History in the making for married pair
SCOTT HENRY admits that the somewhat daunting prospect of facing his wife Kylie down the stretch at the historic Jordan Mixed Open this weekend has already crossed his mind.
‘In terms of our finances, if we found ourselves battling it out for the win, that would be ideal... although it might not do much for the relationship,’ smiled the 32-year-old from Glasgow.
The Scots couple will make sporting history today when they become the first husband and wife to compete against one another in a professional golf tournament.
They are among 120 men, women and seniors teeing off in the innovative 54-hole event at Ayla Golf Club on the Red Sea coast, which features players from the European Challenge Tour, Ladies European Tour and Staysure Tour.
With a total prize fund of £300,000 on offer — and £46,000 for the outright winner of the inaugural contest — there is more than bragging rights at stake for the Henrys over the next three days.
So, how will the pair, who were brought together by their mutual love of the game, approach this week’s unusual assignment? And who is most likely to shine?
‘We are both very competitive when we play each other and I probably do win most of the time,’ confessed Scott, who won the Kazakhstan Open in 2012. ‘But Kylie has been coming into a good patch and beat me the other day.
‘There will be a bet between us and it will probably involve household chores. But the bragging rights will be the thing.’
The Henrys will each face a slightly different test this week, with the course set up at 7,100 yards for the Challenge Tour professionals, 6,601 for the over-50 players and 6,139 for the female competitors.
While Kylie, who is a two-time winner on the Ladies European Tour, admits there will be some rivalry between them, she insists they will both return to their usual supportive roles of husband and wife very quickly once each day’s play is over.
‘We won’t hide anything from each other in terms of strategy on how to play the course,’ said the 32-year-old. ‘We’re both really supportive of each other’s golf and we help each other as much as we can. We’ll discuss how our round goes, but then the golf chat is quickly finished and we get back to just regular life together.
‘We met through the game when we were teenagers in the Scottish set-up and never imagined that we would be playing against each other in a professional event.’
Both players also admit that it represents a significant week for all three tours and golf more broadly, with 40 players from the Ladies European Tour, 40 from the Challenge Tour and 40 from the Staysure Tour all competing for the same first prize.
‘This is a huge week for women’s golf,’ said Kylie. ‘All the exposure that women’s golf can get is going to help and if more girls and more women take the game up, it’s a win-win situation.
Scott added: ‘It’s great to have such big prize money for the girls and for the Challenge Tour guys as well. It definitely adds to the excitement.’
They are not the only couple doing battle, incidentally, with Norway’s Marianne Skarpnord and her fiance Richard Green also in the field.