The Els Club Dubai: Ernie Els’ Desert Links Golf Course

In Dubai Sports City, The Els Club offers a distinctive interpretation of desert golf, blending the scale of traditional links courses with sandy waste areas, native vegetation and changes in elevation. Ernie Els designed the course with features inspired by some of the layouts that shaped his own career, creating a test built around wide rolling fairways and classic bunkering.

Ernie Els designed the 18-hole championship course, which has a Par of 72 and measures 7,538 yards from the black tees. The layout adapts elements of traditional British links golf to a desert setting through broad fairways, sandy waste areas, native grasses and pronounced undulations. The club notes that its bunkering draws on Royal Melbourne, while the greens take inspiration from Pinehurst No. 2.

Holes 9, 10 and 11 are known as the Lion’s Den. This compact stretch tests a player’s ability to control distance and direction: a demanding tee shot, a long second hole and a shorter but exacting approach. The club describes the sequence as one of the toughest three-hole stretches in Dubai and the wider region.

The club is home to the Claude Harmon III Performance Golf Academy, with coaching that addresses both the technical and physical elements of the game. Practice facilities include a floodlit driving range, a short-game area with two pitching greens and three bunkers, plus two putting greens. Visitors can book tee times without a handicap certificate, according to the club’s published policy.