Shanshan Feng of China hits her tee shot on the second hole during the final round of the Japan Classics at the Taiheiyo Club Minori Course on November 6, 2016 in Omitama, Japan. Atsushi Tomura / Getty Images
Shanshan Feng of China hits her tee shot on the second hole during the final round of the Japan Classics at the Taiheiyo Club Minori Course on November 6, 2016 in Omitama, Japan. Atsushi Tomura / GettShow more

Shanshan Feng confirms she will defend her Omega Dubai Ladies Masters title



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Reigning champion Shanshan Feng will return to one of her happiest hunting grounds when she tees it up at the Omega Dubai Ladies Masters next month.

Historic win

Feng, who is China’s most successful golfer, created history in 2015 by winning the title for the third time when a final-round six-under-par 66 gave her a tournament tally of 21-under-par 267, which matched her own record of lowest 72-hole total set in 2012.

Staying humble

Despite her achievements, Feng said she was not getting ahead of herself at this year’s tournament, from December 7-10. “Dubai has been very good to me, a lucky place indeed,” she said. “I just enjoy this tournament and try to focus on shot by shot. I love this [Majlis] course and it suits my game, so I’m just going to give my best and I think my goal is just a top 10, as always.”

Olympic high

Feng, who has 18 professional wins to her name and is the only Chinese player to win a major – the PGA Championship in 2012 – said winning the bronze medal at the Rio Games this year was the highlight of her career. “I didn’t play very well for the first half of this year, with my LPGA ranking out of top 10, but I got a medal at the Olympics so I felt that all of hard work has paid off, and I felt really happy about it,” she said.

Order of Merit

Last year Feng also became the first player from China to win the Ladies European Tour’s Order of Merit. She teed up in Dubai with an unassailable lead and, after collecting a first-prize cheque for €75,000 (Dh305,000), took her season’s earnings to €399,213 – €150,062 ahead of Melissa Reid of England.

Other players

Among others to confirm their participation at the event next month is Charley Hull. The 20-year-old Englishwoman is a pre-tournament favourite thanks to a season that has included a runner-up finish at the ANA Inspiration and a fourth place at Rio 2016. Icelandic rookie Olafia Kristinsdottir, who led the field on the first two days of the just-concluded Fatima bint Mubarak Ladies Open, is also a possibility.

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5pm Maiden (PA) Dh70,000 (Dirt) 1,400m

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5.30pm Maiden (PA) Dh70,000 (D) 1,400m

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6.30pm Maiden (PA) Dh70,000 (D) 1,600m

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7pm Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (D) 1,800m

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Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.

Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.

Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, (Leon banned).

Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.

Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.

Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.

Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.

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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

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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

Straightforward ways to reduce sugar in your family's diet
  • Ban fruit juice and sodas
  • Eat a hearty breakfast that contains fats and wholegrains, such as peanut butter on multigrain toast or full-fat plain yoghurt with whole fruit and nuts, to avoid the need for a 10am snack
  • Give young children plain yoghurt with whole fruits mashed into it
  • Reduce the number of cakes, biscuits and sweets. Reserve them for a treat
  • Don’t eat dessert every day 
  • Make your own smoothies. Always use the whole fruit to maintain the benefit of its fibre content and don’t add any sweeteners
  • Always go for natural whole foods over processed, packaged foods. Ask yourself would your grandmother have eaten it?
  • Read food labels if you really do feel the need to buy processed food
  • Eat everything in moderation
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Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.

The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.

Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.

Skewed figures

In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458. 

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Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
 
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
 
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Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
 
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
Ms Yang's top tips for parents new to the UAE
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NO OTHER LAND

Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal

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Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille

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Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners

TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013 

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While the taste of beans and freshness of roast is paramount to the specialty coffee scene, so is sustainability and workers’ rights.

The bulk of genuine specialty coffee companies aim to improve on these elements in every stage of production via direct relationships with farmers. For instance, Mokha 1450 on Al Wasl Road strives to work predominantly with women-owned and -operated coffee organisations, including female farmers in the Sabree mountains of Yemen.

Because, as the boutique’s owner, Garfield Kerr, points out: “women represent over 90 per cent of the coffee value chain, but are woefully underrepresented in less than 10 per cent of ownership and management throughout the global coffee industry.”

One of the UAE’s largest suppliers of green (meaning not-yet-roasted) beans, Raw Coffee, is a founding member of the Partnership of Gender Equity, which aims to empower female coffee farmers and harvesters.

Also, globally, many companies have found the perfect way to recycle old coffee grounds: they create the perfect fertile soil in which to grow mushrooms. 

Juliet, Naked
Dir: Jesse Peretz
Starring: Chris O'Dowd, Rose Byrne, Ethan Hawke​​​​​​​
​​​​​​​Two stars

The rules on fostering in the UAE

A foster couple or family must:

  • be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
  • not be younger than 25 years old
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
 
Started: 2021
 
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
 
Based: Tunisia 
 
Sector: Water technology 
 
Number of staff: 22 
 
Investment raised: $4 million 
THE BIO

Born: Mukalla, Yemen, 1979

Education: UAE University, Al Ain

Family: Married with two daughters: Asayel, 7, and Sara, 6

Favourite piece of music: Horse Dance by Naseer Shamma

Favourite book: Science and geology

Favourite place to travel to: Washington DC

Best advice you’ve ever been given: If you have a dream, you have to believe it, then you will see it.

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