DUBAI // Miki Mirza, the Indian golfer, was presented with the men's UAE Order of Merit last night at an awards ceremony held at the Els Club and hosted by the Emirates Golf Federation. The junior titles in both net and gross divisions were awarded to Briton Daniel Hendry, while the ladies awards went to Nasha Sarkari.
Although the results have been known for the past month, yesterday was the first time the winners were recognised as champions in front of their peers and Mirza said he was keen to develop his game and retain the title next year. "I'm very proud," said Mirza, who plays off a plus-three handicap and represents Dubai Creek Golf and Yacht Club. "It's been a good season, qualifying for the Dubai Desert Classic and just consistently performing well in all the EGF Order of Merit events. My plan is to just keep trying to get better, lower my handicap, and try to win the Order of Merit again as it's the benchmark for all of us to pace ourselves on."
Vikram Judge, of India, finished second in the men's category, while Abulla Al Musharrekh, the Emirati, came third. Hendry added he was delighted with his awards and said he is looking forward to returning to the UAE an improved player after a summer at home. "I'm very happy because I worked very hard this season and it all came together nicely," said the 16-year-old who represents Emirates Golf Club. "I'm going back to the UK to play in some national events and then I will work hard with my coach and hope to come back next year even better."
The Junior Order of Merit in the girls' category was won by Shloka Desai, of India, with Diya Chopra and Boushra Dalile in second and third respectively. Desai was also awarded the Most Improved Player for the year 2009-10. The awards ceremony directly followed the Pepsi Junior-Am tournament, an annual team event that groups one junior, one professional and three amateurs together for a one-ball score scramble-format game.
This year's competition was won by Pepsi II, consisting of Rayhan Thomas, Stephen Hubner, Tariq El Sakka, Amr Farghal and Laurie Boyd. The team finished with a final score of 54, which was 0.3 strokes ahead of second place. gmeenaghan@thenational.ae