Girl Power Rules in Mongolia
Kasugai, Aichi, Japan: Mongolian rules official Sarnai Ayurnaza is the latest subject in our Women in Golf series. The R&A Rules Scholar is playing a pivotal role in the growth of the game in her nation, both as referee and tournament administrator.
Kasugai, Aichi, Japan: It’s been an eventful few years indeed for Mongolian rules official Sarnai Ayurzana.
Having already garnered refereeing experience across the region, Sarnai was drafted into the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship (AAC) Rules Scholars programme two years ago – a legacy project led by The R&A that focuses on developing individuals to become Rules representatives of their respective countries.
The mother-of-three has raked up an impressive refereeing portfolio in a short space of time, including two marquee Asia-Pacific events in 2025 – the Women’s Amateur Asia-Pacific Championship in Vietnam and the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship in Dubai.
"Looking back, I feel proud of how far I’ve come and excited for how much more there is to learn. I’m deeply thankful to The R&A for their trust, guidance and the opportunities they continue to offer new referees like me,” said Sarnai, who is a Board member of the Mongolian Golf Association.
In August this year, Sarnai added another feather to her golfing cap when she took on the task of team manager to the Mongolian team at the 31st Nomura Cup in Beijing.
“This is my second Nomura Cup, but first as team captain. I was a referee for the 2024 event in Vietnam,” said Sarnai, who obtained her Level 3 Tournament Administration and Referees qualification from The R&A in 2023.
“I am glad to see many ladies working in the events, like Agnes Chow of the APGC, who is a real gem. The China Golf Association also has many ladies, and I saw a lady referee on the rules team at the Nomura Cup,” she added.
Sarnai was also the team manager for Mongolia at the Asian Games in 2023 and has taken on a dual responsibility at this year's Asiad in Japan, as manager/coach for the women’s team – a role she's sharing with younger sister, Hulan Gerel, who was also in The R&A rules programme.
On the home front, Sarnai’s and Hulan’s rules expertise and on-course experience are crucial to the development of the game.
“We need referees to organise World Amateur Golf Ranking tournaments in Mongolia. It’s becoming more competitive and we have some very strong players now. We also expose them to more international tournaments to help them develop as competitive players,” Sarnai explained.
“I took up golf about 15 years ago when my husband introduced me to the game. We don’t have any professional golfers in Mongolia, but hopefully there will be soon,” she added.
Sarnai noted that expanding the reach of the game in Mongolia has its own unique set of challenges, given that there are only two golf clubs and a short playing window due to the long winters.
“Golf in Mongolia has just been developing for the last 25 years or so, so we are quite far behind the other Asian countries. We have four seasons and winter is long, while summer is quite short,” said Sarnai, who estimated that there are around 150 golfers in her country.
