Over the last few years, golf has undergone a bit of an image overhaul (partly down to the big names and even bigger money), and a game that was once seen as something that spoilt a good walk, played by retired men, is now enjoying tremendous popularity with children as young as three, desperate to learn how to hit their own mini-sized 7-iron.
Testament to this is the Qatar Golf Academy located at Doha Golf Club in West Bay, home to the annual Qatar Masters, where beginners can learn everything from golf etiquette and theory to driving, chipping and putting, and more experienced golfers can brush up on their skills.
Opened in March 2008, the Qatar Golf Academy offers something for everyone – a point that Doha Golf Club’s director of golf, Dave Moreland, is keen to get across: ‘It’s important that Doha residents realise that if they want to play golf, they can, no matter whether they are a low handicapper or a beginner.’
The Academy can be used by all Doha Golf Club members but, in order to open the game up to more people, a specific Academy membership is available for those less experienced, who perhaps lack the skills and the knowledge needed to play a complete 18 holes. Plus, given that a Doha Golf Club membership is at QR17,400 per person per year, including a one-off registration fee, it helps to work out if you actually like the game first.
‘The idea behind opening the Academy and creating a specific membership was to give those people who aren’t experienced or qualified yet to play the main championship course – something that they could actually be a part of,’ Dave tells us.
Designed mainly as a stepping stone to helping beginners reach a level where they can confidently get out and play the course, the Academy offers state-of-the-art teaching technology along with five fully qualified British PGA professionals. Academy members will also have the opportunity to develop an official handicap, which will mean that they can play on any golf course anywhere in the world.
Dave explains that flexibility and cost-effectiveness are other key reasons for being an Academy member: ‘When you’re just starting out playing golf, you want to establish a basis from which you can build on over time. Individual lessons work out quite pricey, but the Academy membership includes vouchers for Golf Academy Clinics, which provide the flexibility for you to learn at your own pace. Our PGA instructors run the clinics every day, seven days a week, and each clinic is focused on teaching a particular game skill, be it chipping or putting, so you can choose which clinics suits you.’
Membership also includes a number of vouchers to play in special tournaments organised by the pros. And once those vouchers run out? Easy, buy some more. Dave shows us round the Academy which proudly displays ‘Best Golf Academy in the Middle East’ on a sign above the main entrance, a title given to it by readers of a regional golfing publication. As well as all the things you would expect to find – enormous putting green, driving range, fully-equipped pro shop and a chipping green – there is also a range of technology geared up to helping you perfect your technique.
A simulator creates an impressively realistic golfing experience and enables you to practise in air-conditioned comfort. The putting lab, meanwhile, is an analysis training system that uses ultrasound measurements to evaluate 28 of the most important parameters to give you feedback on what you’re doing wrong in mere seconds.
There is also a swing room which houses a four-camera GASP system computer, which captures your swing from four different angles and subsequently gives detailed information on your swing which your Pro can then analyse. We decided to give it a go, and step up confidently to the Astroturf, where a ball is teed up. Dave adjusts our grip and gives us a few tips on keeping our head down and how to balance our weight. It turns out this not as easy as it looks.
The TV screen on our right shows a red line, which indicates how our swing should look, against a yellow line, which shows where we actually swung the club. It also tells us the power and speed with which we hit the ball. Too hard, too quick and our arm was in totally the wrong position on the back swing – they’ve definitely got their work cut out for them is all we can say.
The membership is QR2,750 per person per year, but is worked out on a pro-rata basis, so anyone joining this month would pay QR2,063 for the remainder of the year, and likewise anyone signing up in July would have to pay QR1,375.
As well as the vouchers, which can be redeemed against clinics and tournaments, a whole range of further benefits and discounts are available to Academy members throughout the year, such as 25 per cent off range balls, 10 per cent discount in the pro shop and 10 per cent Academy food and drink discount. The best thing about the Qatar Golf Academy is that, unlike most other members-only clubs in Doha, there is no waiting list, so you can sign up and get started straight away. Tiger, watch your step.
Qatar Golf Academy, Doha Golf Club (496 0755; www.dohagolfclub.com). Open daily from 6.30am-9.30pm.
