By his own admission, Rory McIlroy has not been at his best around the Earth Course this week.
But then, he said, that was kind of to be expected. The world No 2, crowned Race to Dubai champion for a fifth time before a ball had been struck at the DP World Tour Championship (DPWTC), has been slightly below par the first few days.
Not literally, mind. McIlroy shot a bogey-free 65 on Saturday, embellished significantly by a birdie-eagle finish, to sit on a wholly respectable 8-under par. The only problem being, it left him eight more behind leader Matt Wallace, in a tie for 18th.
Most probably, and primarily because of his 71-72 across the opening two days, the two-time tournament winner is too far back for a tilt at title No 3.
But having taken time off since his starring role in Europe’s Ryder Cup win in Italy in October, McIlroy can be forgiven for displaying a few signs of rust.
“I think so,” the four-time major champion said. “I haven't done much at all after the Ryder Cup. Tried to put in a little bit of practice over the last couple of weeks, but I sort of jammed my wrist, as well, a couple weeks ago and that limited how many balls I hit, too.
“Yeah, just sort of came in not as prepared as I could have been or should have been. But feel like I'm starting to find my feet a little bit after a few days.”
Indeed, McIlroy has been sporting a bit of tape on his right wrist this week. Hopefully, though, it holds up when he has to hoist the pretty hefty Race to Dubai trophy, no matter how he finishes, on Sunday.
“It's the last round of the year,” McIlroy said of the final 18 holes of the season finale. “Go out and try to shoot a good score and get myself a decent finish.
“I would say, as well, coming into the week, already having wrapped up the Race to Dubai, I'd say my expectation levels weren't super high.
“But still, every day I go out there, I go out there and try to do my absolute best. It was nice to play a little bit more like me today.”
DP World Tour Championship Day 3 - in pictures
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
White hydrogen: Naturally occurring hydrogen
Chromite: Hard, metallic mineral containing iron oxide and chromium oxide
Ultramafic rocks: Dark-coloured rocks rich in magnesium or iron with very low silica content
Ophiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on land
Olivine: A commonly occurring magnesium iron silicate mineral that derives its name for its olive-green yellow-green colour
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More on animal trafficking
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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New UK refugee system
- A new “core protection” for refugees moving from permanent to a more basic, temporary protection
- Shortened leave to remain - refugees will receive 30 months instead of five years
- A longer path to settlement with no indefinite settled status until a refugee has spent 20 years in Britain
- To encourage refugees to integrate the government will encourage them to out of the core protection route wherever possible.
- Under core protection there will be no automatic right to family reunion
- Refugees will have a reduced right to public funds
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Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Transmission: ten-speed
Power: 420bhp
Torque: 624Nm
Price: Dh325,125
On sale: Now
What is the definition of an SME?
SMEs in the UAE are defined by the number of employees, annual turnover and sector. For example, a “small company” in the services industry has six to 50 employees with a turnover of more than Dh2 million up to Dh20m, while in the manufacturing industry the requirements are 10 to 100 employees with a turnover of more than Dh3m up to Dh50m, according to Dubai SME, an agency of the Department of Economic Development.
A “medium-sized company” can either have staff of 51 to 200 employees or 101 to 250 employees, and a turnover less than or equal to Dh200m or Dh250m, again depending on whether the business is in the trading, manufacturing or services sectors.
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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United States
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China
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UAE
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Japan
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Norway
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Canada
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Singapore
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Australia
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Saudi Arabia
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South Korea
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What is a robo-adviser?
Robo-advisers use an online sign-up process to gauge an investor’s risk tolerance by feeding information such as their age, income, saving goals and investment history into an algorithm, which then assigns them an investment portfolio, ranging from more conservative to higher risk ones.
These portfolios are made up of exchange traded funds (ETFs) with exposure to indices such as US and global equities, fixed-income products like bonds, though exposure to real estate, commodity ETFs or gold is also possible.
Investing in ETFs allows robo-advisers to offer fees far lower than traditional investments, such as actively managed mutual funds bought through a bank or broker. Investors can buy ETFs directly via a brokerage, but with robo-advisers they benefit from investment portfolios matched to their risk tolerance as well as being user friendly.
Many robo-advisers charge what are called wrap fees, meaning there are no additional fees such as subscription or withdrawal fees, success fees or fees for rebalancing.
THE SPECS
BMW X7 xDrive 50i
Engine: 4.4-litre V8
Transmission: Eight-speed Steptronic transmission
Power: 462hp
Torque: 650Nm
Price: Dh600,000
Company profile
Name: GiftBag.ae
Based: Dubai
Founded: 2011
Number of employees: 4
Sector: E-commerce
Funding: Self-funded to date
The Transfiguration
Director: Michael O’Shea
Starring: Eric Ruffin, Chloe Levine
Three stars
