Women’s Golf
Emily Kristine Pedersen triumphs yet again with team victory in Aramco Team Series – Jiddah
Playoff victory secures Denmark golfer’s dominance in second-ever showdown at King Abdullah Economic City.
Saudi Arabia has become persistent in its push to break boundaries in sports, as exemplified by the uniquely formatted Aramco Team Series (ATS), which recently held its last golf tournament of the year from Nov. 10-12, at the Royal Greens Golf & Country Club in King Abdullah Economic City.
Building on the company’s sponsorship of Saudi Arabia’s first-ever women’s golf tournament last year, the launch of ATS underscores the Kingdom’s efforts toward gender equality and female empowerment in the world of golf, by providing an exciting new platform through which women can excel in this global sport.
This represents a triumph for the equality movement within sports, accelerating the course that Saudi Arabia is already on, while providing another example of Aramco’s commitment to diversity and inclusion, which isn’t new for the company.
Aramco has a long history of supporting the sport in the Kingdom, where it built its first golf course in 1945, followed by more courses in Ras Tanura, Abqaiq, and ‘Udhailiyah.
Jiddah Tournament
The ATS team format consisted of four players who competed to shoot the lowest combined score throughout the span of three days.
All teams featured three Ladies European Tour (LET) players, paired through a unique draft system — where team captains choose only one player, and the rest of the team was randomly assigned. The fourth member of each team was an amateur golfer, providing an opportunity to all players to participate through the tournament’s “Team Up” competition.
In addition, individual professional players also competed to have the lowest individual score, with a $200,000 prize awarded from the overall pot.
Winners
The tournament commenced with practice rounds, followed by the championship, which consisted of two sessions each day. The event was finalized by a championship ceremony, to congratulate and award the winners.
Team Pedersen consisting of Emily K. Pedersen, Hannah Burke, Krista Bakker, and Ahmed A. Al-Subaey, the team’s amateur player, was the teams’ champion. Teenager Pia Babnik, 17, was the individuals’ champion.
As the proud sponsor of the Team Series, Aramco’s senior vice president of Downstream, Mohammed Y. Al Qahtani, and vice president of Marketing, Sales, and Supply Planning, Ahmed A. Al-Subaey attended the Jiddah leg and were delighted to present the winning trophies to Babnik and Team Pedersen.
We’re committed to empowering women in all walks of life, including sport. The values of golf, in particular sportsmanship, hard work, and respect for others, align strongly with our values here at Aramco.
— Ahmed A. Al-Subaey
He added, “Our sponsorship is an extension of our efforts to provide equal opportunities for women, and a platform to succeed.”
The Saudi Golf Federation hopes to inspire future generations of women to take advantage of golf’s inclusivity by taking up the sport, in addition to other social opportunities in the Kingdom.
To find out more, visit www.aramcoteamseries.com.