One of the best loved features of the UAE sporting landscape will return after an extended absence this week when some of the leading golfers in the world tee it up at Yas Links.
Where has the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship been?
It is 22 months since the tournament last took place. The move from its traditional spot on the calendar came about because of a revamp to the DP World Tour (which was formerly known as the European Tour).
If the galleries at Yas Links this week find walking the course a little more taxing than in past editions of the championship, then there is a reason.
For the rest of its lifespan since its inception in 2006, the tournament was played at the start of the season, in the cooler temperatures of January. November in Abu Dhabi is generally four or five degrees warmer.
Why the switch?
The Tour revamp led to the creation of a new, two-tournament finale to the tour season. The DP World Tour Championship, at Jumeirah Golf Estates (JGE) next week, will still be where the order of merit winner is ultimately decided. But the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship has been moved to create a two-week play-off in the UAE.
What are the DP World Tour play-offs?
The Tour describe the new as “the final sprint of the 2024 Race to Dubai,” but it is more like a middle-distance race than a sprint now.
Since 2009, the leading players in the rankings vied for the final points on offer at the Earth Course in JGE, in a last push down the season’s home straight. Now there is an additional inflation of ranking points at the penultimate tournament of the season at Yas, too.
How does it work?
The top 70 available players in the Race to Dubai standings will tee it up at Yas, with the top 50 after that set for the season finale at JGE.
There are 9,000 ranking points on offer at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship and 12,000 available at the DP World Tour Championship next week. The points are allocated based on finishing positions in the tournaments.
Who is winning at the moment?
Rory McIlroy tops the Race to Dubai standings ahead of the penultimate tournament, and might even claim a sixth Harry Vardon Trophy with a week to spare.
His nearest challengers, Thriston Lawrence and Rasmus Hojgaard, are some way back ahead of the start in Abu Dhabi.
Top five
1 Rory McIlroy, 4,532.33 points.
2 Thriston Lawrence, 2,959.94.
3 Rasmus Hojgaard, 2,612.05.
4 Billy Horschel, 2,480.00.
5 Tommy Fleetwood, 2,066.01.
Where is Victor Perez?
The Frenchman won the Falcon Trophy the last time the Abu Dhabi championship took place in January 2023, but he won’t be here to defend it.
Having won at Yas after a thrilling final day back then, Perez has since played more on the PGA Tour in the United States. As such, he played just eight ranking tournaments on the DP World Tour, and is ranking 142 in the Race to Dubai – which is more or less double the number he needed to be to feature in Abu Dhabi.
Tickets
General admission to the tournament at Yas is free via this link.
Why seagrass matters
- Carbon sink: Seagrass sequesters carbon up to 35X faster than tropical rainforests
- Marine nursery: Crucial habitat for juvenile fish, crustations, and invertebrates
- Biodiversity: Support species like sea turtles, dugongs, and seabirds
- Coastal protection: Reduce erosion and improve water quality
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.
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Trump v Khan
2016: Feud begins after Khan criticised Trump’s proposed Muslim travel ban to US
2017: Trump criticises Khan’s ‘no reason to be alarmed’ response to London Bridge terror attacks
2019: Trump calls Khan a “stone cold loser” before first state visit
2019: Trump tweets about “Khan’s Londonistan”, calling him “a national disgrace”
2022: Khan’s office attributes rise in Islamophobic abuse against the major to hostility stoked during Trump’s presidency
July 2025 During a golfing trip to Scotland, Trump calls Khan “a nasty person”
Sept 2025 Trump blames Khan for London’s “stabbings and the dirt and the filth”.
Dec 2025 Trump suggests migrants got Khan elected, calls him a “horrible, vicious, disgusting mayor”
Tamkeen's offering
- Option 1: 70% in year 1, 50% in year 2, 30% in year 3
- Option 2: 50% across three years
- Option 3: 30% across five years
The%20specs
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ETwin-turbo%2C%20V8%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E8-speed%20automatic%20and%20manual%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E503%20bhp%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E513Nm%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3Efrom%20Dh646%2C800%20(%24176%2C095)%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3Enow%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
UAE v IRELAND
All matches start at 10am, and will be played in Abu Dhabi
1st ODI, Friday, January 8
2nd ODI, Sunday, January 10
3rd ODI, Tuesday, January 12
4th ODI, Thursday, January 14
Profile box
Company name: baraka
Started: July 2020
Founders: Feras Jalbout and Kunal Taneja
Based: Dubai and Bahrain
Sector: FinTech
Initial investment: $150,000
Current staff: 12
Stage: Pre-seed capital raising of $1 million
Investors: Class 5 Global, FJ Labs, IMO Ventures, The Community Fund, VentureSouq, Fox Ventures, Dr Abdulla Elyas (private investment)
The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
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
Various Artists
Habibi Funk: An Eclectic Selection Of Music From The Arab World (Habibi Funk)
