The stage is set for a thrilling day of amateur golf as nine eight-person teams representing some of the region’s top businesses battle it out for the inaugural Emirates Amateur Golf League (EAGL) Corporate Invitational at the Track, Meydan Golf on Saturday December 18th.
The tournament will mark a welcome return for the first-of-its-kind series after the resounding success of the EAGL Mini-Series at Jumeirah Golf Estates in June. Just like the Mini-Series, the Corporate Invitational will treat players to a pro-golf-like experience with personalised lockers, team apparel and caddies all provided for the players as well as Dubai Sports Channel broadcasting the unique event live on TV throughout the UAE.
International audiences will also have the opportunity to watch the telecast live through the EAGL YouTube channel.
Emirates NBD, Bentley Emirates, WoW (Wealth of Wellness), Three Comma – Capital Advisors Limited, Shapoorji Pallonji, Satoshi FX, Atari Chain, GRP Industries and Just Golf have all signed up for the tournament as they go head-to-head in a bid to win a team golfing holiday to the Lighthouse Golf & Spa Resort in Bulgaria, while the winning corporate team sponsor will receive the much coveted EAGL bespoke trophy and a ½ page advert in a national newspaper.
“We are very excited and proud to present the EAGL Corporate Invitational,” said Sudesh Aggarwal, EAGL Chairman. “We’re delighted to welcome all nine teams and can’t wait for the event to get underway.
“The EAGL Business Series – Corporate Invitational has been planned to promote amateur golf and give amateur players an opportunity to experience the life of a pro for a day. The nine teams will have eight players each and will compete in an Individual Stableford format. Players have been assigned caddies and can bring a friend along to walk the course with them, so they too can experience the thrill of live TV, while my team has ensured every effort has been made to provide an exceptional experience to the players. The corporates who have sponsored the teams will see tangible and intangible rewards in every aspect of this event.
“The EAGL Corporate Invitational, which is budgeted at USD 250K, will bring immense value to corporates, amateur players and the golfing circuit and the overall golf events industry in the UAE.
Priyaa Kumaria, League Administrator, added: “This event will showcase amateur golf in a new light which was envisaged by the founding Chairman of EAGL – Sudesh Aggarwal, when we launched in January 2021. The whole set up and the player experience has been taken up a notch with the pro-like experience for the amateur golfer with live broadcast by Dubai Sports from 12.00pm until 5.30pm.
“The amateur golf scene in Dubai is maturing and continuously evolving and certainly has more room for such high-class golfing events. The amateur golfer has so many options in Dubai at various wonderful courses, so we believe that the player experience makes a big impact which is where the EAGL stands out.
“We received an overwhelming response to our EAGL Mini-Series that concluded in June 2021 and the player registration for our current Corporate Invitational has been phenomenal, which shows the growing appetite of the amateur golfer for novel events like EAGL.”
Preceding the EAGL Corporate Invitational will be the EAGL Junior Championship, which is hosted by European Tour star Shiv Kapur. A number of the UAE’s best junior amateurs will compete over nine holes for their golf clubs in teams of four as the EAGL look to build on one of their main pillars of creating unique playing opportunities for the younger generation in the country.
Al Ain Equestrian Shooting and Golf Club, Dubai Creek Golf and Yacht Club, Emirates Golf Federation, EAGL Team, Emirates Golf Club, Jumeirah Golf Estates, Montgomerie Golf Club,
The Els Club (CH3 1), The Els Club (CH3 2), The Els Club (GEMS First Point Elite), will all compete in Emirates Golf Federation-sanctioned event.
“I am looking forward to welcoming some of the best juniors in the UAE to Meydan and to see them all in action first hand,” said Kapur. “The event is a gross tournament with individual prizes as well as team prizes. I have always wanted to encourage junior golf in the UAE, I feel we have so many big international professional events as well as corporate golf initiatives, but not so much at the grassroots and junior levels.
“Now Dubai is my home and I am a Golden Visa holder, I felt the time was right to give back something to the UAE through golf. There are no entry fees and all the players have been nominated by the respective golf clubs.”
EAGL Corporate Invitational Draw
Group 1, 12.10 – Rohit Gupta and Satheesh S. (Emirates NBD) – Mark Burbach and Bipin Bhatia (WoW)
Group 2, 12.20 – Neil Walther and Viram Walia (Shapoorji Pallonji) – Gary Weber and Shawn C. (Atari Chain)
Group 3, 12.30 – Marwan Hadi and Kunal Seth (Emirates NBD) – Jai Dawsa and Saahil Juvale (WoW)
Group 4, 12.40 – Gurbax Singh and Chris Badea (Shapoorji Pallonji) – Wayne Taylor and Paul Mcneil (Atari Chain)
Group 5, 12.50 – Zahid Noorani and Manzoor Khan (Emirates NBD) – Alan Clark and Rakesh Yadav (Wow)
Group 6, 13.00 – Anand L. and Oswald A. (Shapoorji Pallonji) – Christopher B. and John White (Atari Chain)
Group 7, 13.10 – Ajay Bindroo and Pankaj K. (Emirates NBD) – Jashree G. and Jamie Burton (Wow)
Group 8, 13.20 – Charlie A. and Guarav A. (Shapoorji Pallonji) – Josh Kemp and Sam Tierney (Atari Chain)
Group 9, 13.30 – Hasnain Dar and Eric Tolsma (Bentley) – Kishalay B. and Rajesh K. (Three Comma – Capital Advisors Limited)
Group 10, 13.40 – Randeep S. and Sanjay A. (Just Golf) – Stefan Pauw and Ashok Kumar (Satoshi FX)
Group 11, 13.50 – Yurvaj A. and Varun S. (GRP Industries) – Sumit Rathor and Vikas Sachar (Bentley)
Group 12, 14.00 – Mukesh K. and Omar Gilani (Just Golf) – Paul Bogan and Madhu B. (Satoshi FX)
Group 13, 14.10 – Sachin M. and James Park (Three Comma – Capital Advisors Limited) – Richard R. and Gayan F. (GRP Industries)
Group 14, 14.20 – Juggie Brar and Ishu Rupani (Just Golf) – George R. and Aoife Kelly (Satoshi FX)
Group 15, 14.30 – Mark Moody and Andrew W. (Bentley) – Rahul Kitson and Heuihyung J. (Three Comma – Capital Advisors Limited)
Group 16, 14.40 – Sabiq Baji and Wayne P. (Just Golf) – Jonathan and Craig Vance (Satoshi FX)
Group 17, 14.50 – Ryan Y. and Khalid S. (Bentley) – Suneel A. and Saurabh N. (GRP Industries)
Group 18, 15.00 – Amit Sood and Anil S. (GRP Industries) – Kabir Luthra and Deepak M. (Three Comma – Capital Advisors Limited)
