JEDDAH: What Saudi golf grand old man Ali Balhareth failed to do for 27 years, the young quartet of Othman Almulla, Khaled Attieh, Saud Al Sharif and Ali Al Sakha did it on Saturday when they delivered a massive 16-stroke victory for Saudi Arabia in the 36th Pan Arab Golf Championship at Gala Golf Club in Muscat.
Saudi Arabia was never on the radar in the Arab golf’s blue-riband event, with multititled Bahrain and other teams like Egypt and Morocco taking turns at winning the tournament featuring the top players in the region.
All that has changed in four days after Saudi Arabia destroyed the field for its first-ever victory in the four-man team three-to-count competition.
“This was a big win for us. Ali Balhareth has been fighting in this event for 27 years and was never fortunate enough to win it, but with his support and guidance we were able to do it for Saudi and for him this year,” Kingdom No. 1 Almulla told Arab News by WhatsApp in an interview from the Omani capital.
Saudi Arabia finished with a four-day total of 887 including a final round 220 that saw Attieh shoot 3-under 69 to win the individual Best Gross trophy on 291 total and complete a Saudi double. The Saudis led by nine shots after the first day with 220 in what proved the only needed burst. They carded 222-225 in the middle rounds before closing out the wire-to-wire win with that 220. Morocco took the second place on 903 (299-228-224-222), followed by Qatar 916 (238-225-227-226), Tunisia 924 (232-222-228-242), and Bahrain 931 (232-232-225-242) to round out the first five winners.
The 21-year old Attieh, now on leave for six months from his college studies at the USC in Los Angeles, made the turn at 1 over but picked up shots with birdies on 11, 13, 16 and 18, a 400-yard par-4 where he hit a 270-yard teeshot with a 3-wood then dumped 52-degree lob from 115 yards out to 8 feet and made the putt.
Almulla, 30, and the MENA Division Order of Merit winner on the recently concluded MENA Golf Tour, was leading by 1 on Attieh going into the final round of the individual event but then had to settle for the Best Gross silver medal after a closing 1-over 73 that gave him a 294 total.
The 17-year old Al Sharif, back-to-back Pan Arab junior champion, showed maturity beyond his years after he carded an even par 72 on the first day while Almulla and Attieh had matching 74s to set the tone early for the Saudis. Al Sakha’s 75 counted for the second round along with 73 by Almulla and 74 by Attieh.
While Balhareth might not have savored the elusive Saudi victory himself, he at least witnessed the historic feat as the coach and non-playing team captain of the Saudi national team, which Almulla had touted when it was formed in the weeks leading up to the Nov. 9-12 event as the “strongest team” ever for a mission abroad.
“Ali Balhareth does a lot of work behind the scenes for us to perform and be at our best for these events,” said Almulla.
The experience on the MENA Tour helped the team in its Pan Arab preparations, according to Othman.
“The MENA Tour was huge for Khaled and I, as week in and week out we were playing against world class fields,” said Othman.
“Khaled and I have been pushing each other to improve and take advantage of our hard work. We feel fortunate to have made history and represented the country we love on the international stage,” he added.
Eleven countries including host Oman, Palestine and Libya participated in the tournament.
Saudi Arabia ends 27-year wait with victory in Pan Arab Golf Championship
Saudi Arabia ends 27-year wait with victory in Pan Arab Golf Championship
