The 2009 European Tour International Schedule will herald an exciting new era in the game with the introduction of The Race to Dubai climaxing with The Dubai World Championship, the world’s richest golf tournament with a US$10,000,000 prize fund.
The European Tour and Leisurecorp, the company developing Dubai’s leading residential golf community at Jumeirah Golf Estates, announced the wide-ranging partnership in November 2007 with the inaugural Race to Dubai starting on November 6, 2008.
Among the key features are:-
• The Dubai World Championship at Jumeirah Golf Estates – the world’s richest golf tournament with a US$10,000,000 prize fund
• New “Race to Dubai” offers additional US$10,000,000 annual Bonus Pool
• The European Tour International Headquarters to be built at Jumeirah Golf Estates, Dubai
For further information and releases regarding The Race to Dubai and The Dubai World Championship, please scroll down
• Leisurecorp send congratulations to Vijay Singh
04 Aug 2008
Leisurecorp have congratulated Vijay Singh, the Water course designer at Jumeirah Golf Estates, Dubai’s premier residential golf community, on his outstanding win in the World Golf Championships - Bridgestone Invitational in Ohio.
Singh carded a two under par final round 68 at the Firestone Country Club to win by a stroke from Stuart Appleby and Lee Westwood. It is his first WGC victory and in winning the $1.35 million first prize, makes the Fijian the US PGA Tour’s most successful international player with a record breaking 32 wins.
23 Jul 2008
Greg Norman has given his support to the European Tour Physiotherapy Unit and its quest to help players prepare for the demands of the modern game.
The Australian, whose tied third place in taxing conditions at The Open Championship showed he is still in fine physical condition at 53, took a look around the facility at Royal Troon Golf Club alongside European Tour Chief Executive George O’Grady, where the mobile unit is assisting players prepare for The Senior Open Championship presented by MasterCard.
16 Jul 2008
Masters Tournament winner Trevor Immelman will attempt to secure a hat-trick of wins on home soil when he tees up at the South African Open Championship at Pearl Valley Golf Estates from December 18-21.
Immelman, the champion in 2003 and 2004, will join an illustrious field at this year’s event, which boasts a prize fund of €1million.
Home favourites Ernie Els and Retief Goosen, their compatriot and defending champion James Kingston, the English pair Lee Westwood and Justin Rose, India’s Jeev Milkha Singh, and the Northern Irish duo of Darren Clarke and Rory McIlroy have all confirmed their participation at golf’s second oldest national Open Championship.
02 Jul 2008
The 2009 European Tour International Schedule will herald an exciting new era in the game with the introduction of The Race To Dubai and, in recognition of this significant development, The European Tour today unveil the restyled branding which will reflect that evolution.
Through discussions with the players and with Leisurecorp, with whom we are partners in The Race to Dubai and The Dubai World Championship, we confirmed the importance of linking the past with the future. With golf this is especially valid because of the tradition of the game and its continuing global growth with which The European Tour is delighted to be associated.
Harry Vardon is an iconic figure whom many identify as the first touring professional and the world skyline provides an invocative image of the stage on which the players of The European Tour now compete. In bringing them together in the new branding we respect tradition and recognise the future.
22 Jun 2008
Jumeirah Golf Estates has celebrated the announcement it had won two awards in the prestigious CNBC Arabian Property Awards 2008.
Jumeirah Golf Estates will host the Dubai World Championship, the richest event in world golf with a $10million prize fund, from November 2009.
Dubai’s premier residential golf development learned it is to be recognised as one of the Best Developments in the Middle East, with an additional award for Best Interior Design for its luxurious Fireside by Greg Norman villas.
The awards add to the 2007 CNBC Arabian Property Award for Best Golf Development won by Jumeirah Golf Estates.
05 Jun 2008
The inaugural Race to Dubai will visit a minimum of ten destinations in the first four months following the announcement of the opening sector of The 2009 European Tour International Schedule.
Starting November 6 with the HSBC Champions in Shanghai, The Race to Dubai – which replaces the Order of Merit – will take in China, Hong Kong, Australia, South Africa, Abu Dhabi, Qatar, Dubai, India, Malaysia and the United States through to the end of February.
The Race to Dubai comprises all events on The European Tour International Schedule including all European Tour tournaments, the Major Championships and the World Golf Championships (WGC’s) ensuring the cream of world golf will qualify for the end-of-season Dubai World Championship on the Earth Course at Jumeirah Golf Estates, Dubai, UAE, on November 19-22, 2009.
04 Jun 2008
A world class field, headed by the reigning European Tour Number One Justin Rose alongside Major Champions Ernie Els and Retief Goosen, is set to assemble for The South African Open Championship at the Pearl Valley Golf Estates, Paarl, Western Cape, from December 18-21.
Defending champion James Kingston of South Africa will join Darren Clarke, Rory McIlroy, Jeev Milkha Singh and Lee Westwood to bolster the field for the tournament which will return to its original name – The South African Open Championship – as well as being part of the early season 2009 European Tour International Schedule and the inaugural Race to Dubai.
Leisurecorp, the owner of Pearl Valley Golf Estates, also announced its continued commercial support of the next two South African Open Championships as a minimum.
02 Jun 2008
Jumeirah Golf Estates, the premier residential golf community in Dubai, has announced the first concrete pouring at its Norman Clubhouse, another milestone in the progress of the development.
The Norman Clubhouse, designed by and named after golfing great Greg Norman of Australia, will serve the Fire and Earth courses upon completion ahead of the first Dubai World Championship in November 2009.
Work on the foundations of the clubhouse, which at 131,000 square feet will be one of the largest in the Middle East, was completed in April, ahead of the concreting which started on Monday.
30 Apr 2008
Thomas Björn believes the impressive new facilities at Jumeirah Golf Estates in Dubai, which will host The European Tour’s finale next year, are the most exciting he has seen in his career.
Björn, the Chairman of The European Tour’s Tournament Committee, said the development would leave his fellow European Tour players “blown away” when they visit it.
The inaugural Dubai World Championship, the climax to The European Tour, will be played at the Jumeirah Golf Estates’ Earth Course in November 2009.
Danish Ryder Cup player Björn, an ambassador for Golf in Dubai, has nothing but praise for the facilities being developed by Leisurecorp, owners of Jumeirah Golf Estates, which include a proposed Centre of Excellence and a new European Tour International Headquarters.
21 May 2008
Leisurecorp, the Dubai World company specialising in developments and investments in the sports and leisure sector, today announced plans to purchase Turnberry, the host venue for the 2009 Open Championship, from Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. (NYSE:HOT) for £55 million.
The companies have signed a Letter of Intent for the sale and purchase of the hotel and golf resort, which the parties expect to be completed by 31 October 2008. Under the terms of the deal, Starwood will continue to operate the five-star resort, with a 30-year plus management contract.
The deal pairs together two experts in the leisure and hospitality field and marks the start of a significant long-term partnership between Leisurecorp and Starwood Hotels & Resorts.
23 Apr 2008
Thomas Björn, the Chairman of The European Tour’s Tournament Committee, has hailed the development at Jumeirah Golf Estates in Dubai as "sensational" on a visit to view progress of the new golf course for the first Dubai World Championship, which will be played in November 2009.
Björn was escorted around the Earth course, which was announced on Monday as the venue for the inaugural event, by a team from Leisurecorp, the owners of Jumeirah Golf Estates.
The Danish Ryder Cup player said: "This development is really sensational. You can now get a feel for what it will be like - all the holes have been shaped and a lot have been grassed, and you can see what is going to be there.
"The players are really going to enjoy this Championship. Every sporting season should have a climax and that's what the Dubai World Championship will give us. It's a finale which will mean all eyes focus on Dubai for a really exciting four days."
20 Apr 2008
Jumeirah Golf Estates, Dubai’s premier residential golf community, today named the Earth course as host venue for the inaugural Dubai World Championship, the world’s richest golf tournament with a US$10 million prize fund, being staged in November 2009.
Earth is one of four elementally-themed golf courses being developed at Jumeirah Golf Estates and one of the two courses being designed by Greg Norman in the first phase of the project. The decision to host the first Dubai World Championship on the Earth course was taken after Norman visited the site this month to monitor progress and make final design enhancements.
26 Mar 2008
The wide ranging partnership between The European Tour and Leisurecorp, the company developing Dubai’s leading residential golf community at Jumeirah Golf Estates, took its first tangible step today with the unveiling of the improved and re-branded European Tour Physiotherapy Unit.
The state-of-the-art facility will be sponsored by Leisurecorp and is the on-Tour manifestation of the Centre of Excellence which is currently in development at Jumeirah Golf Estates.
Mention of The Race to Dubai is appropriate as the Unit’s new livery – set on a backdrop of the striking green, red and black colours of the United Arab Emirates – will feature the slogan ‘The Race to Dubai is Coming!’ along with a visual representation of the iconic images from the many cities around the globe where The European Tour will visit on its way to the season-ending Dubai World Championship.
21 Jan 2008
The European Tour will again own and operate The PGA European Tour Courses brand following an agreement reached with international businessman Denis O'Brien. The agreement will see The European Tour take control of the current network of licensed international venues which has been successfully developed since its acquisition by Denis O'Brien in 2001.
Quinta do Lago, PGA Golf de Catalunya and Kungsängen golf venues, while remaining as PGA ETC licensed venues, will continue to be owned and developed by Denis O'Brien.
David MacLaren, Chief Executive of PGA European Tour Courses, will join the staff of The European Tour based at Wentworth as Director of Property and Venue Development. MacLaren, who was previously responsible for all aspects of golf for Marriott UK, Europe's largest hotel golf operator, brings with him a high level of operational, strategic and management experience.
19 Nov 2007
• The European Tour announces The Dubai World Championship at Jumeirah Golf Estates – the world’s richest golf tournament with a US$10,000,000 prize fund
• New “Race to Dubai” offers additional US$10,000,000 annual Bonus Pool
• The European Tour International Headquarters to be built at Jumeirah Golf Estates, Dubai
The European Tour and Leisurecorp, the company developing Dubai’s leading residential golf community at Jumeirah Golf Estates, today announced a wide-ranging partnership which will create The Dubai World Championship, the world’s richest golf tournament with a US$10,000,000 prize fund.
The partnership will run initially for five years, with an option to extend for a further five years, and will include the creation of the end-of-season Dubai World Championship; an additional annual US$10,000,000 Bonus Pool; significant support for selected European Tour events; funding of The European Tour’s Physio Truck; the construction of a new International Headquarters for The European Tour at Jumeirah Golf Estates; and the creation of a global property company, in a joint initiative with Leisurecorp, to develop new tournament venues around the world.
19 Nov 2007
November 19, 2007
EUROPEAN TOUR ANNOUNCEMENT
ALAN ROGERS (Group Chief Executive of Leisurecorp): Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you for being here and joining us for this momentous occasion. We're delighted to have so many of you here, and particularly welcome those of you who are paying their first visit to the Emirate.
I thank you on behalf of Dubai World and our Chairman, His Excellency, Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, who unfortunately can't be here today because he's travelling, but he sends his best regards to you all.
19 Nov 2007
A presentation was made at the end of an historic day for The European Tour as George O’Grady presented Alan Rogers, CEO of Istithmar World Real Estate, a symbolic gift to capture the spirit of the occasion. The gift was a world map from the 17th century depicting the globe as it was then to symbolise everything that is going to happen in the future in The European Tour’s partnership with the Jumeirah Golf Estates.
19 Nov 2007
• New purpose-built facility at Jumeirah Golf Estates
• Centre of Excellence
• Managing global event programme
The European Tour is to establish an International Headquarters operation at purpose-built facilities at Jumeirah Golf Estates, Dubai’s leading residential golf development and home to the new end of season Tour event, The Dubai World Championship, from 2009.
The new International Headquarters will be situated at the main entrance to the Fire and Earth courses at Jumeirah Golf Estates. The purpose-built facility will include a Centre of Excellence, providing a unique base for European Tour Members to practice and train at anytime of the year, a state-of-the-art fitness centre and physiotherapy service
19 Nov 2007
• Open to players numbered 1 to 60
• US$10,000,000 prize fund
• Climax to The European Tour
• Starts November 2009
From 2009, The European Tour will come to a riveting climax at The Dubai World Championship, a US$10,000,000 prize fund tournament hosted at Jumeirah Golf Estates in Dubai, UAE.
The Dubai World Championship will be open to the players numbered from 1 to 60 on The Race to Dubai, formerly known as The European Tour Order of Merit. Only those players numbered 1 to 60 will qualify; no alternates will be included.
19 Nov 2007
