Richie Ramsey, who has suggested that his testy on-course temperament has been given at least a short-term fix by watching a television programme on the war-wounded in Afghanistan, posted a five under par 67 at Carnoustie to take an early lead in the Dunhill Links championship.
On what was a distinctly chilly morning, the 26-year-old Scot turned in 34 before picking up three more birdies homeward bound.
On the team front, Ramsay and his playing companion, Ian Webb, a former Chairman of the R&A, were eight under par and one shot off the pace.
"I didn't take sort of too many shots seriously," said Ramsay. "It's an event where you've got to embrace the guys you're playing with and also the format."
Rory McIlroy, another doing duty at Carnoustie, was two under par under his own steam after 13 holes and four under par in tandem with his father, Gerry. This is payback time for Rory as he plays with his father in the event for a first time. In Rory's earliest golfing days, the currently two-handicap Gerry had three jobs on the go by way of funding his son's annual spell on the Florida children's tour. At the same time, Rory's mum, Rosie, would work night shifts in a local factory. His parents' investment would seem to have paid off in double-quick time. Though Rory has only just turned 20, he has already this year pocketed as much as £1,507,745 on the Race to Dubai.
On Wednesday, when he was asked if he still saw the prize money as a factor, this engaging young man did the next best thing to shrugging his shoulders. "In a way, yeah," he answered. "It's obviously a nice bonus when you play well at the end of the week to see how much you've earned but it's not a big deal."
No one got off to a faster start yesterday than Chih-Bing Lam, who was knocked to ground when Marman Mamat inadvertently hit him on the head with a driver at last week's Asia-Pacific Panasonic Open. Starting at the tenth on St Andrews, Lam began with three birdies in a row. Then, when it came to the 565 yards 14th, he had a 40-foot eagle putt which would have taken him to five under. To his irritation, he left it six feet short and missed the next to walk from the humps and hollows of that massive green with the most anticlimactic of bogeys.
sports@thenational.ae
ONCE UPON A TIME IN GAZA
Starring: Nader Abd Alhay, Majd Eid, Ramzi Maqdisi
Directors: Tarzan and Arab Nasser
Rating: 4.5/5
Sanju
Produced: Vidhu Vinod Chopra, Rajkumar Hirani
Director: Rajkumar Hirani
Cast: Ranbir Kapoor, Vicky Kaushal, Paresh Rawal, Anushka Sharma, Manish’s Koirala, Dia Mirza, Sonam Kapoor, Jim Sarbh, Boman Irani
Rating: 3.5 stars
if you go
The flights
Emirates offer flights to Buenos Aires from Dubai, via Rio De Janeiro from around Dh6,300. emirates.com
Seeing the games
Tangol sell experiences across South America and generally have good access to tickets for most of the big teams in Buenos Aires: Boca Juniors, River Plate, and Independiente. Prices from Dh550 and include pick up and drop off from your hotel in the city. tangol.com
Staying there
Tangol will pick up tourists from any hotel in Buenos Aires, but after the intensity of the game, the Faena makes for tranquil, upmarket accommodation. Doubles from Dh1,110. faena.com
Company%20Profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENadeera%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Abu%20Dhabi%2C%20UAE%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ERabih%20El%20Chaar%20and%20Reem%20Khattar%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ECleanTech%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETotal%20funding%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20About%20%241%20million%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EHope%20Ventures%2C%20Rasameel%20Investments%20and%20support%20from%20accelerator%20programmes%20%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20employees%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2012%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
JAPAN SQUAD
Goalkeepers: Masaaki Higashiguchi, Shuichi Gonda, Daniel Schmidt
Defenders: Yuto Nagatomo, Tomoaki Makino, Maya Yoshida, Sho Sasaki, Hiroki Sakai, Sei Muroya, Genta Miura, Takehiro Tomiyasu
Midfielders: Toshihiro Aoyama, Genki Haraguchi, Gaku Shibasaki, Wataru Endo, Junya Ito, Shoya Nakajima, Takumi Minamino, Hidemasa Morita, Ritsu Doan
Forwards: Yuya Osako, Takuma Asano, Koya Kitagawa
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
The%20Secret%20Kingdom%20
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Matt%20Drummond%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EAlyla%20Browne%2C%20Alice%20Parkinson%2C%20Sam%20Everingham%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%203%2F5%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
How does ToTok work?
The calling app is available to download on Google Play and Apple App Store
To successfully install ToTok, users are asked to enter their phone number and then create a nickname.
The app then gives users the option add their existing phone contacts, allowing them to immediately contact people also using the application by video or voice call or via message.
Users can also invite other contacts to download ToTok to allow them to make contact through the app.
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900