The Ryder Team is coming to The DP World Tour Championship

Sana Tufail: Muhammad Ali may still be the greatest sportsman in history, but Martin Kaymer was the greatest at the Medinah Country Club on the final day of the Ryder Cup when Europe snatched victory from the claws of defeat.

All looked done and dusted with an inevitable victory for America at the close of play on Saturday! Yet on that Sunday Europe came back from the abysses and retained the Ryder Cup at 14.5 to 13.5, with perhaps one of the greatest comebacks in sporting history.

Martin Kaymer, the three-time HSBC Abu Dhabi Championship winner had a remarkable last three holes. knowing he had to sink his 6 foot putt on the 18th, for the team to retain the Ryder Cup; I could not help thinking that Martin was going to do it, after all, I had witnessed his cool positive demeanor from the sidelines when approaching the 18th hole on the final day of each of his three victories at Abu Dhabi Golf Club. His approach shots and final putts played to precision on each occasion to the approval of the roaring crowd, I can only imagine how much louder that roar must have been when that putt went in at the Medinah! It is even more remarkable that only weeks earlier Kaymer had announced that he may even withdraw from the team if he felt his game was not quite there, after all, he was not having the best of seasons. I was really pleased for him and the team to win in such an exciting manner, what an advert for golf!

Martin Kaymer, the three-time HSBC Abu Dhabi Championship winner had a remarkable last three holes… Sana Tufail

And even more exciting for golfers in Dubai, is the fact that the victorious Ryder Team will be playing in the DP World Tour Championship which is only several weeks away. Rory McIlroy, Luke Donald, Martin Kaymer,  Ian Poulter, Lee Westwood, Justin Rose, Nicolas Colsaerts will all be there, hopefully, Rory won\u2019t need a police escort to get him to the tee box this time (LOL)!

Last year I was lucky enough to be invited to play for the Emirates Golf Federation team which included Khalid and Daniel led by the professional Rhys Davies in the Rolex PRO-AM. It was a great team event but as our teams, joint handicap was below par, we never really had a chance of being amongst the medals even though we shot a respectable 7 under, but yours truly managed to get the longest drive prize (off the ladies tees of course)! Rhys and his caddie were really great, passing on some great tips on how to be committed when playing shots into the green. Better to be committed with the wrong club than being uncommitted with the right club!

I am really looking forward to the DP World Tour Championship, obviously will not be able to attend the first two days due to school, but on Friday and Saturday I will certainly be hoping to see Rory, Martin Kaymer, Nicolas Colsearts, Alvaro Quiros, Ernie Els, Lee Westwood in the mix; along with others on the magnificent Earth Course. On their day they are amongst the best ball strikers on the planet. But then Dubai always has the habit of throwing an unknown into the equation who can win an event out of nowhere whilst everyone is focusing on the big names!

On a personal front, I am looking forward to playing in both the junior and ladies Order of Merit events which are yet to start. Since returning from England, I have had 5 tournament scores of under par, twice equalling my ladies course record of 70 gross at my home club Yas Links yet still only managing to be amongst the stableford prizes once just need to start hitting in the 60 ‘s to get a look-in!

Now that the countdown to A Levels has started, at school we just have test after test, only last week I had 6 mini-tests! Which means less time on the range, so I have to concentrate on shorter quality practice time rather than long sessions, also been reading about how too much practice can be counterproductive in any sport.

On their day they are amongst the best ball strikers on the planet… Sana Tufail

As part of my extracurricular research, I have found that Exercise is the best Medicine seems to be the flavour of the month.
Be it, local or international, TV or newspaper you just cannot miss the message We must all be more active, move away from the sedentary lifestyle. We must exercise for 30 minutes three times a week. We must have a healthy dose of Vitamin D, are all screaming out at you!

This summer during the London Olympics  I came across this fantastic program in Tower Hamlets, East London, the UK where schoolchildren and adults (able bodied and disabled alike) are all being encouraged to enjoy outdoor activities by playing a sort of cut-down version of urban golf. This was to help make exercise enjoyable and a lifetime habit which is supported by so many reports of diseases such as diabetes and cancer being significantly reduced by regular exercise. The benefits of a brisk walk three times a week or two sessions of urban golf played on a football field in a city environment has actually become a reality through a program started by Professor Tim Oliver and the Orchid Trust. My brother Saad who is a final year medical student at Barts & The London and also learned his golf in Abu Dhabi is also a convert to this version of Golf, volunteering his free time to spreading the game at grassroots level in the UK inner cities. Would it be wonderful if this program which makes exercise both enjoyable and inclusive could be implemented in all the schools in the UAE? Just imagine every child would have been introduced to a miniaturised version of golf and experienced the benefits of enjoyable exercise by the time they had left school, it would no longer be a flavour of the month but a flavour that would inspire a generation for life!

See you soon Sana