Egypt finished third.
“It’s encouraging to see the level of Arab golf improving each year and it’s always nice to see other Arab golfers doing so well,” said Yousuf. “I was extremely happy with my game this weekend considering the windy and cold conditions.
“The fairways and greens were hard but my approach shots were on target and my recovery shots allowed me to make a lot of up-and-downs. To shoot two under par and to be the first UAE national to shoot under-par at an Arab Golf Championship is a great honour.”
The UAE team finished ninth overall in the team category out of 11 teams, with Morocco walking away with the team title. Ahmed Skaik, who was UAE’s second-best player, had a slow start but finished strong with rounds of 86 – 78 – 77 – 74 for a championship total of 315.
Competing in his first Arab Golf Championship, Abdulwahed Al Qasem had the pressure of providing the team with its third and final score each day. Al Qasem finished with a total of 386 for the championship.
The UAE team finished ninth at the Arab Golf Championship.
Tunisia took home team silver while Egypt won the bronze.
Moving forward the national team will turn their focus to the Emirates Golf Federation Order of Merit events. The next international event will be the GCC Golf Championship taking place in March 2018.
