TURNBERRY // The Race to Dubai was given a spectacular launch yesterday when the organisers, Leisurecorp, put on a lavish show at their newly acquired Turnberry Golf Club, venue of next year's British Open Championship. Leisurecorp, the Dubai-based development company, have taken over the sponsorship of the European Tour's order of merit which now features the US$10million (Dh36,730) finale of the of the Dubai World Championship, and they invited their new partners to Turnberry on the west coast of Scotland for the official announcement of next year's fixture list. George O'Grady, the chief executive of the European Tour, expressed his delight at going into partnership with the Dubai World company and declared that the association gives him and his colleagues "enormous confidence" about coping with the current financial difficulties enveloping the world of sport. "Leisurecorp are doing things with great style and they give us belief for the future of our tour," he said. "We could not have better partners." David Spencer, the chief executive of the golfing arm of Leisurecorp, responded: "We are proud of what we have achieved. Everybody is aware that we are putting in tons of money but it is the fuel of the Middle East that has culminated in a day like today. It has been an incredible journey with a few bumps along the way. But this is a special day for Dubai and we could not be prouder." There are 53 tournaments on the new European Tour fixture list which begins next month with the first leg of the Race to Dubai in Shanghai and runs for just over a year with the Dubai World Championship scheduled for Nov 19-22 next year on Greg Norman's Earth Course at Jumeirah Golf Estates. That 2009 programme will be what O'Grady described as a "transitional year" under the new agreement. In 2010 the fixture list will resemble a calendar year with the Race opening on another of the Leisurecorp courses - Pearl Valley Estates - for the South African Open - and ending at Jumeirah in November. Spencer said about that change to the rota: "We are delighted that the Race to Dubai in 2010 will start with the South African Open. To start and finish at a Leisurecorp-owned facility is just fantastic for us. "We understand how hard it is for the European Tour to fit all the tournaments in and find the best time to stage them. It is hard to please everyone and what we want is the best for the Tour. We fully understand our responsibilities in being custodians of the Tour." O'Grady was also enthusiastic about tidying up the fixtures into a calendar year. He commented: "The Race to Dubai will bring a new dimension to the European Tour and the partnership with Leisurecorp is central to our plans for the future. So we are particularly delighted that three of their prestigious golf facilities are hosting competition in 2009 and that Pearl Valley and Jumeirah will start and finish the 2010 season." Spencer then gave notice that he intends next month to close down Turnberry and the famous hotel overlooking the course which Leisurecorp acquired in their audacious £55million (Dh356.784) swoop earlier this year. Extensive work will be carried out on the course and the hotel between then and the Open on July 16-19.
wjohnson@thenational.ae
