What a world. (European Tour)
What a world. (European Tour)

The photos are as stunning as the golf course. The Dubai Desert Classic is played every year at the Emirates Golf Club. Its first event was in 1989. As you can see from the photos below, it was basically just the course and nothing else. 

Then a city sprung up. As recently as 1960, Dubai had 40,000 residents. Now it has over 2 million. Miguel Angel Jimenez remembered how it used to be.

"I've been in Dubai since the first year we had The European Tour coming here," said Jimenez this week. "All the big changes you see in this part of the world are unbelievable. I remember when that first year I come here, and you have one road from Deira to Abu Dhabi, you have one lane. And looking nowadays, nowadays now you have seven lanes a nice pack in the traffic jam all the time."

Ernie Els remembered a different Dubai too.

"Going back to 1993, first time here, I played an exhibition, I'll never forget, the Creek course, played with Isao, Seve and Nick Faldo, and it was a nine-hole challenge match and I shot 33 at the Creek course and won a magic carpet. It's not magic; it doesn't fly."

The carpet might not be magic, but the city appears to be.