Chairman of Saudi Arabian Golf Federation reveals hopes for golf in the Kingdom with more courses in the pipeline. Al-Rumayyan hopes Othman Almulla is a trailblazer for golfers in the Kingdom. LONDON: Hosting the Saudi International is just the start of an ambitious plan for golf in the Kingdom. That is according to Yasir Al-Rumayyan, chairman of the Saudi Arabia Golf Federation who is intent on making the country both a golf destination and a producer of top-class golfing talent. The first European Tour event got under way at the Royal Greens Golf & Country Club yesterday with a host of star names such as Justin Rose and Dustin Johnson vying to become the inaugural winner. But for Al-Rumayyan this week’s tournament is just the first step on a path to get Saudi Arabia on the golfing map. “(This event) fits with our strategy in the Saudi Golf Federation. We’re really proud that we got the partnership with the European PGA and got this tournament in Saudi for the first time, hopefully we will have more championships and tournaments coming (here in the future),” Al-Rumayyan said. Othman Almulla had already made history before a tee-shot was struck by becoming the Saudi to turn professional. If Al-Rumayyan has his way Almulla will be a trailblazer for golfers — both men and women — to become sporting stars. “(Our second aim) is to have golf academies to get more players; number three, to build golf courses. So that’s the accessibility,” Al-Rumayyan said. “We want to have our players (become) tournament professionals. We had the first Saudi player turn professional, Almulla. So these are the four main things that we’d like to achieve.”