ABU DHABI // When Alexander Noren was eight years old, he became infatuated with golf. So infatuated that he often was late for dinner at his home in Sweden because he was still out on the course trying to perfect his swing.
Twenty years later, Noren is still a perfectionist. But when his analytical approach to the game yields results, he can put up numbers like the six-under par 66 he recorded yesterday at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship. It was enough for him to finish third behind Charl Schwartzel and Padraig Harrington.
"I like technique," he said. "I always try to improve."
He studies film of golfers considered to have perfect swings, including Tiger Woods in his prime. He concedes to being a "golfaholic", but perhaps a recovering one.
"I was a lot more of a golfaholic than I am now," he said. "I've gotten into photography, so I'm bugging all of the photographers out here with their gear and trying to get the same gear, but it's pretty heavy to travel with.
"I like that, and I like working out, running, but that becomes like 'gymaholic' or a 'runaholic'. So I'm a bit of a 'holic'. Whatever I do, I do it too much."
Noren was sixth in the Dubai World Championships in 2009, the year he recorded his lone European Tour victory, at the European Masters in Switzerland. The Swede birdied three of the four par-5 holes and had only one bogey in his first-day round.
He conceded he sometimes overthinks the game, and is well-served by more of a "grip it and rip it" approach, though it is difficult for him to play that way.
"You don't have to hit every shot straight," he said. "You've got to be the right distance. You've got to chip well, putt well, wedge well, drive well. Work more on what actually happens on the golf course than on the driving range."
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
COMPANY PROFILE
Bareilly Ki Barfi
Directed by: Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari
Starring: Kriti Sanon, Ayushmann Khurrana, Rajkummar Rao
Three and a half stars
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The specs
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Engine: Direct injection 4-cylinder 1.4-litre
Power: 150hp
Torque: 250Nm
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On sale: Now
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Label: Warner Records
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Rating: 4/5
City's slump
L - Juventus, 2-0
D - C Palace, 2-2
W - N Forest, 3-0
L - Liverpool, 2-0
D - Feyenoord, 3-3
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L - Brighton, 2-1
L - Sporting, 4-1
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The specs
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APPLE IPAD MINI (A17 PRO)
Display: 21cm Liquid Retina Display, 2266 x 1488, 326ppi, 500 nits
Chip: Apple A17 Pro, 6-core CPU, 5-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine
Storage: 128/256/512GB
Main camera: 12MP wide, f/1.8, digital zoom up to 5x, Smart HDR 4
Front camera: 12MP ultra-wide, f/2.4, Smart HDR 4, full-HD @ 25/30/60fps
Biometrics: Touch ID, Face ID
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How to invest in gold
Investors can tap into the gold price by purchasing physical jewellery, coins and even gold bars, but these need to be stored safely and possibly insured.
A cheaper and more straightforward way to benefit from gold price growth is to buy an exchange-traded fund (ETF).
Most advisers suggest sticking to “physical” ETFs. These hold actual gold bullion, bars and coins in a vault on investors’ behalf. Others do not hold gold but use derivatives to track the price instead, adding an extra layer of risk. The two biggest physical gold ETFs are SPDR Gold Trust and iShares Gold Trust.
Another way to invest in gold’s success is to buy gold mining stocks, but Mr Gravier says this brings added risks and can be more volatile. “They have a serious downside potential should the price consolidate.”
Mr Kyprianou says gold and gold miners are two different asset classes. “One is a commodity and the other is a company stock, which means they behave differently.”
Mining companies are a business, susceptible to other market forces, such as worker availability, health and safety, strikes, debt levels, and so on. “These have nothing to do with gold at all. It means that some companies will survive, others won’t.”
By contrast, when gold is mined, it just sits in a vault. “It doesn’t even rust, which means it retains its value,” Mr Kyprianou says.
You may already have exposure to gold miners in your portfolio, say, through an international ETF or actively managed mutual fund.
You could spread this risk with an actively managed fund that invests in a spread of gold miners, with the best known being BlackRock Gold & General. It is up an incredible 55 per cent over the past year, and 240 per cent over five years. As always, past performance is no guide to the future.
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