While accepted wisdom suggests a sixth Race to Dubai title might as well be handed to Rory McIlroy now, his nearest competitor at the top of the rankings has not given up just yet.
Thriston Lawrence is second in the standings ahead of the start of the first leg of the inaugural DP World Tour Play-off.
As such, he will play alongside McIlroy, and Denmark's Rasmus Hojgaard, over the opening two days of the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship at Yas Links.
The South African has the best part of 1,600 points to make up over the next two weeks – first at Yas, then at Jumeirah Golf Estates – if he is to beat the world No 3 to the order of merit title.
It might be a long shot, but Lawrence insists anything is still possible, and that he has it in him to win both the remaining events of the season.
“In the last two years, I was 19th and 14th going into the last two events,” Lawrence said. “I know Rory is a couple of points ahead but it's not going to stop me to try and catch him. I know I'm good enough to win both events going into the final.
“It's always good to see my name up there, and I'm very proud of myself how I kept calm this year, being runner-up five times, but not getting a victory. There's two left and hopefully I can do something special in the last two.”
Lawrence’s self belief belies the fact that he will be in uncharted water when teeing it up in Abu Dhabi. Primarily, it is the first time he has had a shot at winning the Race to Dubai.
But it will also be the first time he has played a full 18 holes with McIlroy. He has had one brief sample of his company on the course before. The duo were the defeated players when Billy Horschel won the BMW PGA Championship at the first play-off hole at Wentworth back in September.
“I’m really, really excited,” Lawrence said. “I think he's probably the best golfer golf has seen the last 15 years consistently.
“That's sort of where I see myself going forward is being so consistent every year and contending on both tours. And Rasmus, good player, nice guy, as well, so I’m very excited for the next few days.”
Results
4pm: Al Bastakiya – Listed (TB) $150,000 (Dirt) 1,900m; Winner: Panadol, Mickael Barzalona (jockey), Salem bin Ghadayer (trainer)
4.35pm: Dubai City Of Gold – Group 2 (TB) $228,000 (Turf) 2,410m; Winner: Walton Street, William Buick, Charlie Appleby
5.10pm: Mahab Al Shimaal – Group 3 (TB) $228,000 (D) 1,200m; Winner: Canvassed, Pat Dobbs, Doug Watson
5.45pm: Burj Nahaar – Group 3 (TB) $228,000 (D) 1,600m; Winner: Midnight Sands, Pat Dobbs, Doug Watson
6.20pm: Jebel Hatta – Group 1 (TB) $260,000 (T) 1,800m; Winner: Lord Glitters, Daniel Tudhope, David O’Meara
6.55pm: Al Maktoum Challenge Round-1 – Group 1 (TB) $390,000 (D) 2,000m; Winner: Salute The Soldier, Adrie de Vries, Fawzi Nass
7.30pm: Nad Al Sheba – Group 3 (TB) $228,000 (T) 1,200m; Winner: Final Song, Frankie Dettori, Saeed bin Suroor
RESULTS
6.30pm Maiden (TB) Dh82.500 (Dirt) 1,400m
Winner Meshakel, Royston Ffrench (jockey), Salem bin Ghadayer (trainer)
7.05pm Handicap (TB) Dh87,500 (D) 1,400m
Winner Gervais, Connor Beasley, Ali Rashid Al Raihe.
7.40pm Handicap (TB) Dh92,500 (Turf) 2,410m
Winner Global Heat, Pat Cosgrave, Saeed bin Suroor.
8.15pm Handicap (TB) Dh105,000 (D) 1,900m
Winner Firnas, Royston Ffrench, Salem bin Ghadayer.
8.50pm UAE 2000 Guineas Trial (TB) Conditions Dh183,650 (D) 1,600m
Winner Rebel’s Romance, William Buick, Charlie Appleby
9.25pm Dubai Trophy (TB) Conditions Dh183,650 (T) 1,200m
Winner Topper Bill, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar
10pm Handicap (TB) Dh102,500 (T) 1,400m
Winner Wasim, Mickael Barzalona, Ismail Mohammed.
COMPANY PROFILE
● Company: Bidzi
● Started: 2024
● Founders: Akshay Dosaj and Asif Rashid
● Based: Dubai, UAE
● Industry: M&A
● Funding size: Bootstrapped
● No of employees: Nine
Company profile
Date started: January, 2014
Founders: Mike Dawson, Varuna Singh, and Benita Rowe
Based: Dubai
Sector: Education technology
Size: Five employees
Investment: $100,000 from the ExpoLive Innovation Grant programme in 2018 and an initial $30,000 pre-seed investment from the Turn8 Accelerator in 2014. Most of the projects are government funded.
Partners/incubators: Turn8 Accelerator; In5 Innovation Centre; Expo Live Innovation Impact Grant Programme; Dubai Future Accelerators; FHI 360; VSO and Consult and Coach for a Cause (C3)
Company%20profile
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WHAT IS A BLACK HOLE?
1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull
2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight
3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge
4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own
5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed
What to watch out for:
Algae, waste coffee grounds and orange peels will be used in the pavilion's walls and gangways
The hulls of three ships will be used for the roof
The hulls will painted to make the largest Italian tricolour in the country’s history
Several pillars more than 20 metres high will support the structure
Roughly 15 tonnes of steel will be used
