Muscat: The Muscat Hills Golf and Country Club recently concluded the third qualifying round of the Volkswagen PowerPlay 2016 Series, a unique golfing tournament exclusively sponsored by Volkswagen Oman, represented by Wattayah Motors.
The recently completed qualifier marks the conclusion of the third qualifier of the 2016 tournament and saw Nick Lewis, Danny van Biljon, and Pawan Singh as the top scorers with 58, 55 and 47 points respectively. As with the previous two qualifiers, that took place in November and December, the recent event saw the participation of over 40 talented golfers from across the capital. The 2016 Series will see a further five qualifying rounds take place, with the next taking place on February 19. The Grand Final is to be played in October 2016.
Commenting on the tournament, Andrew Squires, the General Manager of Volkswagen Oman said, “The Volkswagen PowerPlay tournament offers a unique blend of risk and reward, which has been a compelling draw for golfers from across the capital since its launch in October 2014. As such we are proud to be partnering with Muscat Hills Golf & Country Club in what has emerged as one of the must-play golf tournaments in the country.”
“On behalf of Volkswagen Oman, I would also like to congratulate the three winners of each of the qualifiers so far, as well as wish all the players of the upcoming qualifier rounds the best of luck in their respective tournaments,” he added.
The Volkswagen PowerPlay series sees players enjoy an innovative format of gameplay, which is unique in the Sultanate. At each nominated hole tournament players choose between an ‘easy’ or ‘difficult’ flag position, with the more difficult flag positions offering additional stableford points for a well-played hole. This type of scoring offers players a risk and reward opportunity. In addition, holes 9 and 18 are optional bonus holes, where a player choosing a PowerPlay can earn bonus points. However, the double risk on these holes can cause deducted stableford points if the hole isn’t well played. This exciting format of golf adds another dimension to the game, which makes it dramatic and intensely competitive, with winners more often than not being decided on count backs.
Once all the Volkswagen PowerPlay qualifying rounds have concluded, each player’s best four rounds from up to eight qualifiers will be collated; which will then produce a Grand Final Order of Merit. Through this unique format, any player within the top 20 stands a chance of winning the Grand Final, which will consist of up to 60 players in the main field in October 2016.