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28 March 2024

Buamaim honoured for 'outstanding contribution to golf'

Mohammed Juma Buamaim, CEO of golf in Dubai speaks during prize giving after the final round of the Omega Dubai Desert Classic at Emirates Golf Club on February 3, 2013 in Dubai, UAE. (GETTY)

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By Staff

Mohamed Juma Buamaim, vice-chairman and CEO of golf in Dubai, added another feather to his cap when he was honoured for his 'Outstanding Contribution to Golf' in the UAE and across the region at the Middle East Golf Awards ceremony in Dubai on Wednesday night.

The enterprising son of the desert has carved a niche for himself in the Arab golf world by single-handedly spearheading an ambitious campaign to promote and develop the game of golf in the region with the aim of producing a future generation of champions.

Combining passion with excellent planning and organisational skills, MJB, who was born and brought up in Dubai, quickly rose through the ranks - and today he is the unmistakable face of UAE golf.

Being a former UAE national golfer, an Emirates Golf Federation board member, the first Arab to become general manager of any golf club in the UAE (Emirates Golf Club), Buamaim’s contribution in streamlining the affairs of the game is well recognised – and respected.

“It feels great to get recognised and noticed for your work. And when the recognition comes from your peers, the feeling is special,” said Buamaim, the first UAE national to win the prestigious award.

“I would like to congratulate the organizers of the awards for recognizing the achievements of the golf industry,” he said.

Buamaim, along with Mohamed Alabbar (the Chairman of Emaar), created ‘golf in Dubai’ to promote Dubai as a leading global golf destination.

The event management company, which promotes and organises the Omega Dubai Desert Classic (a premier European Tour event) and the Omega Dubai Ladies Masters (the season-ending Ladies European Tour tournament), has since expanded its role by instigating new initiatives aimed at the overall development of golf in the region.

He is credited with taking the profile of the Omega Dubai Desert Classic to a whole new level. The tournament, which celebrates its 25th anniversary in 2014, has helped shape the careers of many professionals.

The Omega Dubai Desert Classic also featured in the awards when one of the tournament’s sponsors, Emirates NBD, were recoginised for the 'Best Golf Sponsorship of the Year'.

An irrepressible man not known for resting on his laurels, Buamaim took up the biggest challenge of his career when he launched the MENA (Middle East and North Africa) Golf Tour in 2011.

Affiliated to the R&A and the Arab Golf Federation, tour, which is the first of its kind in the world open to amateurs, has since grown from four tournaments in the inaugural year in 2011 to 10 in 2013, covering a major expanse of the region, including Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Oman besides the UAE.

No other sporting organisation in the region can stake claim to channeling its resources to promoting the Arab talent in a sport like golf which is quite new to this part of the world and faces its own challenges in luring players in the game.

In 2011, he launched GOLF CITIZEN, an innovative golf reservation website aimed at promoting golf courses on its network, especially in the UAE, and realizing the country’s tremendous golf tourism potential.

Golf, Buamaim, believes, is the most effective sport to connect to the world and its off-course benefits are immense, ranging from real estate, retail and hospitality to tourism.