Saturday 11 / January / 2025
Muscat: In a nation where a sport like golf does not have as much awareness as perhaps football, Azaan Al Rumhy has grown as a silent star.
Al Rumhy has played across several golf courses in the region and beyond since 1998, and won the Muscat Open Golf Championship a few years later, at the age of 19.
This young man has been playing golf ever since he was in his early teens; it is a passion he inherited from his father, who also loves the sport. Al Rumhy is often dubbed as Oman’s top golfer, not just due to his performance at the golf course, but also because of his dedication and commitment towards the game.
He practices for at least 15 hours per week and wants to be able to practice a lot more.
“I was 14 years old when I first started playing golf, and I got this from my father, who had been playing for several years before. Just seeing him play inspired me to try,” said a smiling Al Rumhy, who has been pursuing golf for almost two decades now.
When it comes to inspiration, apart from his father, Al Rumhy looks up to Tiger Woods for motivation. It was because of Woods that Al Rumhy actually became obsessed with the sport.
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“Back in 1997 when I used to watch Woods, he was quite young and that is when I realised that golf is not just for the old people or for a select few, and from that moment I knew that I wanted to really pursue it with determination.”
Al Rumhy also got the chance to meet Tiger Woods at a golf tournament in Abu Dhabi, where he played the role of his father’s caddie. Woods was playing at the same tournament and luckily for Al Rumhy, he got a chance to meet his favourite golfer.
The year was 2014 and it was a bright one for Al Rumhy, as he managed to do well at the Asian Games in South Korea and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) tournament in Saudi Arabia. “By the end of day one, I was in the fifth place and finished 18th out of the 60 best Asian players at the end of day four, this was in South Korea. In Saudi Arabia, I managed to put up a good show and won a gold medal in the net category.”
Recently, Al Rumhy played at the GCC golf tournament in Doha, where he performed quite well. He is now waiting to take part in the 114th Malaysian Open, which is probably one of the oldest golf tournaments in the world. It’s happening from May 19 to 22, and Al Rumhy is the only one from Oman who will be taking part.
“I am really excited to be taking part in the Malaysian Open because it is perhaps one of the oldest tournaments in the world. It’s got a lot of history to it and so I am hoping to see lots of tradition and history there as well.”
To transfer his skills to the next generation, A Rumhy wants to start an academy where children can not only learn everything about golf, but also get involved with different sports and fitness activities. “I am really passionate about starting this new academy where children can not only come and acquire skills in golfing, but also get engaged in different sporting activities.”
At 32, Al Rumhy has been blessed with a wonderful family. He has two little children—daughter Razaan (5) and son Yousuf (2), and Al Rumhy said he hoped that one day his son will also take to the sport just like he did from his father. Both his children go with their father to the golf course and watch him play regularly.
“I would love to see Yousuf play golf one day, he is small now, but perhaps when he is four he will be more focused and then I can train him.” Since golf has been a lifelong passion, Al Rumhy wants to play for the national team for as long as he can. “I love golf and it’s the four best players, who get chosen for tournaments and I want to make sure that I am in this set of four players for as long as possible.”
