Seriously, do yourself a favour if you haven’t played Al Mouj already and book a long weekend – the Shark’s contribution to Muscat golf is arguably the most under-rated ( even at No.3 in our biennial top-10 course rankings), and definitely the most under-visited gem, in the region.īut we digress. To prove our press room impartiality, let it be known that the Sand Trap are unashamed fans of Norman designed courses, Al Mouj, Ayla in Jordan, Danang in Vietnam and Earth and Fire in Dubai among the Shark’s creations we’ve also savoured. One can’t grumble too loudly given the latest excuse was research for an upcoming stay and play feature at Oman Open venue Al Mouj Golf (above). Then last month at the Faldo Series European Final back at the same Abu Dhabi satellite course – agghh!!!!… Then, last year, those blessed (they really aren’t very funny) silly season deadlines prevented a trip out to Al Ain where our man was hosting his Faldo Series Middle East final. There was a club manufacturers’ meet and greet during the 1997 Open at Royal Troon (won by Justin Leonard), an opportunity a young Kiwi living off a high street golf shop assistants wage in East London could ill afford. where no other hack will see the giddy fanboy behaviour) and it’s gnawing away at me. The thing is, I’m 0-3 when it comes to chances to meet Sir Nick in a private setting (e.g. But hey, given that the Sand Trap still owns several Faldo highlights tapes and Faldo- Leadbetter instruction cassettes (with no way of playing them) from the early 80s, it has become a bucket-list mission to meet said hero and get his scribble on something for the home office wall. There’s no place for fairway fanboys in the media centre and you certainly don’t go asking stars for their autograph. We also get Faldo isn’t everyone’s cup of English Breakfast but beauty is in the eye of the beholder and the beholder is typing this, so we’ll press on with our confession. In fact, we reckon that Kiwi Frank Nobilo is the only ex-player who comes close to Sir Nick as a TV analyst, all parochialism aside. The Sand Trap might never flush a three-iron like Sir Nick, but we get how tough it is not to sound/read like a complete numpty as a media analyst. Now the six-time major champion is a class act behind the microphone, merging the deep knowledge of his maddening craft with that trademark British humour to bring the predictable pitch and putt of the PGA Tour to life on the little screen. I mean, those wind-piercing long irons bounced into inaccessible pins to grind out pars and three Open Championship wins the mastery of Augusta National that delivered a wardrobe of green jackets and a dagger to the heart of the Great White Shark (it’s a Kiwi-Aussie thing even though The Sand Trap secretly admires Greg Norman too) the thanking of the British tabloid press from the “Heart of my bottom…” Classic stuff. The Sand Trap’s boyhood hero worship, turned middle-aged man crush on Sir Nick Faldo will come as little surprise to regular visitors of this irregular Middle East-themed array of social media/golfing goodness. But first, we have a guilty admission to make, wrapped up in a lingering obsession.
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