CNN
—
Amir Malik is a man who loves golf. But golf hasn’t always loved him back.
An avid sports fan since childhood in Kingston upon Thames, London, he was fascinated by the sport of golf long before he made his first swing. But since he didn’t know anyone to play, Malik decided to play on the sidelines.
That all changed in 2012 when his former boss invited him to try his hand at a driving range.
“From the first ball I was like, ‘This is it. This game is amazing,'” Malik, now 38, told CNN.
“I’ve played a lot of sports but there aren’t too many when you go to bed to think about it and you can’t wait to get up and play again.”
Finally, Malik was ready to take his game to the next level. He joined a city club in 2017 and began competing in Sunday morning tournaments.
At these events, the ‘ugly side’ of the game was quickly revealed to Malik, who felt isolated by the clash of club culture and his Muslim faith.
The uneasiness began before a ball was struck, as Malik says he drew questioning looks when he refused to take part in betting on internal competitions as gambling is forbidden in Islam. Out on the course, stepping aside to observe salat — ritual Islamic prayers performed five times a day — further increased his fears.
“You would feel scared and intimidated. How will people react?” he recalled.
“We always made sure we weren’t in the way, but it made you feel very, very uncomfortable.”
His uneasiness was compounded by the everyday tradition of post-match clubhouse drinking. Since Malik doesn’t drink alcohol, he had to give up his score card and drop out early.
As he improved and played more prestigious courses, unease often escalated into open hostility. Malik, who is of Pakistani descent, said he witnessed racism on the golf course.
“You show up and you immediately feel the vibe and the vibe, the way they talk to you, how they treat you,” he said.
“And you’re just like, ‘Wow, just because I have a beard, I’m brown and I don’t look like you, you probably think I can’t play, or you think I don’t know the etiquette.
“It used to really frustrate me because you feel it, you feel it, you grow up in it, you know how it feels. And it’s only when you hit you right in the middle of the fairway – when you’ve smoked a drive – that people think, ‘Oh, he can play’ and then it’s too late.”
Malik’s passion for golf has not been tarnished by his experiences. On the contrary, they spurred him on to scout out other British Muslims who shared his love of sport.
Encouraged by “bags” of interest he had seen during his travels, Malik gave his new venture – the Muslim Golf Association (MGA) – a name in December 2019 and sent out invitations to a charity golf day at The Grove, a prestigious venue just outside of London.
The first event of the MGA would be open to all religions; Prayer facilities would be provided and there would be no alcohol or gambling. Malik was overwhelmed by the answer. All 72 places were booked within 24 hours and by the end of the week over 100 people were on the waiting list.
The event, which took place in August 2020, raised £18,000 for charity and the sight of over 60 players praying together in the courtyard of the Grove marked a turning point for Malik.
“It was just incredible for me,” he said. “That we can bring guys together, feel safe and comfortable, and just be on our own platform.”
Since then, the MGA has teamed up with hotel chain Marriott to host a tri-series tournament starting in 2021, where winners of this year’s edition could secure a trip to Turkey’s golfing paradise of Belek.
“I looked at golf and thought it’s a sport played by white old rich men, period,” Malik said. “We now have an opportunity to actually show the world that non-whites can play this game, and we’re damn good at it.”
The overwhelming response to MGA events among Muslim women was equally exciting for Malik. Having launched a trio of pilot sessions in Birmingham last year, 1,000 players have already signed up for the series of women-only taster events planned across the country over the next two months.
Malik believes Muslim women in the UK are being prevented from participating in more sport due to a lack of all-female facilities and meetings.
The MGA has no dress code, which means women can play in a niqab (face veil) and abaya (long robe) if they wish, and it rents course sections exclusively for introductory events to ensure a comfortable experience for new players.
“The response was absolutely incredible, overwhelming,” said Malik. “I say to women, ‘I don’t care what you wear, what you look like, just show up with a smile and a pair of sneakers and we’ll take care of the rest.’ We haven’t done anything revolutionary, we’ve just made it accessible, and the demand is incredible.”
To date, MGA events have attracted over 1,300 attendees. Looking to the future, the organization aspires to expand its efforts globally to reach as many new players as possible.
Growing up, Malik had to look to other sports for Muslim role models, such as English cricketer Moeen Ali. From Muhammad Ali to Kareem Abdul-Jabaar to Mohamed Salah, countless Muslim athletes have had illustrious careers in a range of sports, but professional golf offers comparatively few examples.
According to a survey cited by England Golf, the country’s governing body for amateur golf, only 5% of golfers in England belong to ethnically diverse groups.
By working with groups like the MGA, England Golf Chief Operating Officer Richard Flint believes the barriers that have contributed to a lack of diversity in the game can be understood and broken down.
“No one should feel uncomfortable walking through the doors of a golf club or facility simply because of their age, race, ethnicity or gender,” Flint told CNN.
“As a modern, forward-thinking organization, we want golf to be open to all and change negative perceptions about the game that belong in the past.”
While Malik hopes to see Muslim players on professional tours soon, he says he didn’t set up the MGA to produce a Muslim Tiger Woods.
“If that happens as a by-product, then great,” he said. “But if we can get the golf industry to look at itself long and hard and make itself accessible, open and diverse, that’s a huge achievement.
“The golf course does not discriminate. The ball doesn’t ask about skin color, race or gender… and yet it was a very closed club, open to very few people.
Malik thinks it’s time for a change. “Golf has a lot of extraordinary values and traditions that I think it needs to hold onto, but it needs to evolve…if it opened up and other cultures and traditions would bring all these great things to this game, it could be absolutely wonderful.”