LOCH LOMOND // After three days, 54 holes and a veritable smorgasbord of British summer weather, encompassing rain, wind and sun, we are no closer to identifying a winner of this claustrophobic Barclays Scottish Open.
It is said that you cannot win a golf tournament on the third day, but you can certainly lose it.
On a sluggish third day of this tournament, nobody appeared ready to win or lose.
England's Simon Khan and the Northern Irishman Graeme McDowell lead on 10 under, but there are over a dozen men ready to take them down.
Khan hit a 68 and will qualify for the Open at Royal Birkdale if he finishes in the top five.
McDowell shot a 66 and could secure his place in the Ryder Cup with victory.
But he is steeling himself for a frantic scramble.
"The field is really bunched. There were only seven shots separating the cut mark from the leader yesterday, and there must be at least 10 or 12 players who have a chance in the final round," conceded McDowell.
The former US Open champion Angel Cabrera began his third round as leader at nine under, but he unravelled with two triple bogeys at the 12th and the 17th, and another bogey on 18 that saw him drop to two under.
After posting a 78, his hopes of walking away the winner at Loch Lomond appear to be over.
Ross Fisher, winner of last week's European Open, Jeev Milkha Singh, Miguel Angel Jimenez and Richard Green are all berthed on eight under and will fancy their chances today.
Adam Scott and Ian Poulter enjoyed 68s and are seven under. The former British Open champion Paul Lawrie is six under, with the Dubai-based Henrik Stenson in touch at five.
Two other notable names, Phil Mickelson and Ernie Els, began the day on four under and played together, but both made little progress up the leaderboard.
Els shot 70 to move to five under, while Mickelson hit a level-par 71 to remain at four under.
They could still threaten though if they manage to shoot somewhere in the 60s today.
But such major competitors may also be aware that nobody who has lifted the Scottish Open has progressed to win the British Open a week later.
dkane@thenational.ae
'Worse than a prison sentence'
Marie Byrne, a counsellor who volunteers at the UAE government's mental health crisis helpline, said the ordeal the crew had been through would take time to overcome.
“It was worse than a prison sentence, where at least someone can deal with a set amount of time incarcerated," she said.
“They were living in perpetual mystery as to how their futures would pan out, and what that would be.
“Because of coronavirus, the world is very different now to the one they left, that will also have an impact.
“It will not fully register until they are on dry land. Some have not seen their young children grow up while others will have to rebuild relationships.
“It will be a challenge mentally, and to find other work to support their families as they have been out of circulation for so long. Hopefully they will get the care they need when they get home.”
RESULT
Manchester City 1 Sheffield United 0
Man City: Jesus (9')
Will the pound fall to parity with the dollar?
The idea of pound parity now seems less far-fetched as the risk grows that Britain may split away from the European Union without a deal.
Rupert Harrison, a fund manager at BlackRock, sees the risk of it falling to trade level with the dollar on a no-deal Brexit. The view echoes Morgan Stanley’s recent forecast that the currency can plunge toward $1 (Dh3.67) on such an outcome. That isn’t the majority view yet – a Bloomberg survey this month estimated the pound will slide to $1.10 should the UK exit the bloc without an agreement.
New Prime Minister Boris Johnson has repeatedly said that Britain will leave the EU on the October 31 deadline with or without an agreement, fuelling concern the nation is headed for a disorderly departure and fanning pessimism toward the pound. Sterling has fallen more than 7 per cent in the past three months, the worst performance among major developed-market currencies.
“The pound is at a much lower level now but I still think a no-deal exit would lead to significant volatility and we could be testing parity on a really bad outcome,” said Mr Harrison, who manages more than $10 billion in assets at BlackRock. “We will see this game of chicken continue through August and that’s likely negative for sterling,” he said about the deadlocked Brexit talks.
The pound fell 0.8 per cent to $1.2033 on Friday, its weakest closing level since the 1980s, after a report on the second quarter showed the UK economy shrank for the first time in six years. The data means it is likely the Bank of England will cut interest rates, according to Mizuho Bank.
The BOE said in November that the currency could fall even below $1 in an analysis on possible worst-case Brexit scenarios. Options-based calculations showed around a 6.4 per cent chance of pound-dollar parity in the next one year, markedly higher than 0.2 per cent in early March when prospects of a no-deal outcome were seemingly off the table.
Bloomberg
Business Insights
- As per the document, there are six filing options, including choosing to report on a realisation basis and transitional rules for pre-tax period gains or losses.
- SMEs with revenue below Dh3 million per annum can opt for transitional relief until 2026, treating them as having no taxable income.
- Larger entities have specific provisions for asset and liability movements, business restructuring, and handling foreign permanent establishments.
ORDER OF PLAY ON SHOW COURTS
Centre Court - 4pm (UAE)
Gael Monfils (15) v Kyle Edmund
Karolina Pliskova (3) v Magdalena Rybarikova
Dusan Lajovic v Roger Federer (3)
Court 1 - 4pm
Adam Pavlasek v Novak Djokovic (2)
Dominic Thiem (8) v Gilles Simon
Angelique Kerber (1) v Kirsten Flipkens
Court 2 - 2.30pm
Grigor Dimitrov (13) v Marcos Baghdatis
Agnieszka Radwanska (9) v Christina McHale
Milos Raonic (6) v Mikhail Youzhny
Tsvetana Pironkova v Caroline Wozniacki (5)
