Lee Westwood is eyeing a positive start to the year when he begins his title defence of the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship next week.
Having won the European Tour opener 12 months ago, the Englishman concluded 2020 with a second-place finish behind compatriot Matthew Fitzpatrick at the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai in December.
That result ensured a fourth Order of Merit title for the 47-year-old Englishman. He hopes to carry that momentum forward into the 2021 season, starting with a good showing at the Abu Dhabi Golf Club when the four days of action gets underway on January 21.
The tournament, one of four Rolex Series events on the European Tour's 2021 calendar, kicks off the circuit's new season.
“The Abu Dhabi event is a great tournament to start the year, with such good conditions and such great place to do good work, and start the year off positively,” Westwood said in a virtual media conference on Wednesday.
“Obviously it’s a big tournament. It’s a Rolex event and a prestigious trial to win and everybody wants to get off to a fast start and it’s a great golf course to start [off] as well.”
Like his fellow professionals, Westwood suffered a disrupted 2020 as golf was severely impacted by the coronavirus pandemic.
After a three-month hiatus following the Qatar Masters in early March, the tour resumed with a much changed schedule in July.
“The year was strange with more stops and starts,” Westwood said. “I played well in the following periods really hitting the ball well and playing well but unfortunately the Covid came along.
“I picked up well after that and obviously finished up the year really well with the second place finish in Dubai. If you look at the results I have always played pretty well in this part of the world.
“The best two results for me in 2020 were in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, the very beginning and end of the year.
“So I’ll be hoping for that fast start again with the next three tournaments in the region and then return for the ones when I get back here at the end of the year.”
Westwood attributed part of his success in the Middle East to the quick greens and his ability to drive the ball well.
“Those two things suits me the way I play my golf,” added the 25-time European Tour winner. “In this area to take Abu Dhabi and Dubai together is in the top three and one of my favourites to play.”
Westwood joins a host of prominent names competing in Abu Dhabi, with Justin Thomas and Rory McIlroy – the world No 3 and No 4, respectively, and two-time Abu Dhabi champion Tommy Fleetwood and 2019 winner Shane Lowry among those confirmed for the National Course.
To be staged for the 16th time, the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship will carry a purse of $8 million, an increase of $1m from this year. It opens the European Tour’s Desert Swing, with the Omega Dubai Desert Classic and the Saudi International powered by SoftBank Investment Advisers running on consecutive weeks after.
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
IPL 2018 FINAL
Sunrisers Hyderabad 178-6 (20 ovs)
Chennai Super Kings 181-2 (18.3 ovs)
Chennai win by eight wickets
End of free parking
- paid-for parking will be rolled across Abu Dhabi island on August 18
- drivers will have three working weeks leeway before fines are issued
- areas that are currently free to park - around Sheikh Zayed Bridge, Maqta Bridge, Mussaffah Bridge and the Corniche - will now require a ticket
- villa residents will need a permit to park outside their home. One vehicle is Dh800 and a second is Dh1,200.
- The penalty for failing to pay for a ticket after 10 minutes will be Dh200
- Parking on a patch of sand will incur a fine of Dh300
THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
Torque: 780Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh1,350,000
On sale: Available for preorder now
Company profile
Date started: 2015
Founder: John Tsioris and Ioanna Angelidaki
Based: Dubai
Sector: Online grocery delivery
Staff: 200
Funding: Undisclosed, but investors include the Jabbar Internet Group and Venture Friends
Syria squad
Goalkeepers: Ibrahim Alma, Mahmoud Al Youssef, Ahmad Madania.
Defenders: Ahmad Al Salih, Moayad Ajan, Jehad Al Baour, Omar Midani, Amro Jenyat, Hussein Jwayed, Nadim Sabagh, Abdul Malek Anezan.
Midfielders: Mahmoud Al Mawas, Mohammed Osman, Osama Omari, Tamer Haj Mohamad, Ahmad Ashkar, Youssef Kalfa, Zaher Midani, Khaled Al Mobayed, Fahd Youssef.
Forwards: Omar Khribin, Omar Al Somah, Mardik Mardikian.
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-finals, second leg:
Liverpool (0) v Barcelona (3), Tuesday, 11pm UAE
Game is on BeIN Sports
Company%20profile
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Brief scores:
Pakistan (1st innings) 181: Babar 71; Olivier 6-37
South Africa (1st innings) 223: Bavuma 53; Amir 4-62
Pakistan (2nd innings) 190: Masood 65, Imam 57; Olivier 5-59
