ABU DHABI // The Falcon Trophy is Martin Kaymer's to keep after the German coasted to his third Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship triumph in four years yesterday. The way his game is continually improving he could win the replacement trophy as well.
From as early as the third hole yesterday, Kaymer was in cruise control. His birdie then, following one at the second hole, extended his five-shot overnight lead to an overwhelming seven over Rory McIlroy, his playing partner, as the Irish youngster suffered a morale-sapping bogey.
After that the only issues for those following two of the game's most exciting young talents - Kaymer is 26 and McIlroy 21 - was how wide the winning margin would be - it was eight strokes at the end - and whether the champion could continue a bogey-free run which began at his 12th hole on Thursday through to the end of the tournament.
Several times during his victory stroll he threatened to give a shot back to a course which others, including Lee Westwood, the world No 1, have found daunting. On each occasion, though, his powers of recovery and a determination to keep his scorecard unblemished, kept the bogeyman at bay.
Avoiding that bogey was his inspiration on the home stretch when the title was safely won.
"I had never had three rounds in a row without a bogey and it became important to me," Kaymer said. "My only bogey was through a shank on the first day. After that my caddie Craig [Connelly] and I managed to play the course in the perfect way and that is extremely satisfying."
Kaymer's elevation to No 2 in the world means the top two places are held by Europeans for the first time since 1993 when Nick Faldo and Bernhard Langer were one-two.
"That shows how strong European golf has become in the last few years," Kaymer said.
Kaymer has his eye on the No 1 spot but acknowledged that Westwood is fully deserving of that honour. "Lee has been as consistent as you can imagine over the last year or so and for me that makes him the best player in the world," he said.
The runaway victory marked Kaymer's 100th appearance in a European Tour fixture since his debut in 2005.
His percentage of titles is impressive: this was his ninth and his fourth in his last eight events which have brought him aggregate earnings of €2.4 million (Dh12m).
The biggest threat to his continued success in Abu Dhabi might prove to be a move away from the National Course rather than improved performances from his rivals.
"No, no, don't do that," he urged those who are considering the merits of the neighbouring Saadiyat Beach and Yas Links courses for future years. "Let them have two tournaments in Abu Dhabi but please keep the first one here."
McIlroy could have been forgiven for collapsing under the weight of Kaymer's birdie blitz but, like last year when he finished a close third to Kaymer, the young Ulsterman hung on grimly to take a commendable second place in a stellar field of big winners.
After managing only level par for his outward nine, McIlroy had two US Open champions - the holder Graeme McDowell and dual winner Retief Goosen - breathing down his neck at the turn.
It was testimony to McIlroy's more professional approach to the new campaign that he refused to give up when the title was beyond him and instead pressed the accelerator to surge clear of those pursuing him.
McDowell, second to Kaymer in last year's Race to Dubai, had to settle for a share of the third prize with Goosen, who overtook 11 of the 14 players ahead of him at the start of play by posting the joint best round of the week - an eight-under-par 64.
wjohnson@thenational.ae
ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
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Auron Mein Kahan Dum Tha
Starring: Ajay Devgn, Tabu, Shantanu Maheshwari, Jimmy Shergill, Saiee Manjrekar
Director: Neeraj Pandey
Rating: 2.5/5
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Race 3
Produced: Salman Khan Films and Tips Films
Director: Remo D’Souza
Cast: Salman Khan, Anil Kapoor, Jacqueline Fernandez, Bobby Deol, Daisy Shah, Saqib Salem
Rating: 2.5 stars
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How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE
When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.
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ASHES SCHEDULE
First Test
November 23-27 (The Gabba, Brisbane)
Second Test
December 2-6 (Adelaide Oval, Adelaide)
Third Test
December 14-18 (Waca Ground, Perth)
Fourth Test
December 26-30 (Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne)
Fifth Test
January 4-8, 2018 (Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney)
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Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
Notable groups (UAE time)
Jordan Spieth, Si Woo Kim, Henrik Stenson (12.47pm)
Justin Thomas, Justin Rose, Louis Oosthuizen (12.58pm)
Hideki Matsuyama, Brooks Koepka, Tommy Fleetwood (1.09pm)
Sergio Garcia, Jason Day, Zach Johnson (4.04pm)
Rickie Fowler, Paul Casey, Adam Scott (4.26pm)
Dustin Johnson, Charl Schwartzel, Rory McIlroy (5.48pm)
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
The five pillars of Islam
MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
New Zealand 21 British & Irish Lions 24
New Zealand
Penalties: Barrett (7)
British & Irish Lions
Tries: Faletau, Murray
Penalties: Farrell (4)
Conversions: Farrell
Afghanistan fixtures
- v Australia, today
- v Sri Lanka, Tuesday
- v New Zealand, Saturday,
- v South Africa, June 15
- v England, June 18
- v India, June 22
- v Bangladesh, June 24
- v Pakistan, June 29
- v West Indies, July 4
The biog
Age: 23
Occupation: Founder of the Studio, formerly an analyst at Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi
Education: Bachelor of science in industrial engineering
Favourite hobby: playing the piano
Favourite quote: "There is a key to every door and a dawn to every dark night"
Family: Married and with a daughter
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more from Janine di Giovanni
What is Bitcoin?
Bitcoin is the most popular virtual currency in the world. It was created in 2009 as a new way of paying for things that would not be subject to central banks that are capable of devaluing currency. A Bitcoin itself is essentially a line of computer code. It's signed digitally when it goes from one owner to another. There are sustainability concerns around the cryptocurrency, which stem from the process of "mining" that is central to its existence.
The "miners" use computers to make complex calculations that verify transactions in Bitcoin. This uses a tremendous amount of energy via computers and server farms all over the world, which has given rise to concerns about the amount of fossil fuel-dependent electricity used to power the computers.
