Three-time champion Ernie Els and fellow South African major winner Louis Oosthuizen have been confirmed for the 2019 Omega Dubai Desert Classic.
Taking place January 24-27 at Emirates Golf Club, the Dubai Desert Classic enters its 30th edition next year. The tournament has recently announced a number of players, including American world No 5 Bryson DeChambeau, 2017 Desert Classic and US Masters champion Sergio Garcia, and Ryder Cup stars Tommy Fleetwood, Henrik Stenson, Ian Poulter, Tyrrell Hatton and Thorbjorn Olesen.
Now the tournament's most successful player has joined the ranks vying for the Dallah trophy. Els, 49, won the first of his three Desert Classic titles in 1994, and shot a course record 61 - which still stands - in the first round en route to his first European Tour title.
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Els, a four-time major winner and former world No 1, won his second title in 2002 with a four-shot victory, before claiming an unprecedented third in 2005 when he holed a 20-foot eagle putt to edge out Stephen Dodd and Miguel Angel Jimenez.
“We are really excited to welcome back such an iconic golf legend for his 17th appearance in our tournament," tournament director David Spencer said in a statement. "Ernie is always a crowd favourite and he obviously has a special history on the Majlis course. He may be turning 50 next year, but a fourth victory will be within his grasp.”
Oosthuizen, 36, will head to the Dubai Desert Classic having already won on the European Tour this season following his victory at the South African Open in Johannesburg last week.
Former British Open winner Oosthuizen is one of just seven players to finish runner-up in all four majors - the Masters, US Open, British Open and US PGA Championship.
Another South African set to compete in Dubai is Els's 21-year-old nephew Jovan Rebula, who will make his debut at the tournament after earning his place by winning the British Amateur Championship.
"To have both the Big Easy and the Little Easy playing together alongside Louis will give a really special South African storyline to the tournament," Spencer said.
Tickets for the 2019 Dubai Desert Classic are on sale and start at Dh75 for general admission. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit www.omegadubaidesertclassic.com.
Dr Amal Khalid Alias revealed a recent case of a woman with daughters, who specifically wanted a boy.
A semen analysis of the father showed abnormal sperm so the couple required IVF.
Out of 21 eggs collected, six were unused leaving 15 suitable for IVF.
A specific procedure was used, called intracytoplasmic sperm injection where a single sperm cell is inserted into the egg.
On day three of the process, 14 embryos were biopsied for gender selection.
The next day, a pre-implantation genetic report revealed four normal male embryos, three female and seven abnormal samples.
Day five of the treatment saw two male embryos transferred to the patient.
The woman recorded a positive pregnancy test two weeks later.
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At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
RACE CARD
6.30pm Maiden Dh165,000 (Dirt) 1,200
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8.15pm Handicap Dh190,000 (D) 1,600m
8.50pm Handicap Dh175,000 (D) 1,400m
9.25pm Handicap Dh175,000 (D) 2,000m
The National selections:
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Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
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The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
The Gentlemen
Director: Guy Ritchie
Stars: Colin Farrell, Hugh Grant
Three out of five stars
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
