Golf Saudi Opens the Game to a New Generation at the PIF London Championship
As the world’s best women professionals compete at the 2026 PIF London Championship (Centurion Club, 6–9 August), Golf Saudi is proving its commitment to the game runs far beyond the fairway. Across the first two days of the London tournament, Golf Saudi and the Muslim Golf Association (MGA) welcomed 280 girls and women — many of whom had never held a club — to discover a sport too often kept out of reach.
Determined to grow the game of golf both at home in the Kingdom and internationally, Golf Saudi is opening access to the game, breaking down barriers, and building a route from a first swing in the UK to a world final in Saudi Arabia.
Day One — A First Swing for 80 Young Girls
100 young girls from inner-city communities across the UK arrived at the Championship for a taster of Golf Saudi’s Go Golf programme — hitting their first shots, then sitting down with Ladies European Tour performance professionals, doctors and coaches to hear what a life in the game can look like.
For many of the young women, it was a reunion with the sport following an MGA-run month-long beginners’ course for young Muslim schoolgirls at the Iqra Academy in Peterborough last summer. With no green space of its own, the academy famously moved the final sessions to the public park across the road — allowing the girls to practise their swings in the open air, in full view of their community. From a park in Peterborough to the PIF London Championship, Golf Saudi and the MGA is building a community of budding young female players.
Day Two — 180 Women, One Route to Makkah
On day two, 180 women travelled from Bradford, Portsmouth, Barking and beyond to experience golf for the very first time. Golf Saudi and the MGA guided them on a course walk, ran hands-on golf activities, and introduced them to the Race to Makkah — the MGA’s global championship for the Muslim golf community.
Every woman in attendance left with an open invitation to the Race to Makkah World Final at Royal Greens Golf & Country Club in King Abdullah Economic City, on the Red Sea coast of Saudi Arabia. The experience is built for women and families — combining a spectator experience at a full championship with the opportunity to perform Umrah — a fusion of sport and spirit found nowhere else in the game.
Growing the Game — At Home and Abroad
From youth development zones at the Championship to a pilgrimage-linked final in the Kingdom, Golf Saudi is knitting together a genuine pathway — one that starts with a first swing in a UK park and carries all the way to Saudi Arabia.
