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Gary Played hosted charity event to mark Saadiyat Beach opening

Tourism Development & Investment Company (TDIC), the Abu Dhabi-based master developer of Saadiyat Island and Saadiyat Beach Golf Club, will stage the Saadiyat Beach Classic, an international charity golf tournament hosted by golfing legend Gary Player. The event is expected to attract major golfing and non-golfing celebrities from around the world to the UAE’s capital.

Gary Player recently gave a clinic for Abu Dhabi juniors at Saadiyat Beach

The Saadiyat Beach Classic, running on January 27-28th, 2010, will be the first major tournament played on the links-style 18-hole Saadiyat Beach Golf Course, which was designed by Gary Player. The Saadiyat Beach Golf Course, the Arabian Gulf’s first and only ocean-front course, is situated on Saadiyat Island – the global leisure, residential and cultural destination under development just 500 metres offshore Abu Dhabi city.

Ahmed Hussein, Chief Operating Officer of TDIC and Deputy Director General, Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority (ADTA), explained that Saadiyat Beach Classic will be the perfect sister event to the European Tour-backed Abu Dhabi Golf Championship, held 20-24th January 2010: “The Classic is another first for Abu Dhabi and provides a high-profile platform for people to connect with this world-class golfing destination in the making.”

Lee Tabler, CEO of TDIC, said “Abu Dhabi has taken great strides in establishing itself as a top-tier golf destination and the Saadiyat Beach Classic is the next step in that pursuit. This tournament adds a significantly new and rewarding aspect to the UAE capital’s golfing ambitions”.

Golf legend Player, who has a long track-record of hosting charity events, believes the tournament will be a major boost to Abu Dhabi’s emergence as a leading golfing destination.

“I am delighted to be hosting this inaugural charity event that we have conceptualised with TDIC, on a golf course that I am particularly proud of and in a country that is really making the world sit up and take notice,” said Grand Slam Champion Player, whose on-course accomplishments include nine major championships - three Masters, three Open Championships, two PGA championships and the US Open.

Saadiyat Beach Classic’s focal point will be an 18-hole tournament, where teams of four – including one major celebrity or top international golfer – will battle it out on Saadiyat Beach Golf Club’s lush fairways and greens. To raise money for charity, companies and organisations will buy places in a team, while for those wishing to hone their skills before they take to the fairways, Player - with over 160 victories around the world spanning six decades (he first won the Open Championship in 1959!) – will be hosting his highly anticipated golf clinic for a lucky few.

“The Saadiyat Beach Classic offers golf enthusiasts a unique opportunity to play with some of the world’s most dynamic personalities on one of the world’s most stunning courses. It will be a day to remember,” added Tabler.

However, it is not only on the course where the action will take place. Kicking off the tournament will be a welcome barbeque on the famed white sands of Saadiyat Beach with a wide-range of delicacies prepared by some of the country’s top chefs.

On the final evening, a black tie gala dinner will be held in one of the UAE capital’s leading venues, where local and international stars will be in attendance to celebrate the debut Saadiyat Beach Classic event, with superb entertainment and a silent auction offering a wide range of sports memorabilia, weekend breaks and memberships to the Saadiyat Beach Golf Club.

The Saadiyat Beach Golf Classic is expected to attract najor golfing and non-golfing celebrities from around the world

Saadiyat Beach Golf Club, operated by Troon Golf, the world’s largest golf management company, is the latest championship-ready golf destination in Abu Dhabi and will have its soft opening in December.

The amphitheatre-style Par 72 Saadiyat Beach Golf Course, Player’s first signature golf course in the region, has been designed in a classic ‘figure of eight’ configuration with over a third of the course having views of the Saadiyat coastline where dolphins are regularly spotted.

November 23, 2009