New junior skipper Adil Aslam on course for a big future in golf

Adil Aslam has been announced as the junior team captain for Great Barr Golf Club, making him the first Muslim to hold such a position in the club’s history.

It is another huge achievement in an already stellar career for the youngster, one that only came about by chance nine years ago.

“He tried all sorts of other sports, but they just weren’t for him, and one day he asked me if he could come along to the driving range with me,” said Adil’s dad Aqeel.

“One of the coaches there said, ‘Do you know your son has got a natural swing?’, and nine years on we’ve not looked back.”

Aqeel was a keen golfer himself, often spending time on the course agreeing business deals with golf-mad clients.

But now it is his son who could forge a career making money on the golf course, already earning himself opportunities to travel the world to play golf.

“He’s now turning into my retirement plan,” joked Aqeel. “We’d been in the process of looking for sponsorship and we wrote to Etihad Airways in Abu Dhabi.”

He continued: “Lo and behold their marketing director got in touch with me saying they were very impressed.

“They invited him to Abu Dhabi in March 2018 so the family flew over there with him, and that trip really enforced the idea on him that if he does well it could lead to a prosperous future.”

Adil first came across Great Barr Golf Club aged nine during his preparations for his trip to the Middle East. And after several successful years the Walsall-born youngster has now been given the honour of leading all the club’s juniors as captain for the 2024 season.

“It’s a big prestigious honour for him,” said junior team organiser Sunny Baines.

“It’s a pleasure to have him as part of our junior team and to be the first Muslim junior captain at the club is a huge honour.”

Baines continued: “Adil now has a responsibility to help the younger kids coming through, starting with helping coaching players as young as five.

“The golf club itself has been such a welcoming environment and now having Adil as the junior captain will be a huge benefit both on and off the course, showing that people from all backgrounds can create opportunities to play golf.”