Best golf courses in Dubai

A course so aptly named after the mass of water it sits beside, Dubai Creek is blessed with fairways like carpets and bunkering positioning like nowhere else. A magical tee box that towers from stilts out in the creek for the par-4 6th will leave your heart in your mouth as you try and clear the water ahead. On and off the course the attention to detail is of sheer high class with a premium level of ambience that shines throughout.

Behind the 8th green sits the unusual (but fascinating) Bedouin tent styled Emirates Golf Club Royal Pavilion that makes this course one of a kind. Majlis was the first grass course in the Middle East to have 18-holes and is well and truly carved out of the landscape.

Desert dunes surround the perimeter with salt and freshwater water hazards affecting several holes. One of the true hallmarks of the course, however, lies on the greens with large, fast surfaces and difficult pin positions making a good score hard to come by.

The Dubai Sports City is quite the spectacle, with the Els Club golf course being only one element of what the complex can offer. Work on your swing at the range pre-round or even at the high-class performance institute on-site that offers physical screening and in-depth video analysis, perfect for shaking off that slice.

The desert links-style course was sculpted from sand with a manmade intervention giving the relatively flat topography definition. You should definitely get excited at the prospect of conquering Ernie’s masterpiece under the glorious blue skies of Dubai.

An exclusive experience here will not fall shy of your expectations with conditions to be admired and a challenging round that awaits at Jumeirah Golf Estates. The Earth championship course is a fantastic representation of what it feels like to walk the fairways like a pro.

As regular host to the DP World Tour, there have been plenty of the big names laying up and pitching in here including the likes of Henrik Stenson, Lee Westwood and Jon Rahm. Take it from us, this is one of the best courses in Dubai.

On 265 acres of terrain lies man-made lakes, a vast area of landscaped gardens and the 18-holes that make up the Montgomerie. The expansive course has been given the magical and somewhat obscure architectural touch by Desmond Muirhead. Look out for the 13th hole where the green is shaped like the UAE, quite the addition to the already imaginative layout. The clubhouse is also an added feature with over 20 guest rooms and a pool for those off-course luxuries.

Inspired by some of the best parkland courses around the globe, the Fire Course has a wonderful ability to effortlessly hug the curvature of the earth. Set in Jumeirah Golf Estates, it demands a tactical round in play, meaning your short game and lay up abilities need to be on fire, pardon the pun. With a challenging level of depth perception and club selection needed, the par-5’s are an absolute joy to play offering the chance to drive the ball over 300-yards.

With one of the largest clubhouses in Dubai, the 30,000 square foot work of art can be seen protruding from the skyline in the heart of the Damac Hills. Designed by Gil Hanse, an Olympic golf architect, he has allowed the Trump International course to excel everyone’s prior expectations and has certainly not held back on imagination.

The man-made championship course does not at all look out of place in the desert wasteland, and as you approach the first tee you become confronted with a huge double fairway. Miss here and you may want to retire early.

It is incredible to think that the area Arabian Ranches so gloriously occupies was once inhabited by grazing camels and wild gazelle. Designed by 1991 Open winner, Ian Baker-Finch, it’s safe to say he knows his way around a golf course and has encapsulated the links-style even in the Gulf’s sandy wasteland.

Shrubs and bushes scatter the areas surrounding the fairways so bring your best game with you or you could be struggling to make par. With 5 sets of tees to choose from, a flood-lit driving range for all times of the day and a par-3 course… the club certainly delivers.

A true characteristic of a Faldo design is the course management needed to beat the course. Accuracy and shot placement are vital when out on the tee as even though the fairways are spacious and the greens are vast, scoring well is a challenge.

Opened in 1996 to compete with the Majlis, the Faldo Course has done a fantastic job in doing so and the cleverly positioned lakes and theatrical bunkering make it a pleasure to play.