Xander Schauffele claims Olympic golf gold as CT Pan wins bronze after seven-way play-off


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Xander Schauffele secured the gold medal in the men's golf event at the Tokyo Olympic Games on Sunday with a total score of 18-under par 266 after four days of thrilling action at the Kasumigaseki Country Club.

Schauffele, the world No 5, was in fine form across each round of the tournament, shooting rounds of 68, 63, 68, and 67 to win the title by one shot ahead of Rory Sabbatini, who shot an Olympic record round of 61 on Sunday to surge to the silver medal. South African-born Sabbatini was representing his adopted nation of Slovakia, for whom he qualified via his Slovakian wife.

“Just in shock,” Schauffele said. “I was trying so hard to just stay calm. But man, it was stressful. And I made that putt and it was just a huge weight lifted off my shoulders and just very relieved and happy.”

While the top two medals were decided after 72 holes of strokeplay, the battle for the bronze had to be decided in an epic play-off with seven players involved, including Ireland's Rory McIlroy, Japan's home hope Hideki Matsuyama, and Great Britain's Paul Casey.

American Collin Morikawa, who won The Open last month, Sebastian Munoz of Colombia, Chinese Taipei's CT Pan, and Chilean Mito Pereira were also in the fight for bronze having finished on 15-under.

In the end, it was Pan who claimed the last step on the podium after four tense holes of sudden death.

After all seven players played the par-4 18th, Matsuyama and Casey were eliminated having shot bogeys while the other five golfers parred.

Pan, Morikawa, McIlroy, Munoz, and Pereira moved on to the par-3 10th hole where they all claimed pars.

McIlroy, Munoz, and Pereira were then dropped on the third play-off hole 11th as the Northern Irishman, Colombian, and Chilean were only able to make par, while Pan and Morikawa made birdies after sticking their approach shots within a few feet of the flag. Pereira was millimetres from joining the pair on the next hole, only to see his putt lip out.

The fight for bronze was now a head-to-head challenge between Morikawa and Pan which in effect had become a matchplay shootout.

Returning to the 18th, world No 3 Morikawa hit the fairway with his drive while Pan found the rough to the left of the fairway. Hitting first, Pan's second shot made its way to the left of the green, leaving him an up and down to make par. Morikawa, arguably the finest iron player in the world, undercooked his second shot as the ball plugged into the greenside bunker.

Pan proceeded to chip to within 10 feet and Morikawa did well to even get his ball on the green. The American's long par putt sailed past the hole, leaving Pan a putt for bronze, which he made confidently.


The burning issue

The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE. 

Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on

Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins

Read part one: how cars came to the UAE

 

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Timeline

2012-2015

The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East

May 2017

The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts

September 2021

Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act

October 2021

Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence 

December 2024

Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group

May 2025

The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan

July 2025

The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan

August 2025

Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision

October 2025

Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange

November 2025

180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE

UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE FIXTURES

All kick-off times 10.45pm UAE ( 4 GMT) unless stated

Tuesday
Sevilla v Maribor
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Wednesday
Basel v Benfica
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Qarabag v Roma (8pm)
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EA Sports FC 26

Publisher: EA Sports

Consoles: PC, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox Series X/S

Rating: 3/5

Polarised public

31% in UK say BBC is biased to left-wing views

19% in UK say BBC is biased to right-wing views

19% in UK say BBC is not biased at all

Source: YouGov

Company%20profile
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Points classification after Stage 4

1. Arnaud Demare (France / FDJ) 124

2. Marcel Kittel (Germany / Quick-Step) 81

3. Michael Matthews (Australia / Sunweb) 66

4. Andre Greipel (Germany / Lotto) 63

5. Alexander Kristoff (Norway / Katusha) 43

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Who's who in Yemen conflict

Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government

Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council

Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south

Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory

 

Rock in a Hard Place: Music and Mayhem in the Middle East
Orlando Crowcroft
Zed Books

Company profile

Name: Back to Games and Boardgame Space

Started: Back to Games (2015); Boardgame Space (Mark Azzam became co-founder in 2017)

Founder: Back to Games (Mr Azzam); Boardgame Space (Mr Azzam and Feras Al Bastaki)

Based: Dubai and Abu Dhabi 

Industry: Back to Games (retail); Boardgame Space (wholesale and distribution) 

Funding: Back to Games: self-funded by Mr Azzam with Dh1.3 million; Mr Azzam invested Dh250,000 in Boardgame Space  

Growth: Back to Games: from 300 products in 2015 to 7,000 in 2019; Boardgame Space: from 34 games in 2017 to 3,500 in 2019

Groom and Two Brides

Director: Elie Semaan

Starring: Abdullah Boushehri, Laila Abdallah, Lulwa Almulla

Rating: 3/5

Global state-owned investor ranking by size

1.

United States

2.

China

3.

UAE

4.

Japan

5

Norway

6.

Canada

7.

Singapore

8.

Australia

9.

Saudi Arabia

10.

South Korea

Updated: August 01, 2021, 9:57 AM