ABU DHABI // South Africa might have an ancient and sworn rivalry with New Zealand on the rugby field, but two of the country’s golfers have had an All Black great supporting them at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship this week.
Zinzan Brooke, the former New Zealand No 8, is in the capital this week providing rugby tuition as a guest of Middle East Touch.
The trip from his home in the UK has allowed him to indulge one of his other sporting passions, too.
Brooke plays off a handicap of eight, and he won the week’s Pro-Am on the eve of the championship in a group with Branden Grace, the world No 16 from South Africa.
He is clearly on form. “What capped it off was I went over to the chipping range in the village, and I got a hole-in-one,” Brooke said, early on Day 3.
“When I arrived first thing this morning, there was no one around so I asked the guys if I could have a go, and they said yes. The first shot I had went straight in, so that was a good start to the day.”
His Pro-Am success won him a new golf bag, and a new pal. He also has a pre-existing friendship with Ernie Els, Grace’s compatriot and Brooke’s neighbour at Berkshire in
England.
Els missed the cut after shooting 5-over for the opening two rounds at the National Course, but Grace has been his usual consistent self, in contention at 4 under when the halfway cut came.
“What a great guy,” Brooke said of Grace. “I was pleased for him on the first day, he got to
6 under, although he dropped [in Round 2].
“You just need one strong day, to have the confidence. This game is all in the head and all about confidence.”
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The specs: 2018 Ford Mustang GT
Price, base / as tested: Dh204,750 / Dh241,500
Engine: 5.0-litre V8
Gearbox: 10-speed automatic
Power: 460hp @ 7,000rpm
Torque: 569Nm @ 4,600rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 10.3L / 100km
The Penguin
Starring: Colin Farrell, Cristin Milioti, Rhenzy Feliz
Creator: Lauren LeFranc
Rating: 4/5
SPECS
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COMPANY PROFILE
Initial investment: Undisclosed
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Core42
Current number of staff: 47
Company%20profile
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ENGLAND SQUAD
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Jumanji: The Next Level
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Stars: Dwayne Johnson, Kevin Hart, Karen Gillan, Jack Black, Nick Jonas
Two out of five stars
How the bonus system works
The two riders are among several riders in the UAE to receive the top payment of £10,000 under the Thank You Fund of £16 million (Dh80m), which was announced in conjunction with Deliveroo's £8 billion (Dh40bn) stock market listing earlier this year.
The £10,000 (Dh50,000) payment is made to those riders who have completed the highest number of orders in each market.
There are also riders who will receive payments of £1,000 (Dh5,000) and £500 (Dh2,500).
All riders who have worked with Deliveroo for at least one year and completed 2,000 orders will receive £200 (Dh1,000), the company said when it announced the scheme.
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Results
1. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) 1hr 32mins 03.897sec
2. Max Verstappen (Red Bull-Honda) at 0.745s
3. Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes) 37.383s
4. Lando Norris (McLaren) 46.466s
5.Sergio Perez (Red Bull-Honda) 52.047s
6. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) 59.090s
7. Daniel Ricciardo (McLaren) 1:06.004
8. Carlos Sainz Jr (Ferrari) 1:07.100
9. Yuki Tsunoda (AlphaTauri-Honda) 1:25.692
10. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin-Mercedes) 1:26.713,
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Based: Gaza
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Infobox
Western Region Asia Cup Qualifier, Al Amerat, Oman
The two finalists advance to the next stage of qualifying, in Malaysia in August
Results
UAE beat Iran by 10 wickets
Kuwait beat Saudi Arabia by eight wickets
Oman beat Bahrain by nine wickets
Qatar beat Maldives by 106 runs
Monday fixtures
UAE v Kuwait, Iran v Saudi Arabia, Oman v Qatar, Maldives v Bahrain
THE SPECS
Engine: 1.5-litre
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Power: 110 horsepower
Torque: 147Nm
Price: From Dh59,700
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The specs: 2018 Volkswagen Teramont
Price, base / as tested Dh137,000 / Dh189,950
Engine 3.6-litre V6
Gearbox Eight-speed automatic
Power 280hp @ 6,200rpm
Torque 360Nm @ 2,750rpm
Fuel economy, combined 11.7L / 100km