"The Middle East may have the money to stage golf tournaments right now, but it’s not rich with golf fans."

Alistair Tait paints a bleak picture of the outside-the-ropes scene at the European Tour's Dubai finale.

Fridays and Saturdays constitute the weekend here in the Middle East, so we can expect more fans for the next two rounds. But I’m guessing not many more.

The land outside the fairway ropes of the Earth Course here at Jumeirah Estates explains why the crowd was so sparse.

The course is situated in the middle of a huge construction site. With one exception – no construction is taking place.

Half-finished villas line most fairways. Ugly, concrete monstrosities with scaffolding, pipe work and steel supports exposed to the world dot the landscape. Players this week use a temporary clubhouse because the one that was half-finished last year is still half-finished.

The place is an eyesore. Very little, if any, construction has taken place since last year’s tournament. Even those villas that are finished are lying empty.

Comments

[Bucky]

With the exception of The Open, Ryder Cup, and few other events, it's a crowdless tour. How they do it is beyond me, but more power to them.

[Del the Funk]

Bucky, sounds more and more like the PGA Tour!

[Marky Mark]

It might also be Dubai-overkill - they already playin Dubai (on the Road to Dubai?!?) in February on a very good golf course. Coming back to Dubai again during the year and playing this event on a Greg Norman schlop resort course with ugly villas aroud it is not going to bring out the fans again. Attendance at the Dubai Desert Classic is actually very good (buy all ex-pats as well).

[Wisconsin Reader]

I have observed these "Middle East" European Tour events over the years. You literally never see "Middle Eastern" looking people spectating on the golf course. The walking fans appear to be entirely American or European looking folks who presumably are managing the oil operations. I suspect there are local citizens behind the dark windows of the sky boxes over looking the 18th green but they don't seem to venture outside much. . . No question the attendance at most European Tour tournaments is small - but at least they appear to be actual citizens of those hosting nations.

[kafka01]

I agree - most of the spectators are Expats or tourists in these desert swings. Yet these Expats are from a much broader horizon than only from an oil background. Dubai especially had a huge influx of foreign workers over the last years - and most of them had nothing to do with the oil business - just to clear up this stereotyp..

In comparison to the PGA Tour the prize money for the regular events is less, or lets say, less excessive. And lets see how it works out when Mr. Finchem starts negotiating new TV contracts and gets less money. You dont need to be a genius to realize the PGA Tour purses will go down in the near future. In contrast, the European Tour purses wont suffer that much or at all, since it never was hyped the way it has happend at the PGA Tour with the whole Tiger phenomenon.

[Tottenham Hotspur]

The galleries looked larger today on tv shots.

[Aunt Blabbie]

Golf tournaments should quit referring to themselves as World Championships. Presently, there is not a valid scheme for such wishful thinking. So stop it!