Danny Willett of England. Getty Images
Danny Willett of England. Getty Images

Danny Willett vows to come back stronger after finishing runner-up in Race to Dubai



DUBAI // Danny Willett topped up his bank account with a cool €278,000 (Dh1,087,238 million) after finishing tied for fourth in the DP World Tour Championship, to take his season’s swag to €3.67 million.

That haul was enough for second place in the Race to Dubai, with only Rory McIlroy ahead of him and the Englishman was content to sign off a season of great progress.

“Can’t dwell too much on a bad finish to a pretty good 52 weeks,” Willett said of the European Tour finale at Jumeirah Golf Estates.

“There’s been a lot of good results, if you look at the statistics, stroke averages, top 10s, top fives, wins, it has been a very good year.

“You hold your hands up and say you gave it your best shot but unfortunately came up shy by one. Hopefully next year we are in a similar position and can try to change the story.”

Branden Grace’s third-place finish around Earth Course meant he leapfrogged Justin Rose into second place in the Tour money list.

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The South African thrived while playing the last round of the campaign alongside his countryman Charl Schwartzel, carding a 67 to finish on 15-under par, six shots behind McIlroy, the winner.

“It’s a good round to finish the season,” Grace said. “It’s the best one so far, so I can’t be disappointed with that.”

Rose, who arrived in Dubai with a fair chance of winning the overall race, was demoted to fourth after finishing among the also-rans.

“It was just a little inconsistent this week, which is opposite to how the year has been,” Rose said, after his final-round 68 took him to seven-under par.

“It is the final event of the season and you always want to finish on a high, so I was very pleased with that round today.”

An Byeong-hun finished his rookie season on the European Tour ranked seventh in the rankings.

The South Korean player said he had not even anticipated cracking the top 60 this season, let alone the heady heights of the top 10.

“I’ll have a week off and it will be like heaven,” An said. “I think I’ve done pretty well this season and now I can rest without pressure.

“I have definitely exceeded expectations. I’m in the top 10 in the Race to Dubai, and I never thought about it, even the top 60. It definitely was a great season for me.”

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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: ARDH Collective
Based: Dubai
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Sector: Sustainability
Total funding: Self funded
Number of employees: 4
UK-EU trade at a glance

EU fishing vessels guaranteed access to UK waters for 12 years

Co-operation on security initiatives and procurement of defence products

Youth experience scheme to work, study or volunteer in UK and EU countries

Smoother border management with use of e-gates

Cutting red tape on import and export of food

MATCH RESULT

Al Jazira 3 Persepolis 2
Jazira:
Mabkhout (52'), Romarinho (77'), Al Hammadi (90' 6)
Persepolis: Alipour (42'), Mensha (84')

FULL%20FIGHT%20CARD
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The%20specs
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20PlanRadar%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2013%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECo-founders%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EIbrahim%20Imam%2C%20Sander%20van%20de%20Rijdt%2C%20Constantin%20K%C3%B6ck%2C%20Clemens%20Hammerl%2C%20Domagoj%20Dolinsek%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EVienna%2C%20Austria%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EConstruction%20and%20real%20estate%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECurrent%20number%20of%20staff%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E400%2B%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESeries%20B%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Headline%2C%20Berliner%20Volksbank%20Ventures%2C%20aws%20Gr%C3%BCnderfonds%2C%20Cavalry%20Ventures%2C%20Proptech1%2C%20Russmedia%2C%20GR%20Capital%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – FINAL RECKONING

Director: Christopher McQuarrie

Starring: Tom Cruise, Hayley Atwell, Simon Pegg

Rating: 4/5

Key figures in the life of the fort

Sheikh Dhiyab bin Isa (ruled 1761-1793) Built Qasr Al Hosn as a watchtower to guard over the only freshwater well on Abu Dhabi island.

Sheikh Shakhbut bin Dhiyab (ruled 1793-1816) Expanded the tower into a small fort and transferred his ruling place of residence from Liwa Oasis to the fort on the island.

Sheikh Tahnoon bin Shakhbut (ruled 1818-1833) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further as Abu Dhabi grew from a small village of palm huts to a town of more than 5,000 inhabitants.

Sheikh Khalifa bin Shakhbut (ruled 1833-1845) Repaired and fortified the fort.

Sheikh Saeed bin Tahnoon (ruled 1845-1855) Turned Qasr Al Hosn into a strong two-storied structure.

Sheikh Zayed bin Khalifa (ruled 1855-1909) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further to reflect the emirate's increasing prominence.

Sheikh Shakhbut bin Sultan (ruled 1928-1966) Renovated and enlarged Qasr Al Hosn, adding a decorative arch and two new villas.

Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan (ruled 1966-2004) Moved the royal residence to Al Manhal palace and kept his diwan at Qasr Al Hosn.

Sources: Jayanti Maitra, www.adach.ae

The years Ramadan fell in May

1987

1954

1921

1888

SERIES INFO

Schedule:
All matches at the Harare Sports Club
1st ODI, Wed Apr 10
2nd ODI, Fri Apr 12
3rd ODI, Sun Apr 14
4th ODI, Sun Apr 16

UAE squad
Mohammed Naveed (captain), Rohan Mustafa, Ashfaq Ahmed, Shaiman Anwar, Mohammed Usman, CP Rizwan, Chirag Suri, Mohammed Boota, Ghulam Shabber, Sultan Ahmed, Imran Haider, Amir Hayat, Zahoor Khan, Qadeer Ahmed

Zimbabwe squad
Peter Moor (captain), Solomon Mire, Brian Chari, Regis Chakabva, Sean Williams, Timycen Maruma, Sikandar Raza, Donald Tiripano, Kyle Jarvis, Tendai Chatara, Chris Mpofu, Craig Ervine, Brandon Mavuta, Ainsley Ndlovu, Tony Munyonga, Elton Chigumbura