DUBAI // Moments after his tied-second at the DP World Tour Championship was confirmed, Rory McIlroy was asked to do a spot straight to camera for Golf Channel, the US TV network.
Microphone in hand, the world No 1 ran through the standout shots that helped shape a career year, describing the two finest swipes that teed up the season’s final two majors, the British Open and US PGA Championship.
Add to that a second Race to Dubai title in three years and it has sure been 12 months to remember.
With 2014 all done bar the shouting – McIlroy concludes his schedule next week at the Australian Open – the focus has already shifted to 2015.
In truth, it has occupied the mind for a little while already: April’s Masters and the opportunity to clinch the career grand slam cannot come soon enough.
“I started thinking about Augusta on the 18th of August when I won the PGA,” McIlroy said, to laughter, post-round yesterday.
At the age of 25 and a four-time major champion, the trajectory has been such that even a runner-up finish at Jumeirah Golf Estates did not grate too much.
Given he pushed an already-stellar season all the way to the 72nd hole of the European Tour’s finale – McIlroy was in a tie for the lead at the last, but failed to sink the birdie to force a play-off – it marked a significant sign of improvement.
Usually, this level of performance would have contributed to a "bad week", McIlroy said, which typically logged a modest finish or even a missed cut. Now, "bad" constitutes narrowly missing out on the hardware.
“It’s a really big positive,” he said after a final-day 68. “I’m really pleased this year about the consistency I’ve shown.
“I haven’t finished outside the top 25, so there is a lot of good stuff going into next year. It’s really exciting.”
Exciting pretty much sums up his season. McIlroy concludes 2014 as golf’s undisputed top dog, despite having to handle the fallout of high-profile break-ups in his professional and private life. The learning curve has been steep.
“I learnt a lot from it and feel like I came through this year stronger and wiser,” he said. “I can go into 2015 in a much better place.”
Comfortable in his self and his swing, he also relishes his position at the summit of the game. He even welcomes the accompanying scrutiny and the criticism.
“I used to be uncomfortable,” McIlroy said. “But I’ve learnt to deal with it. It’s just part of the title now, world No 1; that’s what it comes with.
“Look, I’ve spent more than a year of my career at world No 1, so if I’m not used to it by now, then there’s something wrong.
“It’s where I want to be. I want to be the best player in the world and I want to keep it for as long as I possibly can.”
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'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)
What is a robo-adviser?
Robo-advisers use an online sign-up process to gauge an investor’s risk tolerance by feeding information such as their age, income, saving goals and investment history into an algorithm, which then assigns them an investment portfolio, ranging from more conservative to higher risk ones.
These portfolios are made up of exchange traded funds (ETFs) with exposure to indices such as US and global equities, fixed-income products like bonds, though exposure to real estate, commodity ETFs or gold is also possible.
Investing in ETFs allows robo-advisers to offer fees far lower than traditional investments, such as actively managed mutual funds bought through a bank or broker. Investors can buy ETFs directly via a brokerage, but with robo-advisers they benefit from investment portfolios matched to their risk tolerance as well as being user friendly.
Many robo-advisers charge what are called wrap fees, meaning there are no additional fees such as subscription or withdrawal fees, success fees or fees for rebalancing.
Our legal consultants
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
