Where In The World Is DJ: Egypt, June 2021
In February of 2020, while visiting our golf courses in Egypt, it was decided to start a travel blog to highlight my travels as Sr. Vice President for Troon International. With properties spread over 20+ countries, it was thought that there would be a significant amount of valuable content that could be shared. Little did we know that there would not be too much content from that point forward as the entire world was impacted by a global pandemic that significantly hindered the ability to travel safely, if at all.
Thankfully, however, travel has started to open up a bit and 16 months later, I am happy to say that I am back in Cairo, Egypt. As always, Cairo never disappoints. It was obvious that the capital city of Egypt has been working hard over the past 16 months and several new developments, roads, and tourism attraction enhancements have been completed.
L-R: Naela El Attar (PGA General Manager), Abdel Aziz Mahmoud (Golf Operations Manager), DJ Flanders (SR Vice President of Operations for Troon), Eng.Abd El Ghany Rabea (Allegria Golf Course Superintendent), Robin Evans (VP Construction and Agronomy for Troon)
The first facility I visited was The Allegria, which we have been engaged with since 2007. This is a very special project for us, as it was the first Troon property in Egypt and we appreciate our long relationship with the ownership group, Sodic. It is very rewarding to see the facility now being fully managed by Egyptian staff, who have been through our Troon experience training over the years and are now delivering the Troon standards daily.
The Troon culture is so prevalent at The Allegria that the Golf Operations Manager, Abdel Aziz Mahmoud, has been accepted into the 2021/22 Troon LEADership program. This is no easy feat with availability for approximately 30 LEADers with nominations coming in from over 600 golf courses around the world. Well done Aziz!
L-R: Adel Abdel Aziz (Assistant Superintendent), Amir Samir (Golf Operations Supervisor), Will Righton (DIrector of Agronomy), Robin Evans (VP Construction & Agronomy for Troon), DJ Flanders (SR. Vice President of Operations for Troon), Josh North (General Manager)
Next, I was able to visit our newest project which is located in New Cairo, called Madinaty Golf Club. The club is located in Madinaty, which is being developed by Talaat Moustafa Group; a modern lifestyle city that is fully focused on providing everything that is needed within a community in line with international standards. The golf club is no exception. The club fully opened since my previous visit, and it was incredible to see the enhancements and improvements that have already happened in that time.
The Robert Trent Jones Jnr golf course was in impeccable shape, and the spacious clubhouse was completed and offers multiple restaurants, swimming pools, a panoramic gym, a spa, and a multi-purpose terrace designed uniquely to accommodate any social event. Also, the club has already made a splash on the golf scene by introducing several #growthegame initiatives that have had significant participation, such as the Girls Go Golf events which run on the last Wednesday of every month, offering new golfers a chance to enjoy an introductory clinic and more accomplished players can enjoy the Jade Tournament event. In their first event, they had over 50 ladies participating which is a great start. The club also hosted the Egyptian Amateur Open Golf Championship event and received rave reviews from the competitors. I am confident that this facility will be home and host to many more prestigious events in the future.