Ahmed Marjane, centre, of Morocco fired a final-round 69 to win the Ras Al Khaimah Classic at Tower Links Golf Club on Wednesday. Courtesy Mena Tour
Ahmed Marjane, centre, of Morocco fired a final-round 69 to win the Ras Al Khaimah Classic at Tower Links Golf Club on Wednesday. Courtesy Mena Tour

Golf

Morocco’s Ahmed Marjane becomes first Arab winner at Mena Tour event

Overnight joint leader Peter Stojanovski closed with a level-par 72 to settle for third on six under along with Mexico’s Juan Salcedo and England’s Joshua White. UAE’s Ahmed Al Musharrekh slipped to 23rd place from joint first overnight after carding a final-round 77.

Agencies

08 October, 2014

RAS AL KHAIMAH // Morocco’s Ahmed Marjane became the first Arab golfer to win a Mena Golf Tour event at the Ras Al Khaimah Classic on Wednesday.

One shot off the pace going into the final round, Marjane posted a three-under-par 69 at Tower Links Golf Club for an eight-under-par total of 208 that stood up as the overnight joint leaders all faded out of contention.

Marjane won the tour’s Order of Merit title as an amateur in the inaugural edition of the tour in 2011. Promotion to the professional ranks followed this year.

Wales’ Cennydd Mills had a chance to force a play-off, but missed his 10-yard birdie on the closing hole, finishing on seven-under for a share of second with England’s Stuart Archibald, Xavier Puig of Spain and Scotland’s Daniel Kay.

Kay was winner of the amateur division, two shots ahead of Morocco’s Yassine Touhami with Switzerland’s Michael Harradine taking third on two-under 214.

“I always play well under pressure. Four birdies and just one bogey on my card shows I was in control of the proceedings out there,” said Marjane, 22, who was invited to Dubai for a five-week training stint as part of the Sheikh Maktoum Golf Foundation scholarship in 2012.

“The idea was make as many birdies as possible. If I had holed all my putts from three yards, I would have easily finished 12-under.

“Being the first from the Mena region to win a tournament – it made the win just memorable.”

Meanwhile, overnight joint leader Peter Stojanovski closed with a level-par 72 to settle for third on six under along with Mexico’s Juan Salcedo and England’s Joshua White, who shot a final round 67.

UAE’s Ahmed Al Musharrekh slipped to 23rd place from joint first overnight after carding a final-round 77.

“It just wasn’t my day. Nothing worked,” Al Musharrekh said.

“But I am taking a lot of positives from the tournament. It felt good when I walked off the course after the second round to see my name atop the leader board.

“This has motivated me to work harder on my game, which I will do.”

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How to come clean about financial infidelity
  • Be honest and transparent: It is always better to own up than be found out. Tell your partner everything they want to know. Show remorse. Inform them of the extent of the situation so they know what they are dealing with.
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Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching

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ROUTE TO TITLE

Round 1: Beat Leolia Jeanjean 6-1, 6-2
Round 2: Beat Naomi Osaka 7-6, 1-6, 7-5
Round 3: Beat Marie Bouzkova 6-4, 6-2
Round 4: Beat Anastasia Potapova 6-0, 6-0
Quarter-final: Beat Marketa Vondrousova 6-0, 6-2
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Hepatitis is an inflammation of the liver, which can lead to fibrosis (scarring), cirrhosis or liver cancer.

There are 5 main hepatitis viruses, referred to as types A, B, C, D and E.

Hepatitis C is mostly transmitted through exposure to infective blood. This can occur through blood transfusions, contaminated injections during medical procedures, and through injecting drugs. Sexual transmission is also possible, but is much less common.

People infected with hepatitis C experience few or no symptoms, meaning they can live with the virus for years without being diagnosed. This delay in treatment can increase the risk of significant liver damage.

There are an estimated 170 million carriers of Hepatitis C around the world.

The virus causes approximately 399,000 fatalities each year worldwide, according to WHO.

 

Citizenship-by-investment programmes

United Kingdom

The UK offers three programmes for residency. The UK Overseas Business Representative Visa lets you open an overseas branch office of your existing company in the country at no extra investment. For the UK Tier 1 Innovator Visa, you are required to invest £50,000 (Dh238,000) into a business. You can also get a UK Tier 1 Investor Visa if you invest £2 million, £5m or £10m (the higher the investment, the sooner you obtain your permanent residency).

All UK residency visas get approved in 90 to 120 days and are valid for 3 years. After 3 years, the applicant can apply for extension of another 2 years. Once they have lived in the UK for a minimum of 6 months every year, they are eligible to apply for permanent residency (called Indefinite Leave to Remain). After one year of ILR, the applicant can apply for UK passport.

The Caribbean

Depending on the country, the investment amount starts from $100,000 (Dh367,250) and can go up to $400,000 in real estate. From the date of purchase, it will take between four to five months to receive a passport. 

Portugal

The investment amount ranges from €350,000 to €500,000 (Dh1.5m to Dh2.16m) in real estate. From the date of purchase, it will take a maximum of six months to receive a Golden Visa. Applicants can apply for permanent residency after five years and Portuguese citizenship after six years.

“Among European countries with residency programmes, Portugal has been the most popular because it offers the most cost-effective programme to eventually acquire citizenship of the European Union without ever residing in Portugal,” states Veronica Cotdemiey of Citizenship Invest.

Greece

The real estate investment threshold to acquire residency for Greece is €250,000, making it the cheapest real estate residency visa scheme in Europe. You can apply for residency in four months and citizenship after seven years.

Spain

The real estate investment threshold to acquire residency for Spain is €500,000. You can apply for permanent residency after five years and citizenship after 10 years. It is not necessary to live in Spain to retain and renew the residency visa permit.

Cyprus

Cyprus offers the quickest route to citizenship of a European country in only six months. An investment of €2m in real estate is required, making it the highest priced programme in Europe.

Malta

The Malta citizenship by investment programme is lengthy and investors are required to contribute sums as donations to the Maltese government. The applicant must either contribute at least €650,000 to the National Development & Social Fund. Spouses and children are required to contribute €25,000; unmarried children between 18 and 25 and dependent parents must contribute €50,000 each.

The second step is to make an investment in property of at least €350,000 or enter a property rental contract for at least €16,000 per annum for five years. The third step is to invest at least €150,000 in bonds or shares approved by the Maltese government to be kept for at least five years.

Candidates must commit to a minimum physical presence in Malta before citizenship is granted. While you get residency in two months, you can apply for citizenship after a year.

Egypt 

A one-year residency permit can be bought if you purchase property in Egypt worth $100,000. A three-year residency is available for those who invest $200,000 in property, and five years for those who purchase property worth $400,000.

Source: Citizenship Invest and Aqua Properties

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Starring: Christian Convery, Nonso Anozie, Adeel Akhtar, Stefania LaVie Owen
Rating: 2.5/5

Sarfira

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If you go...

Fly from Dubai or Abu Dhabi to Chiang Mai in Thailand, via Bangkok, before taking a five-hour bus ride across the Laos border to Huay Xai. The land border crossing at Huay Xai is a well-trodden route, meaning entry is swift, though travellers should be aware of visa requirements for both countries.

Flights from Dubai start at Dh4,000 return with Emirates, while Etihad flights from Abu Dhabi start at Dh2,000. Local buses can be booked in Chiang Mai from around Dh50

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Amount raised: $1.2 million

Funders: Oman Technology Fund, AB Accelerator, 500 Startups, private backers

 

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