Rory McIlroy will be bidding to make more history in the UAE this weekend when he tees it up at the Hero Dubai Desert Classic at Emirates Golf Club from Thursday.
Defending champ
McIlroy will become the first player to win the tournament three times in a row if he retains the Dallah Trophy this weekend.
He will also become the first to reach five Classic titles – extending his own record, having won for the fourth time 12 months ago.
The original
This will be the 36th edition of the Classic. The first one, won by Mark James in 1989, was the first time a European Tour event had been staged in the Gulf.
It is fair to say it paved the way for vast changes in the make up of the European Tour, with a swing towards the desert.
This season there are six events being played in the region, including in Abu Dhabi, Ras Al Khaimah, Bahrain and Qatar.
Debuting star
Remarkably, given that he is one of Europe’s greatest stars, Jon Rahm will only play a full 18 holes for the first time at the Majlis during Wednesday’s Pro Am.
The Spaniard is debuting at the Classic this weekend. He knows how to win in Dubai. The two-time major winner won the DP World Tour Championship in 2017, 2019 and 2022, and the Race to Dubai in 2019.
All-star cast
Simon Corkill, the tournament director of the Classic, reckons this week “boasts the strongest and most exciting field we’ve witnessed in many years”.
That includes Viktor Hovland, who was the last person to claim the Dallah Trophy before McIlroy’s winning streak, back in 2022.
There are also the likes of Robert MacIntyre, Nicolai and Rasmus Hojgaard, Tyrrell Hatton, Padraig Harrington, Patrick Reed, Adam Scott and Jimmy Walker.
Fleetwood’s back
UAE resident Tommy Fleetwood has enjoyed plenty of success on the fairways of his adopted homeland. He has yet to contend at the Classic, though.
It is something the Olympic silver medallist hopes to put right this week. “I don't think I've been miles away,” Fleetwood said. “I just have to try and put it all together out here.”
Prize fund
The Classic is the first Rolex Series event of the new season and carries with it a $9 million prize pool. For many players, it also marks the start of their run to try to make Europe’s Ryder Cup team for the match at Bethpage in September.
Tickets
General admission tickets are available for free at www.dubaidesertclassic.com and through the Classic app.
Tee times
Note: Selected players, all times UAE
Shubhankar Sharma (7:25 am)
Padraig Harrington (7:25 am)
Thorbjorn Olesen (7:55 am)
Rory McIlroy (8:05 am)
Viktor Hovland (8:05 am)
Tommy Fleetwood (8:05 am)
Paul Waring (8:15 am)
Tyrrell Hatton (8:15 am)
Nicolai Hojgaard (8:15 am)
Keita Nakajima (8:25 am)
Jimmy Walker (8:25 am)
Pablo Larrazabal (11:45 am)
Thomas Pieters (11:55 am)
Luke Donald (12:05 pm)
Jon Rahm (12:25 pm)
Robert MacIntyre (12:25 pm)
Adam Scott (12:25 pm)
Rasmus Hojgaard (12:35 pm)
Patrick Reed (12:45 pm)
Nicolas Colsaerts (12:55 pm)
How to improve Arabic reading in early years
One 45-minute class per week in Standard Arabic is not sufficient
The goal should be for grade 1 and 2 students to become fluent readers
Subjects like technology, social studies, science can be taught in later grades
Grade 1 curricula should include oral instruction in Standard Arabic
First graders must regularly practice individual letters and combinations
Time should be slotted in class to read longer passages in early grades
Improve the appearance of textbooks
Revision of curriculum should be undertaken as per research findings
Conjugations of most common verb forms should be taught
Systematic learning of Standard Arabic grammar
The Perfect Couple
Starring: Nicole Kidman, Liev Schreiber, Jack Reynor
Creator: Jenna Lamia
Rating: 3/5
The years Ramadan fell in May
T20 World Cup Qualifier
October 18 – November 2
Opening fixtures
Friday, October 18
ICC Academy: 10am, Scotland v Singapore, 2.10pm, Netherlands v Kenya
Zayed Cricket Stadium: 2.10pm, Hong Kong v Ireland, 7.30pm, Oman v UAE
UAE squad
Ahmed Raza (captain), Rohan Mustafa, Ashfaq Ahmed, Rameez Shahzad, Darius D’Silva, Mohammed Usman, Mohammed Boota, Zawar Farid, Ghulam Shabber, Junaid Siddique, Sultan Ahmed, Imran Haider, Waheed Ahmed, Chirag Suri, Zahoor Khan
Players out: Mohammed Naveed, Shaiman Anwar, Qadeer Ahmed
Players in: Junaid Siddique, Darius D’Silva, Waheed Ahmed
21 Lessons for the 21st Century
Yuval Noah Harari, Jonathan Cape
Honeymoonish
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Elie%20El%20Samaan%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarring%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENour%20Al%20Ghandour%2C%20Mahmoud%20Boushahri%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%203%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The bio
Studied up to grade 12 in Vatanappally, a village in India’s southern Thrissur district
Was a middle distance state athletics champion in school
Enjoys driving to Fujairah and Ras Al Khaimah with family
His dream is to continue working as a social worker and help people
Has seven diaries in which he has jotted down notes about his work and money he earned
Keeps the diaries in his car to remember his journey in the Emirates
Also on December 7 to 9, the third edition of the Gulf Car Festival (www.gulfcarfestival.com) will take over Dubai Festival City Mall, a new venue for the event. Last year's festival brought together about 900 cars worth more than Dh300 million from across the Emirates and wider Gulf region – and that first figure is set to swell by several hundred this time around, with between 1,000 and 1,200 cars expected. The first day is themed around American muscle; the second centres on supercars, exotics, European cars and classics; and the final day will major in JDM (Japanese domestic market) cars, tuned vehicles and trucks. Individuals and car clubs can register their vehicles, although the festival isn’t all static displays, with stunt drifting, a rev battle, car pulls and a burnout competition.
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.
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
THE%20SPECS
%3Cp%3EEngine%3A%203-litre%20V6%20turbo%20(standard%20model%2C%20E-hybrid)%3B%204-litre%20V8%20biturbo%20(S)%0D%3Cbr%3EPower%3A%20350hp%20(standard)%3B%20463hp%20(E-hybrid)%3B%20467hp%20(S)%0D%3Cbr%3ETorque%3A%20500Nm%20(standard)%3B%20650Nm%20(E-hybrid)%3B%20600Nm%20(S)%0D%0D%3Cbr%3EPrice%3A%20From%20Dh368%2C500%0D%3Cbr%3EOn%20sale%3A%20Now%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Our legal consultants
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Match info
Champions League quarter-final, first leg
Liverpool v Porto, Tuesday, 11pm (UAE)
Matches can be watched on BeIN Sports
The specs
Engine: four-litre V6 and 3.5-litre V6 twin-turbo
Transmission: six-speed and 10-speed
Power: 271 and 409 horsepower
Torque: 385 and 650Nm
Price: from Dh229,900 to Dh355,000
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
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
Section 375
Cast: Akshaye Khanna, Richa Chadha, Meera Chopra & Rahul Bhat
Director: Ajay Bahl
Producers: Kumar Mangat Pathak, Abhishek Pathak & SCIPL
Rating: 3.5/5
SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20SAMSUNG%20GALAXY%20S24%20ULTRA
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