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Of the original seven sheikhdoms that make up the United Arab Emirates, it‘s an understatement to say that Dubai is attracting the most attention. Dubai has its doors wide open and lights shining for, like Hong Kong, it‘s become one of the top shopping destinations in the world. Some people come here to lie on the beach, most come first and foremost to buy something. With Emirates Airlines offering deals that shuffle thousands of transit business and holiday passengers through the "City of Merchants” every day, it‘s not surprising to see that golf has become part of many itineraries. One of the most memorable golf photographs from Dubai is the image of Tiger Woods teeing off from the helipad at the top of Dubai‘s most famous hotel, the Burj Al Arab, billed as "the world‘s most luxurious hotel.” It‘s so luxurious, The Burj charges visitors who are not guests a hefty fee ($75 last we heard) just to have a look inside. Assuming you want more than the highest tee shot you‘ll ever hit, Dubai has a number of very fine golf courses, and no doubt if the mass construction of new hotels is any indication, more are being planned. For now, the Emirates Golf Club, the Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club and the Dubai Country Club are three impeccably constructed courses whose rich, green fairways belie the desert environment they‘re in. The Emirates Club was the first greengrass course built in Dubai. It‘s one of the sites, with Dubai Creek, for the Dubai Desert Classic, a European PGA tour stop. It has two 18hole layouts just minutes from the string of hotels on Jumeirah Beach. Dubai Creek, redesigned by Thomas Bjorn in 2005, plays adjacent to Te Creek, as it‘s called, and its 115berth marina next door means yachties who play golf are in heaven. Just as Dubai has become a modern crossroads for air travellers, so has it become a popular port of call for yachts. The Dubai Country Club doesn‘t have "greens,” it has "browns” the sandy soil putting surfaces common to this part of the world. Players do not wear golf shoes, they wear sandshoes, or at least shoes with flat soles so as not to tear up the browns. Dubai CC has an 18 and a ninehole course and, for the record, it‘s the oldest golf course in UAE. As in Southeast Asia, where the daytime heat can make playing a test of will, nighttime golf under lights is common. One course, the Nad Al Sheba, has all 18 holes floodlit. That course, by the way, plays inside and outside Dubai‘s main horse racing track. As for a suggestion on where to stay, try the extraordinary Madinat Jumeirah with its two hotels, 30 restaurants, cafes and bars, and 75 shops. And yes, a fancy spa. The main thoroughfare through the complex is a manmade canal al la Venice, Italy. The best way to get around is by abra, or a water taxi. | 
