Harradine Cruises to Seventh SGSC Men’s Open Title

(Sharjah, UAE) – Sharjah Golf & Shooting Club played host to the 10^th Men’s Open Golf Championship on the weekend of the 8^th & 9^th December. As ever the event was fantastically supported by some of the best golfers from across the UAE, with a mixture of young guns bidding to put their mark on the event & the seasoned master craftsmen of the game.

The weekend was one of the records being matched & broken. Day one saw youngster Toby Bishop representing Jumeirah Golf Estates come hot out of the blocks & posted a most impressive score of 68, matching the standing course record. Toby’s round consisted of six birdies & saw him as clubhouse leader with a matched course record for all of 20 minutes. Hot on Toby’s trail & keen to take the title once again was Micheal Harradine, as he controlled his ball around the Championship course without a single dropped shot on the scorecard & five Birdies to post an incredible 67. Bettering his & Toby’s existing course record by a single shot. Round 1 would also see the most about of player finish under par after Day 1, with four players including Micheal, Toby, John Mills & Simon Dunn all record rounds under par, highlighting once again the strength of the 2017 field.

Going into Day 2 there was a feeling of familiarity as Micheal lead & headed out in the final group of the day. Toby was a single shot back, with John & Simon sat a two-under & two shots behind the leader. Following a Birdie on the second hole for Micheal & a few dropped shots from Toby over the first few holes, Micheal seventh title was becoming ever more a reality, hole by hole. Micheal posted a one-under-par score for his front nine on day two as other contenders battling for the 2017 title fell by the wayside. After 34 holes of bogey-free golf, Micheal made an uncharacteristic mistake on his penultimate hole as he put his tee shot in the water, he would get up & down to drop just the single shot. Recording a par on his 36^th hole Micheal posted a 71 for day two, giving him a tournament total of six under par, 138. A total which would better his previous best tournament score of 139 which he set in 2013.

Doing all they could to stay in touch with Michael was Stephen Loftus from Yas Links Golf Club & Simon Dunn from Al Hamra Golf Club as they both recorded Tournament totals of 145, one over par. Stephen would take second place in the tournament due to a better second-day score as he posted 73, one over par on day two following his level par on day one. Simon picked up the third place trophy whilst youngster Toby Bishop picked up the trophy for Day one’s best score following a great weekend of golf & experience for the young man, a name which will no doubt be at the top of many leaderboards in the region over the coming years. The Day two best score went to Craig Vance representing Tower Links as he posted 72, level par.

The Net prizes of the event were also dominated by the lower handicap contingency. Picking up the best day one score was Senior Tour, Sharjah Senior Golf Master Competitor John Mills as he recorded a Net score of 71 (gross 70). The day two best score when to Sharjah Golf & Shooting club member George Liu as he showed his experience around the course to post a level par 72. Taking the main Net prizes for the day were Chris Alderman (SGSC) on a net total of 149 & picking up third place, in second place was Namir Al Naimi (SGSC) on a net score of 147. At the top of the Net Leaderboard was a young up & coming start at Sharjah Golf & Shooting Club William Ang, after some great preparation work William put together two very consistent rounds & posted a two-round net total of  145, one over par.