GOLF – Three former champions of the Bahrain Amateur Open golf championship headline a field of 100 participants who will be teeing off at the Royal Golf Club today to begin the seventh edition of the popular event.
Two-time winner Ahmed Alzayed and fellow-Bahrainis Ali Al Kowari and Khalifa Al Meraisi, both one-time victors, are set to return for this year’s three-day, 54-hole competition, which is a World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR) counting event.
They are joined by golfers from Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman, Egypt, and Lebanon – in addition to a number of players of various nationalities residing in the kingdom along with Bahrain national team members – who will be hitting the fairways.
Last year’s winner Aadam Syed from Pakistan is not part of this year’s list of entries, but 2024 runner-up Jay Mullane from Britain and third-placer Issa Abou El Ela from Egypt are set to compete.
The field will be playing in groups of four – the first of whom are scheduled to begin their round at 6.40am.
The final group will be teeing off at 8.30am.
A cut will be made after 36 holes for the leading 48 gross scores and ties.
This year’s Bahrain Amateur Open winner will not only come away with the coveted trophy, but also earn a spot at next year’s Bahrain Championship on the 2026 DP World Tour, scheduled for January 29 to February 1.
Furthermore, the Bahrain Amateur Open acts as a qualifier for the 17th King Hamad Trophy (KHT).
The top 10 players and ties, excluding Bahrain’s national team players, will qualify for the KHT, which is scheduled to be played from November 27 to 29 at the same world-class course.
Meanwhile, the tournament’s youth participants from the kingdom will also be vying for selection to the national team roster that will compete in the third Asian Youth Games, which will be held on the island from October 22 to 31.
Golf is one of the 26 sports that will feature in the mega event, which is being held under the royal patronage of His Majesty King Hamad.
Syed was last year’s winner of the Bahrain Amateur Open, while in 2023, the title was claimed by Saudi’s Khalid Attieh, who was the first non-Bahraini champion of the tournament.
Al Kowari triumphed in its inaugural edition in 2019, and then Al Zayed won in 2020 and 2022. Al Meraisi was the victor in the 2021 event.
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