Tommy Fleetwood off to flying start with record-equalling round at Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship

For the most part, it felt as though not much had changed in the 22 months since the DP World Tour was last at Yas Links.

On the first day of the 2024 Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship, the views out to the mangroves just offshore were still serene. The course was just as immaculate as before. Only the temperature had definitely been turned up a notch.

The alteration to the tour calendar to introduce a new, two-legged play-off to finish the season prompted the switch of Abu Dhabi’s tournament from its traditional slot in January to November. The weather is noticeably different.

By the time the group including the Race to Dubai leaders – Rory McIlroy, Rasmus Hojgaard and Thriston Lawrence – teed-off just after 9.30am, it was already registering in the early 30-degrees. It was perhaps seven or so degrees warmer than the average temperatures during the previous window for the event.

The fact it was also dead still meant two distinct things: scoring opportunities were good, but the idea of walking seven and a half kilometres maybe less so.

“It was so hot this morning, I didn’t drink enough water, and I got on the golf course and felt a little bit ropey,” said Paul Waring, although the Englishman coped well enough to card an eight-under 64. “I had a bit of food and electrolytes, and that set me right. From there, I played lovely.”

Joost Luiten, the Dutch player, said the weather was perfectly agreeable. “It’s strange, but you're in Abu Dhabi,” said Luiten, after signing for 5-under.

“I like the heat. It makes your body nice and loose. You don't have to wear three or four layers of clothes. I’m quite happy with these conditions.”

Perhaps understandably, it was a couple of UAE residents who fared the very best in the conditions. Tommy Fleetwood, the Dubai resident who twice won the Falcon Trophy when the tournament was across town at the Abu Dhabi Golf Club, held the lead at the end of the first round.

The Englishman played a sparkling round to register 62 and end the day at 10-under par, equalling the course record in the process.

“It was playing into the hands of good scoring today, and I think we'll see how the course firms up,” Fleetwood said.

“We normally play this tournament in January. It's two extra months of having better weather over here, cooler weather where you can really make it firm and fast.

“It will be interesting to see what happens to the course as the week progresses. I think they can keep getting it firmer and there's obviously plenty of pin positions that they can tuck away.

“People's shots start making birdies and you see the leaderboard with low scores coming, and so it obviously shows it's possible [to shoot good scores].

“It is this part of the year, and there are the 70 best players of the European Tour, playing very good golf and we had nice conditions on a beautiful golf course. It just shows the standard of golf that’s out there.”

Going into Round 2, Fleetwood is a stroke ahead of Johannes Veerman and Thorbjorn Olesen, who is also based in Dubai.

“There’s not that much breeze out there, so it definitely feels hot,” said Olesen, who fired two eagles in his opening round. “I think maybe I’m a bit more used to it now after being out here for a couple of years.”

Fleetwood and his playing partners, Robert McIntyre and Shane Lowry, will start their second round at 9.23am on Friday.

The specs

Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo

Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm

Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm

Transmission: 9-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km

On sale: Now

Price: From Dh117,059

ENGLAND SQUAD

Goalkeepers Pickford (Everton), Pope (Burnley), Henderson (Manchester United)

Defenders Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool), Chilwell (Chelsea), Coady (Wolves), Dier (Tottenham), Gomez (Liverpool), James (Chelsea), Keane (Everton), Maguire (Manchester United), Maitland-Niles (Arsenal), Mings (Aston Villa), Saka (Arsenal), Trippier (Atletico Madrid), Walker (Manchester City)

Midfielders: Foden (Manchester City), Henderson (Liverpool), Grealish (Aston Villa), Mount (Chelsea), Rice (West Ham), Ward-Prowse (Southampton), Winks (Tottenham)

Forwards: Abraham (Chelsea), Calvert-Lewin (Everton), Kane (Tottenham), Rashford (Manchester United), Sancho (Borussia Dortmund), Sterling (Manchester City)

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets

What the law says

Micro-retirement is not a recognised concept or employment status under Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (as amended) (UAE Labour Law). As such, it reflects a voluntary work-life balance practice, rather than a recognised legal employment category, according to Dilini Loku, senior associate for law firm Gateley Middle East.

“Some companies may offer formal sabbatical policies or career break programmes; however, beyond such arrangements, there is no automatic right or statutory entitlement to extended breaks,” she explains.

“Any leave taken beyond statutory entitlements, such as annual leave, is typically regarded as unpaid leave in accordance with Article 33 of the UAE Labour Law. While employees may legally take unpaid leave, such requests are subject to the employer’s discretion and require approval.”

If an employee resigns to pursue micro-retirement, the employment contract is terminated, and the employer is under no legal obligation to rehire the employee in the future unless specific contractual agreements are in place (such as return-to-work arrangements), which are generally uncommon, Ms Loku adds.

The bio

Favourite book: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

Favourite travel destination: Maldives and south of France

Favourite pastime: Family and friends, meditation, discovering new cuisines

Favourite Movie: Joker (2019). I didn’t like it while I was watching it but then afterwards I loved it. I loved the psychology behind it.

Favourite Author: My father for sure

Favourite Artist: Damien Hurst

BMW M5 specs

Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor

Power: 727hp

Torque: 1,000Nm

Transmission: 8-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km

On sale: Now

Price: From Dh650,000

COMPANY%20PROFILE

%3Cp%3ECompany%20name%3A%20Znap%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EStarted%3A%202017%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EFounder%3A%20Uday%20Rathod%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EBased%3A%20Dubai%2C%20UAE%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EIndustry%3A%20FinTech%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EFunding%20size%3A%20%241m%2B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EInvestors%3A%20Family%2C%20friends%3C%2Fp%3E%0A

If you go

The flights

Emirates flies from Dubai to Seattle from Dh5,555 return, including taxes. Portland is a 260 km drive from Seattle and Emirates offers codeshare flights to Portland with its partner Alaska Airlines.

The car

Hertz (www.hertz.ae) offers compact car rental from about $300 per week, including taxes. Emirates Skywards members can earn points on their car hire through Hertz.

Parks and accommodation

For information on Crater Lake National Park, visit www.nps.gov/crla/index.htm . Because of the altitude, large parts of the park are closed in winter due to snow. While the park’s summer season is May 22-October 31, typically, the full loop of the Rim Drive is only possible from late July until the end of October. Entry costs $25 per car for a day. For accommodation, see www.travelcraterlake.com. For information on Umpqua Hot Springs, see www.fs.usda.gov and https://soakoregon.com/umpqua-hot-springs/. For Bend, see https://www.visitbend.com/.

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EMIRATES'S%20REVISED%20A350%20DEPLOYMENT%20SCHEDULE

%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEdinburgh%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20November%204%20%3Cem%3E(unchanged)%3C%2Fem%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EBahrain%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20November%2015%20%3Cem%3E(from%20September%2015)%3C%2Fem%3E%3B%20second%20daily%20service%20from%20January%201%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EKuwait%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20November%2015%20%3Cem%3E(from%20September%2016)%3C%2Fem%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EMumbai%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20January%201%20%3Cem%3E(from%20October%2027)%3C%2Fem%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EAhmedabad%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20January%201%20%3Cem%3E(from%20October%2027)%3C%2Fem%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EColombo%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20January%202%20%3Cem%3E(from%20January%201)%3C%2Fem%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EMuscat%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3Cem%3E%20%3C%2Fem%3EMarch%201%3Cem%3E%20(from%20December%201)%3C%2Fem%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ELyon%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20March%201%20%3Cem%3E(from%20December%201)%3C%2Fem%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EBologna%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20March%201%20%3Cem%3E(from%20December%201)%3C%2Fem%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cem%3ESource%3A%20Emirates%3C%2Fem%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A