The Wadi Course by Faldo

It’s been a long wait but for golfers in the UAE the opening of new Wadi Golf Course by Nick Faldo last October 2006 at the Emirates Golf Club’s new and improved Wadi Course – now officially named ‘Wadi by Faldo’ – will add a formidable new challenge to what is an exciting portfolio of world class golfing venues.
The re-opening of the 7,328-yard Wadi by Faldo will also be a red letter day for Dubai Golf, owner and operator of the Dubai government’s golf courses.
A remit means that the Emirates Golf Club’s Majlis and Wadi by Faldo courses, the Dubai Creek Golf and Yacht Club and the well-established Nad Al Sheba Club all fall under the supervision of Dubai Golf.
The past few years have been busy times for the organisation and its managing director Rod Bogg with the signing off of the Wadi project the latest chapter in an ongoing success story.
“Dubai Golf has had several internal projects underway at the same time,” says Bogg, a man who next year will celebrate 20 years at the forefront of golf’s development in the UAE.
“The Park Hyatt hotel project at the Creek, the clubhouse and golf course renovation at Nad Al Sheba, and the Wadi re-design and real estate developments at Emirates Golf Club have kept us fully focused on improving Dubai’s reputation as a leading international golfing destination.”
There’s little doubt that the Wadi by Faldo will once again raise the bar in terms of the variety and quality of the courses available to both Dubai resident and visitor alike. After all, anything bearing the stamp of approval of Nick Faldo – widely considered to be Europe’s greatest-ever golfer – will undoubtedly prove a magnet for golfers keen to get to grips with the latest creation from the golfing genius-turned-designer.
The winner of 43 tournaments worldwide – including six Majors – and a veteran of a record eleven Ryder Cups, Faldo is gaining an international reputation as one of the world’s most talented player-designers. It’s a reputation that comes from his instinctive appreciation for the varying demands of any given course.
By applying these very same principals to the golf course design process, over the past 15 years Faldo has built up a portfolio of more than 30 projects in every corner of the globe reflecting the adaptability and passion by which he made his name on the golf course.
Aesthetics and playability are key words in the Faldo Design dictionary – attributes that are obvious when first encountering this latest addition to his collection of courses worldwide and his first in the Middle East.
“We’d been considering for some time the idea of consolidating the aesthetics and playability of both nines on the Wadi Course and integrating new residential golf development as part of the programme,” adds Bogg.
“We put a splendid plan in place, Faldo Design was commissioned to redesign the Wadi Course and now, after 18 months, we believe we have what is essentially a brand new golf course.”
First impressions of the new Wadi by Faldo course underline just that – this is no cosmetic re-working but a complete rethink of a course many will now consider equal if not better than its big brother and spiritual home of the Dubai Desert Classic, the Majlis Course – a course also voted by Golf Digest USA as one of the top 100 outside the US.
The front nine may have the same routing as the old Wadi Course but each hole is completely different from its previous set up. Add the introduction of SeaIsle Paspalum grass – which gives the course a greener, ‘lusher’ appearance – to the innovations from the Faldo Design team and it’s easy to see why Dubai Golf has such high hopes for the new-look venue.
“This type of grass is totally different with only a handful of people working with it in the emirates,” says Emirates Golf Course Superintendent Jeff Julich. “There are a lot of advantages to using Paspalum and after extensive research into the regrassing of the Wadi; we felt it offered the best way forward in our aim to take the course to another level.”
There are a number of key elements to the new Wadi by Faldo that will undoubtedly make it a ‘must play’ on the itinerary of any visiting golfer.
Typical are the well-protected greens – “a Faldo Design trademark,” according to Julich – which boast of a lot of movement and will prove a real test without being exaggerated, while the landing areas are particularly generous although this is far from a “let it rip” golf track.
“I think we can safely say this is a ‘risk and reward’ course that will be appreciated by golfers who think their way round the 18 holes and are on their game,” adds Julich. “There’s no point in just reaching for the driver and letting it rip – it’s just not that type of course and will certainly catch you out.”
If the front nine sees a familiar route with reworked holes, the back nine will delight those with memories of the old Wadi.
This is an inward nine pulled up by the laces of its Footjoys and reviltalised as one of the most rewarding stretches in UAE golf.
The old par five tenth hole remains the same length but is down on the score card as a par four, the 12th is a completely different par three challenge, the 14th and 15th holes have switched direction (indeed the new 14th hole brings into play an imposing Subka rock face that was take a neglected feature before), while the redesign has brought into play different wind directions that will flirt with both the golfer and his club selection. Add three demanding closing holes and it’s little wonder that the Wadi by Faldo is being talked about as a new jewel in the Dubai Golf crown.
There’s no doubt the combination of the Dubai Golf team and Faldo Design has produced a winner. As the residential properties take shape alongside the front nine to join the Emaar Hattan 1 and Hattan 2 dwellings that punctuate the course, the character of the Wadi by Faldo will undoubtedly develop.
“The Emirates Golf Club’s second championship golf course was originally opened in 1996 and was named ‘The Wadi’, from the Arabic for ‘valley’,” explains Bogg. “Our aim was to take what already existed and develop a unique and invigorating course that would provide a challenge to all levels of golfer.”
Of course, the Wadi by Faldo wouldn’t be the same without the ‘Wadi waste’ areas, which meander through the entire course and these have been further developed to give the course that little bit of extra character.
Another of the main themes of the redesigned course is dramatic bunkering. Golden flashes of sand from tee to green show the golfer exactly where to hit the tee shot, while Faldo – ever the perfectionist and creative thinker – has built and strategically placed a multitude of sand traps to reward the good shots and penalize those that don’t quite make the mark. For the golfing legend, it was definitely a hands-on project.
“Nick made three site visits over the past 18 months and was a delight to work with,” adds Julich. “He had his own ideas but wasn’t closed to the suggestions of others and was happy to listen to what we had to say which made him very easy and professional to work with.
“I think together with Faldo Design, Dubai Golf has produced a golf course that is better in terms of playability, aesthetically and design – I know we have built a quality golf course that will be enjoyed both by the members and anyone else who visits.”
In terms of location, there can be few courses in the region as stunning as the new Wadi by Faldo. Watched over by towering skyscrapers, the Dubai Marina provides a jaw-dropping backdrop and it is fair to say that when all the building and residential work is complete there will be few settings to rival this new kid on the golfing block.
To officially launch the new course, 24 leading amateur golfers will compete in the Faldo Series UAE championship under the watchful eye of Faldo himself when the Faldo Series Asia heads to Emirates Golf Club on October 12. The 2008 Ryder Cup skipper will watch the talented 11-21 year-olds compete during his official visit to open the Wadi by Faldo, venue for the event.
Off the course, Faldo will spend time with the players in a bid to pass on his experience and advice, while he will also spend time with pupils from local schools and encourage them to watch the action in a bid to use the Faldo Series Asia as a vehicle for providing access to the sport for younger children.
Faldo himself admits that bringing the series to the UAE is a natural progression to the work at the Wadi. “I’m delighted the Faldo Series UAE championship will be the very first tournament to be played over the redesigned Wadi Course and I’d like to thank the UAE Golf Association and Emirates Golf Club for their support. I’m very much looking forward to seeing the competitors negotiate the new strategic challenges that my design team and I have incorporated into this new incarnation of the Wadi Course.”
Despite the progress of the Wadi by Faldo and the overall positive feedback to the new developments, Dubai Golf won’t be resting on its laurels.
“Our management and consultancy company, IGLS (International Golf and Leisure Services) will continue to grow as more projects come on line in the region,” says Bogg.
“Our widest reaching and perhaps our most important objective is to realise our long-held vision of working together with the UGA and the other clubs and management companies to promote Dubai as a golfing destination. I believe that this will come to fruition sooner than we ever thought possible.
If all this happens, and Dubai continues to develop at such an incredible rate, then twenty years from now, Dubai will be the greatest and most popular golfing destination in the world, bar none.”
These may seem ambitious words but Dubai’s portfolio of golfing venues is literally stunning. And with four of them falling under the supervision of Dubai Golf – presided over by HH Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, chairman of Emirates Airline and President of Dubai Department of Civil Aviation – these are obviously busy times for the well-oiled operator.
However, it’s not just about golf. Despite its name, Dubai Golf also provides a vast array of dynamic holiday ideas and packages in some of the world’s most breathtaking destinations, while the organisation’s hard-working and professional team provides a range of golf related services and marketing initiatives through IGLS.
“Dubai Golf was originally the name that we devised for the international marketing of Dubai as a golfing destination,” explains Bogg. “Under that title, and with the support of the Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing, we carried out the first active marketing of Dubai to the international market.
“We opened the Dubai Golf office in 1999 to combine the management of the three clubs – Emirates Golf Club, Dubai Creek Golf and Yacht Club and Nad Al Sheba Club - and adopted the name for the new entity. Since then we have continued to advise private developers on the construction of some of the newer courses in Dubai; we’ve hosted the Dubai Desert Classic, supported the UGA Junior Development Programme, and generally worked towards the further development of golf in the country.”
It’s a co-ordinated approach that was highlighted in 2001 when Dubai Golf accepted on behalf of the emirate the International Association of Golf Tour Operators (IAGTO) award as the Emerging Golf Destination of the Year 2001.
Today, Dubai Golf is a thriving organisation and the parent company for International Golf and Leisure Services (IGLS), Dubai Golf Holidays + Events (DXBG H+E) - the only dedicated golf inbound and outbound tour operator in Dubai – and Dubai Golf Central Reservations, while it also operates a real estate enterprise managing 92, four-bedroom luxury villas located in the heart of the recently-redesigned Dubai Creek Golf and Yacht Club resort.
IGLS was established to satisfy the demand on the leisure and golf industry in the Middle East and further afield. Utilising the talents, knowledge and expertise of staff with extensive local knowledge as well as years of involvement in the design, construction and management of golf and leisure clubs in the UAE, IGLS has a unique understanding of the challenges of the industry.
Available on a consultancy basis, IGLS can provide everything from a complete turnkey package to bespoke individual management services ranging from administration, budgets and legal to staffing, marketing and quality control.
For those looking for a tailor-made golfing holiday, DXBG H+E has few equals. Representing some of world travel’s most prestigious brands, DXBG H+E is also a member of IAGTO meaning ultimate peace of mind for those looking for a vacation combining professionalism, quality and value for money.
Among the destinations known intimately by the DXBG H+E team of travel experts are golfing hot beds such as Scotland, South Africa, Thailand and Portugal, while for those looking for an exotic adventure that does not necessarily involves tees and clubs DXBG H+E can provide an extensive selection of holidays including safaris, trekking and sailing.
With new golf courses boasting the signatures of the world’s greatest names and other courses going from blue prints to green grass in near-record time, these are busy times for an industry that’s booming in Dubai as much as a Tiger Woods drive. But it’s also a time for Dubai Golf to keep pushing on.
“Believe it or not we don’t see fellow developers as competition, but as an extension to the product that Dubai has to offer to the local and the international golfer,” says Bogg.
“Of course we have an element of healthy rivalry between us for members and corporate business, but all that does is keep us on our toes, and make us continually strive to improve our facilities and our service. We have learnt a lot from the other management teams, and I hope that they have from us.”
If the new Wadi by Faldo is anything to go by, Dubai Golf looks certain to stay ahead of that competition for quite some time to come.-Katrina J. Ang, Dubai Golf