Today's Edition
Kuumar Shyam (Abu Dhabi)
Abu Dhabi Golf Club is all set to host the 2023 World Amateur Team Championship (WATC) where the top two or three golfers from countries around the world will gather to compete for the Eisenhower Trophy for men, starting Wednesday, and the Espírito Santo trophy for women (Oct. 25-28).
Under a revamped structure from the International Golf Federation, the order of play at the biennial WATC has been reversed among the men and women’s championships to avoid conflict of dates with other tournaments. This marks the first time the biggest amateur event, which dates back to 1958, will be held in the Middle East.
It also will be the first to be held with a reduced scope of one golf course and 36 teams to lessen the cost and complexity of hosting the event.Further, it will be the first to be held during an odd year to avoid same-year conflict with future Summer Olympic Games.
The WATC includes 72 holes of strokeplay competition. Each country fields two or three players with the two lowest scores counting per round.The stars of the future next week will be hoping to use the WATC as a springboard for success, just as Adrian Meronk did before becoming a three-time winner on the DP World Tour. Meronk played in the Eisenhower Trophy on three occasions, with the last of those coming in 2016 where he carded three rounds in the 60s to finish in a share of third in the individual competition, while also leading the Polish team to an historic eighth place finish in the team competition – the country’s first, and only, top ten in the biennial event.
“The Eisenhower Trophy was my favourite amateur tournament, I would always look forward to competing. But it was only every two years, so it was a long wait between editions!” said the Pole, who is now based in Dubai. “It was definitely the highlight of my amateur career. I usually played very well, and it was actually the final amateur tournament I played in 2016 before turning professional.”
“It’s great to see the tournament head to the Middle East for the first time. I’m sure it’s going to be a fantastic event.”
Three years after that historic outing in Mexico, Meronk became the first player from Poland to win on a major golf tour. His triumph at the Open de Portugal at Morgado Golf Resort in 2019 helped him graduate from the Challenge Tour and become the first Polish player to earn full DP World Tour playing privileges.
Fast forward four years, the 30-year-old is now a three-time winner on the DP World Tour, picking up the Horizon Irish Open, ISPS Handa Australian Open and the DS Automobiles Italian Open between July 2022 and May of this year.
“My advice to those competing is to just go out there and enjoy yourself with your teammates,” he said. “I miss that team environment, especially now I am out on Tour playing on my own. I obviously have my team around me but not a team that I compete with and against like I did back then, those memories are very sweet.
“It’s also a great track to play this month’s tournament. Abu Dhabi Golf Club demands precise shots and the greens are very fast and firm, so I’m sure they will prepare it well and offer the next generation of talent a firm, but fair test.”
