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The 3rd Playing of

HAIDER CUP

Orlando - 2003

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USA versus CANADA

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ORLANDO 2003

Just over a year ago, around June 28, 2002, 18 Americans in Toronto had a truly sinking feeling. Toronto’s golf courses felt like rough seas, and it seemed like they were sailing on the Titanic. The situation was hopeless. Down 9-1 on day 1 of the 2nd Haider Cup Matches, the team felt helpless, and at the time, it was clear that the American team had a monumental task at hand. They ended up losing 27-9, but two qualities the team had never lost, hope and determination, were very much alive.

Orlando, Florida, August 31, 2003. On the driving range at the scenic ChampionsGate Golf Club, USA Captain Raza Dhanji was almost at this wit’s end. For over a year, he had been working really hard with his team at Orlando Union. The Orlando boys, including Union Chairman Riyaaz Jivraj, Raza, Akil Jaffer, Mohamed Kermali, Zuhair Ebrahim, and Muhammad Zoheb Bhojani had spent endless planning hours to put together a truly memorable Haider Cup Matches. Realizing the significance of the Matches, the Orlando Union spared no expense in locking in some of the finest courses Orlando had to offer. However, like any other captain of a team, Raza wanted to win. He asked his team for a final meeting, and had only one thing to say. Win. Go out there, and play your hearts out. The time for fun and games was over, and even though the Americans were going into the singles matches with a 4-point lead, this lead was by no means insurmountable by a Canadian team that on paper was much more talented and vastly more experienced than the Americans.

As golf experiences go, no one can deny that the 3rd Haider Cup Matches were one of those rare golf happenings that no one involved could truly forget. Starting with the warm opening ceremony at the Orlando jamaat, and concluding with the awards banquet at the end of Day 3, a great time was had by all. Orlando Jamaat president Meheboob Jagani extended a friendly welcome to one and all, and in the spirit of the Haider Cup, said that he wanted to see the best team win. Union Chairman Riyaaz Jivraj, along with Raza and the Union team then went on and offered their welcomes to the visiting Canadians and Americans from other states. After issuing the customary tee gift packages, it was down to the nitty-gritty of the pairings for the following day’s matches. While the American and Canadian organizers did not see eye to eye on the pairing philosophies, it was eventually decided that the host organizers would establish those rules, as had been done in the past by other Haider Cup organizing committees.

Day 1: LPGA International Golf Club
The players would now have to let their clubs do the talking, and what better place to start than the Champions Course at the LPGA International Golf Club in Daytona Beach, about 45 minutes west of downtown Orlando. As is the case with the vast majority of Central Florida’s courses, the LPGA International was laid out among the swamplands of this flat, but beautiful region. Difficult playing conditions were further compounded by Orlando’s famous humidity, but as the Matches progressed, it seemed like both teams had a firm grip on their own destinies.

Traditionally, Day 1 of the Haider Cup features a two-man scramble, in which a minimum 6 tee shots from each player must be used. Once a drive is selected, both players play their approach to the green from that spot, and the process is repeated until the hole is played out. 10 points were up for grabs on day 1, and both teams wanted to make a statement by taking an outright lead. A match won would mean one point for the victors, and match tied, or halved, meant a half point for each team.

On the American side, fine performances by Mehboob Dhala /Mohamed Taki Sivjee (Los Angeles), Arif Peera /Ali Virjee (LA/Orlando), Savio Nazareth/Khalil Sivjee (Orlando/LA), Faisal Virjee/Riyaaz Jivraj (Orlando), and Mazaher Sivjee/Mohamed Dewji (LA/Orlando) locked in 5 points for the Americans.

For the Canadians, Muhsin Kermalli/Aamer Dewji (Toronto), Sibthain Akbar/Zully Jaffer (Toronto), Hassan Kassam/Abbas Rahim (Toronto), Imtiyaz Kara/Mahmood Chagani (Toronto), and Safder Jaffer/Hassnain Chagani (you guessed it, Toronto!) all turned in sparkling performances and tied the Americans with five points.

One of the charms of the Haider Cup, being essentially a Khoja Shia-Ithnaasheri event, is food! Orlando Union did not disappoint in this all-important feature, and the bar-b-que that was served up in the center in Sanford was nothing short of finger-licking good. The “chicken sekela” and “mshikaki” were reminiscent of some of the finest in Zanzibar, Dar es Salaam, Nairobi, Mombasa, Kampala or anywhere else in the old world. The flavor was unmistakably “Biremi”! This was a great way to unwind after a tough day on the golf course. M-m-m-m good!

Day 2: Mystic Dunes Golf Club
Mystic Dunes. The words conjure up visions of windswept seaside links on Ireland’s County Kerry, or the North Sea in Scotland. Mystic Dunes did not disappoint. While the quintessential Orlando features could be seen on almost every hole (water hazards, swamps, golf ball sized bugs, and luxury town-homes!), the “dune” holes featured some of the largest sand waste areas anywhere. Get into one of these waste areas, and start reciting your golf supplications!

Team USA, however, was in no joking mood. After the spanking they received at the hands of the Canadians a year earlier, the time had come to make a statement. That statement was made by Shakil Virjee/Raza Dhanji (Albany/Orlando), Sameer Jaffer/Hilal Virjee (Orlando), Faisal Virjee/Riyaaz Jivraj (Orlando), Akil Jaffer/Mohamed Dewji (Orlando), Khalil Sivjee/Saleem Hameer (Orlando), Savio Nazareth/Sajjad Dewji (Orlando), and Ali Virjee/Abbas Rahim (Orlando/New York). These 7 points gave the USA a 12 points to 8 points lead going into the day 3 singles matches, hardly a comfortable or insurmountable lead, considering the many seasoned Canadians they would have to face the following day.

The Canadians, on the other hand, garnered three valuable points from Hassan Kassam/Abbas Akbar (Toronto), Safder Jaffer/Mahmood Chagani (Toronto), and yes, Toronto’s Abbas Rahim and Hassnain Chagani.

Day 2 of the Haider Cup Matches also saw the emergence of the future of KSI golf. 13-year old Orlando boy Hilal Virjee was on the team that defeated the team of CPGA pro Aqeel Rahim, while the tandem of 15-year old Torontonians Hassan Kassam and Abbas Akbar surgically took apart the Los Angeles duo of Arif Peera and Mohamed Taki Sivjee. While none of the more experienced adults enjoyed losing to the youngsters, the Haider Cup spirit shone brightly when the vanquished older dudes gave the youngsters high fives and congratulated them as well as their fathers for the excellent play they showed on that day.

Being ahead four points, the Americans were in a very chipper frame of mind at the dinner that evening. The Golden Dynasty is Orlando’s singular halal-Chinese restaurant. The Indianized-Chinese cuisine tasted fine to the Americans, whose spirits were high, but were they high this evening, because they probably wouldn’t be the next evening? At least that’s the opinion that some of the Canadians had! On to day 3!

Day 3: ChampionsGate
Waking up on day 3, one couldn’t help feeling the exhilaration of a potential victory. The drive to ChampionsGate, one of the Orlando-area’s premier new golf attractions was a pleasant one indeed. Located close to the Disney World area in Kissimmee, ChampionsGate features two superb 18-hole courses, the David Leadbetter Golf Academy, and a magnificent Omni hotel, which is still under construction. Designed by two-time British Open champion Greg Norman, the Shark himself, the International and National courses at ChampionsGate would be the place for the final showdown of the 3rd Haider Cup Matches.

After reading out aloud a letter of welcome from Jeb Bush, the Governor of Florida and brother of US President George Bush, USA captain Raza Dhanji and Canada captain Hassnain Chagani put forth their list of players, and the order in which they would go. Neither team captain knew who would go first or last on the opposite side, and this is where strategy, planning, and the understanding of player strengths and weaknesses played such a tremendous role in ensuring victory. What was known very well by both sides was that the Canadians had to win 12 singles matches to retain the Haider Cup, and the Americans needed to capture 8 ½ points of the 20 points available to reclaim the Cup they had won in the Inaugural Haider Cup Matches in Los Angeles, in 2001.

Once the pairings were done by both the US and Canadian captains, it was time to tee off. An excruciating slow pace of play and a separate afternoon golf event forced the marshalls and the golf course management to split the round into two nines, the front nine of the International course, and nine holes on the National course. This development did not seem to deter the determination of the American side to play their hearts out. With 20 points up for grabs, it seemed that the four-point deficit the Canadians had at the beginning of day 3 could be easily erased. The Americans, however, answered with wins by Riyaaz Jivraj, Raza Dhanji, Savio Nazareth, Shakil Virjee, Mohamed Dewji, Hasnain Karim, Sajjad Dewji, Arif Peera, Hilal Virjee, and Sameer Jaffer. The Canadians put up a brilliant fight, winning 9 ½ points, with victories coming from Abbas Damji, Muhsin Kermalli, Safder Jaffer, Kaz Akbar, Sibthain Akbar, Hassan Kassam, Aqeel Rahim, Imtiyaz Kara, and Shafiq Ebrahim. The match between Mazaher Sivjee and Zully Jaffer was tied, and each player was awarded a half-point.

With the outcome decided in favor of the Americans, the final score being 22 ½ -17 ½, it was obvious the 3rd Haider Cup Matches belonged squarely to the Americans, but the Canadians richly deserved kudos for putting up such a brilliant title defense. When making his thank you speech at the Indian Delights restaurant later that evening, Team USA captain Raza Dhanji thanked all the US players for their brilliant performance and praised the Canadian players for putting up a good and challenging fight. Canadian team captain Hassnain Chagani told Raza and the US side to keep the shine on the Haider Cup, because the Canadians would be back to take it back, in lovely Vancouver, British Columbia.

The Americans, on the other hand, are now out to prove that home-course advantage in the Haider Cup can be a misnomer. If the Canadians are going to prepare to even the series next year, they’ll have to overcome a bunch of Americans who have tasted the fruits of victory twice in the three years of the event, and will be looking forward to successfully defending their North American golf bragging rights.
 

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