Turning it on at Turnberry

Sergio Garcia came in a helicopter and played with members of the media on the tenth hole at the Turnberry Resort.

The mind boggles at what lies in store for 60 of the world's best golfers when the inaugural Dubai World Championship is finally staged on Jumeirah Golf Estates' Earth Course in 13 months time. If the first episode of the build-up to the $US10million showpiece is any guide, it promises to be an occasion to savour.

This week's extravaganza at Turnberry - the stage for next year's Open Championship - was to just launch the year-long Race to Dubai, which gets under way next month and will determine who qualifies for a crack at the $2million (Dh7.5m) first prize. Those of us who travelled to the west coast of Scotland to be part of what was described as a momentous occasion for the game of golf, were left wondering: If that is what the Race organisers Leisurecorp do to mark their takeover of the European Tour's order of merit, imagine what the Dubai World subsidiary company will get up to when the focus is fully on their Greg Norman-designed venue next year.

No expense was spared on the entertaining of the 40-odd representatives of the golfing media who were accommodated in the famous white-faced Turnberry Hotel which overlooks the historic Ailsa links and is about to undergo a lavish refurbishment. In between the two main items of business - the announcement of the European Tour's new fixture list for next season and a press conference with the popular Spaniard Sergio Garcia - the media members were given the chance to assess the 7,211 yards of the scenic countryside on which the destiny of the Claret Jug will be decided in nine months' time.

Normally on corporate golf days, competitors ride around the course in buggies. Not on this stretch of golfing paradise which Leisurecorp acquired earlier this year for £55million (Dh400m) in advance of it hosting the world's biggest tournament for the fourth time. Here we were all allocated caddies, all wearing special bibs made for the occasion. On the front it said "European Tour Race to Dubai 2009" and on the back was the inscription "Turnberry Scotland - venue for the Open Championship 2009".

Underneath that was the competitor's name. Displaying "Johnson" on his back was Peter. Walking to the first tee with Peter "on the bag" and my name on his back was the nearest I will ever get to experiencing what it must be like for the world's finest to let rip on the opening day of the Championship. Peter tried his best to knock a few shots off my score, but he has surely enjoyed more productive days.

At least until we got to the turn. We were tipped off in advance that our special guest was due to arrive at noon and so he did - by helicopter from a private jet landing at nearby Prestwick Airport. Welcome to the young Spaniard, who is ranked fifth in the world and is a close associate of Leisurecorp, having co-designed the Water Course at their Dubai headquarters. Garcia put the gloss on to what was already a terrific day by greeting the entire field as they reached the 10th hole and then helping them out with what was one of the most demanding drives over a stretch of the Irish Sea that cut in close to the tee.

The format of the competition was to take the best drive out of the fourball on each hole and play on individually from there. On the 10th we had five choices, including Garcia's. He played last after watching my best effort of the day and remarking "Now there's a player!" to the chagrin of my three colleagues who had witnessed the dross of the outward nine. After a photograph and autograph session with Garcia, we completed our average round before being whisked away for supper to a traditional Scottish castle where pipes and drums welcomed us in and then gave us a musical send-off more than three hours later.

David Spencer, the chief executive of Leisurecorp's golfing division, said during one of the few formal moments of the two-day trip that his company were throwing in "tons of money" to ensure the success of this exciting project for Dubai in particular and the Emirates in general. So far, so good, David. [e-mail]