Exactly a week after the enjoyment of playing the Arabian Ranches Golf Club I found myself on the same table sharing dinner with the designer – Ian Baker-Finch.
The former Open Champion designed the Dubai course that opened its doors in February, 2004.
I had the pleasure of playing the course soon after it opened but to return over a decade later it was a great pleasure to see how much the course has matured.
Baker-Finch designed this true desert-style layout in what was his first collaboration with Nicklaus Design on a parcel of land previously used as grazing land for camels and gazelle.
Welcome to Arabian Ranches.
The camels and gazelle have gone and in their stead is golfer’s from of all nationalities who, in the near dozen years it was opened, have come to enjoy an 18-hole course that meanders its way through some 247 acres of Dubai desert, 66 acres of which are fully grassed and 55 acres of which are planted with desert vegetation.
Like any new golf course, there has been some tinkering over the years including the completion last year of a two -year enhancement program that added spectacular vistas whilst maintaining the integrity of Baker-Finch’s design.
Sunrise at Arabian Ranches
And like a number of courses in Dubai, Arabian Ranches is the heart of a community, the Arabian Ranches Community, and unlike a decade ago with the majority of dwellings about the course now occupied that adds greatly to the experience rather than staring at empty dwellings.
The first experience at Arabian Ranches is the stunning Spanish-style clubhouse, the first in the Dubai region, offering not only a spacious dining area, pro shop and locker rooms but also 11 guest rooms.
Walking into men’s locker-room there’s a signed photograph of former European Tour No. 1 Robert Karlsson of Sweden who makes Arabian Ranches ‘home’ whenever he’s competing in Dubai.
As well, there a golf bag and a full set of Callaway golf clubs belonging to Baker-Finch that take pride of place in a glass-panelled locker, and something that I pointed out to ‘Fincy’ when I sat on the same table as him during the annual Australian Golf Writers Association annual dinner and presentation night in Sydney during the course of the recent 2015 Australian Open.
“Really, I wasn’t aware of that,” he said. “But more importantly how’s the golf course as I haven’t been back there for some time.”
My response to the 1991 Open Champion was ‘superb’.
The 10th hole at Arabian Ranches Golf Club
Arabian Ranches has five sets of tee – Championship, Tournament, Medal, Society and Ladies/Juniors – so there’s the opportunity to play to your particular level. On this glorious Saturday morning during DP World Tour Championship week we elected to play off the Medal or Blue Tee.
From the back or Championship tee the course plays to 7,658 yards but off the Medal Tee it is still a testing 5,946 yards.
The first is a great opening hole measuring 340-yards and good chance, at this dog-leg left hole, to walk off with a birdie or a solid starting round par. The second is the first of the par 3s playing some 165-yards off our chosen ‘Blue’ tee to a long narrow green.
Stuart Adams points to his golf ball buried deep in a bush at the par 5, 13th hole.
…..and Stuart extracts his ball from the bush and back onto the ‘short stuff’.
One of my favourites on the outward nine is the 408-yard fourth hole where it’s all about clearing a deep ridged wasteland bunker to a slightly downhill fairway, and from there it’s important you avoiding a deep bunker left of the green to a narrow green running west to east. You will be happy with a par any time you play this hole.
The inward half starts with a testy par four where a large tree right of the driving line comes very much into play.
But if I had to pick a favourite on the inner half it’s tbe 492-yard par 5 13th. There is a generous landing area off the tee but then if you are attacking the green, and I wasn’t, there is a strategically placed tree left and short of the green. So for this golfer it was all about finding the green with my third shot taking two putts and proudly walking out with a three Stableford points scoring par.
Bernie on the 9th hole at Arabian Ranches.
Stuart Adams and Denis Kirwan enjoying their round of golf at Arabian Ranches.
The 18th at 419-yards off the blue tee is a great finishing hole with plenty of landing area for the driver and then hitting into a long narrow green that runs sort of from about 8am to 2pm on a clock face.
The great thing nowadays about travelling to Dubai to play golf is that you are spoilt for choice with a decision between tackling the two courses at the Emirates Club or the Els Club, Al Badia, The Montgomerie course, Dubai Creek and, of course, the two courses at Jumeirah Estates.
But then consider Arabian Ranches as you will be very pleasantly surprised and rewarded.
