There was the faintest false start to the first day of Ras Al Khaimah’s debut in golf's big league, as the DP World Tour arrived in the northern emirate on Thursday morning.
With the sun still yet to make a full appearance from behind the houses of Al Hamra Village, the first three-ball of the Ras Al Khaimah Championship presented by Phoenix Capital was ready to get started.
“On the tee from Austria, Lucas Nemecz,” said the announcer. Cue some awkward glances and wry grins. “No? OK, Marcel Schneider.”
The mistaken identity was forgivable. Some of the faces at the tour’s newest venue this week might not be quite as recognisable as those on show at That Other Tournament happening elsewhere in the Middle East at present.
The third player in the opening match was, though, familiar. At least for keen observers of the sport in the UAE. Even if he has been missing from the tour for the best part of five months due to a worrying health issue.
Sebastian Heisele is a German professional who was brought up in the UAE. The former Emirates Golf Club member brought his local knowledge to bear with a flawless opening round.
By the time he signed for a 7-under-par 65, Heisele was leading the tournament at Al Hamra Golf Club. It was an uplifting return to action for a player who has endured a problematic recent past.
Heisele’s star had appeared to be in the ascendant when he started the 2020 season by finishing in a tie for 21st at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship, followed by a fine opening two rounds at the Dubai Desert Classic, played at his former home club.
He slumped over the final two days, though, and he traces back his ensuing problems to that tournament.
“I was there on Sunday in Dubai, thinking I had a decent week to start the year in Abu Dhabi,” Heisele, 33, said of that time two years ago.
“Then at the Classic I was sixth or seventh going into the weekend, which was decent up until that point, with home course advantage in a way.
“Come Sunday, I just felt like I was sat next to a ghost of myself. I couldn’t concentrate, wasn’t there at all, and didn’t know what I was doing really.
“I felt like that for much of [2020] as well after the break we had for the pandemic. Last year was the same. I couldn’t concentrate, I was nervous at times. I tried to get 10 hours of sleep per night, to hopefully feel good, but it just wasn’t there for me.
“That was obviously not to my advantage, but it is not to excuse last year’s scores. It was good to see that today went in the right direction.”
After speaking to “literally everybody I could find in Munich to try to find an answer for why I felt like I did,” Heisele had surgery to remove his thyroid last October. It was followed by four days in hospital, and weeks away from the golf course.
“There came a point where I thought I might be missing hormones or testosterone to try and get me going, and help me concentrate,” Heisele said.
“I had organs checked, but it all came back OK. I knew I had some nodules in my thyroid. The doctors said there would come a point when this could go cancerous, and you were not far off having this removed at some point during your life.”
The scar from the operation, where his neck meets his chest, is barely visible and he feels healed now.
Judged by his first day back on tour, his form is back, too. As a former resident of the UAE, he knows the course well, although he has yet to taste success round the 7,325 yard set up.
He finished 32nd then 33rd in appearances at the RAK Challenge on the Challenge Tour in 2016 and 2017, and he scarcely fared much better going further back, either.
Al Hamra Golf Club course guide
After a start he described as “spectacular” on Thursday, though, he is eyeing the possibility of adding his name to a different list.
“I don’t think it necessarily goes into what happened today but having been raised [in Dubai] I obviously have good connections here,” Heisele said.
“I saw the board in the clubhouse, the RAK Men’s Open. I would have played my fair share of those. I didn’t ever win it actually. I was busy looking for my name, but it didn’t pop up.
“Maybe I’ll be able to add my name on a different, more prestigious board that might be here in the future.”
Brief scores:
Day 1
Toss: South Africa, field first
Pakistan (1st innings) 177: Sarfraz 56, Masood 44; Olivier 4-48
South Africa (1st innings) 123-2: Markram 78; Masood 1-4
The BIO:
He became the first Emirati to climb Mount Everest in 2011, from the south section in Nepal
He ascended Mount Everest the next year from the more treacherous north Tibetan side
By 2015, he had completed the Explorers Grand Slam
Last year, he conquered K2, the world’s second-highest mountain located on the Pakistan-Chinese border
He carries dried camel meat, dried dates and a wheat mixture for the final summit push
His new goal is to climb 14 peaks that are more than 8,000 metres above sea level
MATCH INFO
Inter Milan 2 (Vecino 65', Barella 83')
Verona 1 (Verre 19' pen)
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
Ultra processed foods
- Carbonated drinks, sweet or savoury packaged snacks, confectionery, mass-produced packaged breads and buns
- margarines and spreads; cookies, biscuits, pastries, cakes, and cake mixes, breakfast cereals, cereal and energy bars;
- energy drinks, milk drinks, fruit yoghurts and fruit drinks, cocoa drinks, meat and chicken extracts and instant sauces
- infant formulas and follow-on milks, health and slimming products such as powdered or fortified meal and dish substitutes,
- many ready-to-heat products including pre-prepared pies and pasta and pizza dishes, poultry and fish nuggets and sticks, sausages, burgers, hot dogs, and other reconstituted meat products, powdered and packaged instant soups, noodles and desserts.
Get inspired
Here are a couple of Valentine’s Day food products that may or may not go the distance (but have got the internet talking anyway).
Sourdough sentiments: Marks & Spencer in the United Kingdom has introduced a slow-baked sourdough loaf dusted with flour to spell out I (heart) you, at £2 (Dh9.5). While it’s not available in the UAE, there’s nothing to stop you taking the idea and creating your own message of love, stencilled on breakfast-inbed toast.
Crisps playing cupid: Crisp company Tyrells has added a spicy addition to its range for Valentine’s Day. The brand describes the new honey and chilli flavour on Twitter as: “A tenderly bracing duo of the tantalising tingle of chilli with sweet and sticky honey. A helping hand to get your heart racing.” Again, not on sale here, but if you’re tempted you could certainly fashion your own flavour mix (spicy Cheetos and caramel popcorn, anyone?).
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
Scotland v Ireland:
Scotland (15-1): Stuart Hogg; Tommy Seymour, Huw Jones, Sam Johnson, Sean Maitland; Finn Russell, Greig Laidlaw (capt); Josh Strauss, James Ritchie, Ryan Wilson; Jonny Gray, Grant Gilchrist; Simon Berghan, Stuart McInally, Allan Dell
Replacements: Fraser Brown, Jamie Bhatti, D'arcy Rae, Ben Toolis, Rob Harley, Ali Price, Pete Horne, Blair Kinghorn
Coach: Gregor Townsend (SCO)
Ireland (15-1): Rob Kearney; Keith Earls, Chris Farrell, Bundee Aki, Jacob Stockdale; Jonathan Sexton, Conor Murray; Jack Conan, Sean O'Brien, Peter O'Mahony; James Ryan, Quinn Roux; Tadhg Furlong, Rory Best (capt), Cian Healy
Replacements: Sean Cronin, Dave Kilcoyne, Andrew Porter, Ultan Dillane, Josh van der Flier, John Cooney, Joey Carbery, Jordan Larmour
Coach: Joe Schmidt (NZL)
Tightening the screw on rogue recruiters
The UAE overhauled the procedure to recruit housemaids and domestic workers with a law in 2017 to protect low-income labour from being exploited.
Only recruitment companies authorised by the government are permitted as part of Tadbeer, a network of labour ministry-regulated centres.
A contract must be drawn up for domestic workers, the wages and job offer clearly stating the nature of work.
The contract stating the wages, work entailed and accommodation must be sent to the employee in their home country before they depart for the UAE.
The contract will be signed by the employer and employee when the domestic worker arrives in the UAE.
Only recruitment agencies registered with the ministry can undertake recruitment and employment applications for domestic workers.
Penalties for illegal recruitment in the UAE include fines of up to Dh100,000 and imprisonment
But agents not authorised by the government sidestep the law by illegally getting women into the country on visit visas.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
MATCH INFO
Day 1 at Mount Maunganui
England 241-4
Denly 74, Stokes 67 not out, De Grandhomme 2-28
New Zealand
Yet to bat
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League final:
Who: Real Madrid v Liverpool
Where: NSC Olimpiyskiy Stadium, Kiev, Ukraine
When: Saturday, May 26, 10.45pm (UAE)
TV: Match on BeIN Sports
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
Things Heard & Seen
Directed by: Shari Springer Berman, Robert Pulcini
Starring: Amanda Seyfried, James Norton
2/5
ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Mamo Year it started: 2019 Founders: Imad Gharazeddine, Asim Janjua Based: Dubai, UAE Number of employees: 28 Sector: Financial services Investment: $9.5m Funding stage: Pre-Series A Investors: Global Ventures, GFC, 4DX Ventures, AlRajhi Partners, Olive Tree Capital, and prominent Silicon Valley investors. RESULTS FOR STAGE 4
Stage 4 Dubai to Hatta, 197 km, Road race.
Overall leader Primoz Roglic SLO (Team Jumbo - Visma)
Stage winners: 1. Caleb Ewan AUS (Lotto - Soudal) 2. Matteo Moschetti ITA (Trek - Segafredo) 3. Primoz Roglic SLO (Team Jumbo - Visma)
CONFIRMED%20LINE-UP
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Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
MATCH INFO
World Cup 2022 qualifier
UAE v Indonesia, Thursday, 8pm
Venue: Al Maktoum Stadium, Dubai
