COURSE
— · The Desert Classic
A Gil Hanse design carved through desert ravine and lakeside fairways in the heart of Dubai's Akoya development.
01 · Overview
~2 min read
Trump International Golf Club Dubai is a Gil Hanse-designed, 18-hole championship layout set within DAMAC Properties' Akoya development, roughly twenty kilometres south of central Dubai. Opened in 2017, it arrived as one of the most architecturally considered courses in the Gulf region — and has since been recognised, as recently as 2025, as the Middle East's best.
The defining feature of the property is the Barranca, a striking desert ravine that threads through the back nine and shapes strategy on eleven of the eighteen holes. Hanse used this dry wash the way a links architect uses coastal dunes — not merely as scenery but as a consequence. Drive it into the ravine and you are in real trouble; flirt with its edges and you earn the angles. The routing's skeleton is honest desert golf rather than the imported parkland aesthetic that characterises many courses of the region.
The front nine establishes the scale of the project. A massive double fairway shared by the 1st and 9th holes — consciously recalling the great shared fairways of St Andrews — announces immediately that this is a course with historical references in mind. A man-made lake arrives at the par-5 2nd and resurfaces, menacingly, along the entire left flank of the 18th. Between these bookmarks, an 'Amphitheater' sequence at holes five through eight plays in the shadow of towers of glass, giving the round a peculiar stadium quality.
Scoring is not straightforward. Short-yardage holes such as the drivable par-4 8th (314 yards) and the postage-stamp par-3 17th demand precision rather than power, while the Barranca-flanked holes of the back nine require course management of a different order. The back nine also carries floodlights — installed in 2023 — making evening golf a genuine and popular option in a city where summer daytime temperatures make such infrastructure near-essential.
THE TERRAIN
The Barranca — a natural-style desert dry wash — is the course's spine, delivering genuine elevation change and lateral peril across eleven holes on the back nine.
THE DESIGN
Gil Hanse wove in deliberate architectural quotations: a St Andrews-scale double fairway off the first tee, a postage-stamp par 3, and twin pot bunkers standing guard in a par-5 fairway.
THE WATER
Man-made lakes frame the par-5 2nd and run the full left side of the 18th, ensuring that the round both opens and closes with water in the equation.
THE SETTING
The Amphitheater stretch — holes five through eight — plays through a canyon of apartment towers, creating a stadium atmosphere unusual even by the standards of modern resort design.
02 · The Holes
5 of 5 · tap any hole to watch creators play it
Six holes carry more of the course's weight than the other twelve combined — and the creator vlogs that prove it.
HOLE 17 · par 3 · 143y
The shortest par 3 on the card demands absolute precision. A small green rises from the surrounding native desert wasteland with no margin for error on either side. Club selection must be exact; there is nowhere to miss.
143 yards · At 143 yards, the smallest and most unforgiving green on the property.
HOLE 18 · par 4 · 413y
Water runs the entire length of the left side from tee to green, making a closing par-4 that rewards the bold but punishes the wayward. The grand clubhouse looms beyond the putting surface, framing a memorable finish.
413 yards · The lake on the left cannot be escaped — every shot must commit right.
HOLE 13 · par 5 · 548y
A reachable three-shotter complicated by twin pot bunkers positioned in the fairway to penalise casual lay-ups, and a green that sits as an island entirely surrounded by sand waste area — an unusual and demanding finishing target.
548 yards · Twin fairway bunkers make a conventional lay-up unexpectedly dangerous.
HOLE 4 · par 4 · 455y
The Barranca makes its first meaningful appearance here on this long, demanding par 4. The ravine threatens the right side and punishes any drive that drifts off line, establishing the strategic theme that will dominate the remainder of the round.
455 yards
HOLE 8 · par 4 · 314y
At just 314 yards, the 8th invites the gambler's instinct. Tucked within the Amphitheater section and framed by towers of glass, the green is theoretically reachable off the tee — but the penalty for coming up short or leaking sideways is severe.
314 yards · One of the shortest par 4s in the region, yet birdie is never as straightforward as the yardage implies.
05 · In Their Words
2 on-camera verdicts · spoken while filming here
This hole voted best par three course in the world.
Huge thank you to Trump International Dubai for hosting us.
06 · How to Play Here
5 routes to a tee time
Public Visitor Tee Times · single
Visitor tee times are available to the public and can be booked directly online via the club's website. Includes 18 holes of golf, use of a GPS-equipped cart, and access to the TrackMan driving range.
Member Tee Times · members only
Members have access to designated tee times and can book up to 21 days in advance via phone, in person, or through the Trump Golf Dubai app.
Third-Party Online Booking · external
Tee times can be booked through various authorized golf travel and booking platforms such as OWL Tourism, Greenfee365, and Leading Courses.
Academy Par 3 Course · single
The 9-hole floodlit Par 3 course is open for public play and can be booked online for day or night rounds.
Golf Stay & Play Packages · hotel package
Various luxury hotels in Dubai offer packages including rounds at Trump International alongside other local courses.
07 · History
8 moments · 2013–2026
2013
The Trump Organization and Dubai-based developer DAMAC Properties formally announce a partnership to build a championship golf course within the Akoya development.
2014
Renowned architect Gil Hanse is commissioned to design the 18-hole layout — his first project in the Middle East — following his selection to design the 2016 Olympic golf course in Rio.
2015
Remarks by Donald Trump prompt a major UAE retailer to withdraw Trump-branded products; DAMAC affirms the golf project will nonetheless proceed as planned.
2017
The club is formally inaugurated by Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr. with a ceremony and fireworks — the Trump Organization's first overseas launch since Donald Trump took office as President.
2017
The newly opened course hosts the national qualifying finals of the Dubai Corporate Golf World Cup, quickly establishing its tournament credentials.
2023
A full floodlighting system for the back nine is completed and officially inaugurated with an invitational nine-hole tournament, enabling year-round evening play.
2025
The course is named Middle East's Best Golf Course at the 2025 World Golf Awards, confirming its standing as the region's premier destination layout.
2026
Jamie Camero and Jack White are crowned champions at the 2026 Summer Open, highlighting the course's active and growing amateur tournament programme.
08 · Common Questions
7 questions · sourced from 5 vlogs
Visitor tee times are available to the public and can be booked directly through the club's own website. Third-party platforms including OWL Tourism, Greenfee365, and Leading Courses also list availability. Members may book up to 21 days in advance via the Trump Golf Dubai app, by phone, or in person.
Yes. Trump International Dubai operates as a semi-private club and welcomes visiting golfers as a matter of course. Public tee times include 18 holes, use of a GPS-equipped cart, and access to the TrackMan driving range.
The back nine is fully floodlit following the completion of a lighting installation in 2023. Evening rounds on the back nine have become a popular option, particularly in the summer months when daytime temperatures are prohibitive. A separate nine-hole par-3 course is also lit for night play.
The Barranca is a desert ravine — a dry wash — that serves as the course's primary natural hazard. It comes into meaningful play on eleven holes, predominantly across the back nine. Finding it from the tee or with an approach generally means a significant penalty, so course management around the ravine is central to scoring well.
The course was designed by Gil Hanse, the American architect perhaps best known internationally for designing the golf course used at the 2016 Rio Olympics. His work here is considered among the most strategically layered in the Gulf, with the Barranca providing a natural routing anchor that distinguishes it from the many manicured, feature-led layouts in the region.
Several Dubai hotels offer golf packages that include rounds at Trump International. The club itself does not operate an on-site hotel, but its location within the broader Akoya development means it is accessible from a wide range of accommodation options across the city.
The championship layout measures just over 7,000 yards in total from the back tees, with a par of 71. Difficulty is not purely a function of length — short holes such as the 314-yard par-4 8th and the 143-yard par-3 17th demand precision rather than power, and the Barranca adds a persistent element of risk-and-reward management across the second half of the round.
10 · The Library
2 creators · YouTube-indexed
Most relevant
Big Wedge Golf · 65:08
989K views · 10mo ago
Big Wedge Golf · 76:26
991K views · 8mo ago
Big Wedge Golf · 75:26
928K views · 9mo ago
Big Wedge Golf · 75:36
1M views · 10mo ago
Seb On Golf · 27:42
131K views · 10mo ago
Save it to your studio, share it with the group, or — if the ballot gods favour you — book it for next season.