Rory McIlroy’s had a banner year in 2014, memorably winning the Open Championship and then adding another major feather to his cap with the PGA Championship.
Toss in two more wins at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational and European Tour PGA Championship, a top-10 finish at The Masters and his ascension to No 1 in the world golf rankings, and there’s no dispute about who the pound-for-pound best golfer in the world is right now.
How to celebrate such a successful season? Take a trip to Abu Dhabi.
Organisers of the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship announced on Sunday McIlroy would return to the UAE in January for what will likely be his first tournament of 2015.
McIlroy tied for second at the tournament this year with Phil Mickelson in a stunning final day that saw Pablo Larrazabal edge out both for the falcon trophy.
It’s an elusive title that McIlroy, despite his string of recent high-profile victories, is eager to add to his list of accomplishments.
The Nothern Irishman also finished second in 2011 and 2012, third in 2010, fifth in 2009 and 11th in 2008.
“Greatness in golf is winning major championships but after playing in Abu Dhabi so many years and having come so close in the past, I would love nothing more than to win at the event’s 10-year anniversary,” McIlroy said in a press release.
“Over the past few months I have been mentally strong and I feel very good about my game at the moment.”
McIlroy, 25, has opened his season in Abu Dhabi in each of the last five years. He’s played in the last seven stagings of the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship, with 2015 offering him his eighth shot at the title.
The 2015 Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship will be held from January 15-18, and McIlroy can expect to be joined by a handful of other big names in January, as Mickelson, Martin Kaymer, Luke Donald, Henrik Stenson, Sergio Garcia and Padraig Harrington were among those on hand this year.
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Know your cyber adversaries
Cryptojacking: Compromises a device or network to mine cryptocurrencies without an organisation's knowledge.
Distributed denial-of-service: Floods systems, servers or networks with information, effectively blocking them.
Man-in-the-middle attack: Intercepts two-way communication to obtain information, spy on participants or alter the outcome.
Malware: Installs itself in a network when a user clicks on a compromised link or email attachment.
Phishing: Aims to secure personal information, such as passwords and credit card numbers.
Ransomware: Encrypts user data, denying access and demands a payment to decrypt it.
Spyware: Collects information without the user's knowledge, which is then passed on to bad actors.
Trojans: Create a backdoor into systems, which becomes a point of entry for an attack.
Viruses: Infect applications in a system and replicate themselves as they go, just like their biological counterparts.
Worms: Send copies of themselves to other users or contacts. They don't attack the system, but they overload it.
Zero-day exploit: Exploits a vulnerability in software before a fix is found.
The specs
Engine: Long-range single or dual motor with 200kW or 400kW battery
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Max touring range: 620km / 590km
Price: From Dh250,000 (estimated)
Company profile
Name: Oulo.com
Founder: Kamal Nazha
Based: Dubai
Founded: 2020
Number of employees: 5
Sector: Technology
Funding: $450,000
The specs
Engine: Dual 180kW and 300kW front and rear motors
Power: 480kW
Torque: 850Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh359,900 ($98,000)
On sale: Now
Expert input
If you had all the money in the world, what’s the one sneaker you would buy or create?
“There are a few shoes that have ‘grail’ status for me. But the one I have always wanted is the Nike x Patta x Parra Air Max 1 - Cherrywood. To get a pair in my size brand new is would cost me between Dh8,000 and Dh 10,000.” Jack Brett
“If I had all the money, I would approach Nike and ask them to do my own Air Force 1, that’s one of my dreams.” Yaseen Benchouche
“There’s nothing out there yet that I’d pay an insane amount for, but I’d love to create my own shoe with Tinker Hatfield and Jordan.” Joshua Cox
“I think I’d buy a defunct footwear brand; I’d like the challenge of reinterpreting a brand’s history and changing options.” Kris Balerite
“I’d stir up a creative collaboration with designers Martin Margiela of the mixed patchwork sneakers, and Yohji Yamamoto.” Hussain Moloobhoy
“If I had all the money in the world, I’d live somewhere where I’d never have to wear shoes again.” Raj Malhotra
If you go
Where to stay: Courtyard by Marriott Titusville Kennedy Space Centre has unparalleled views of the Indian River. Alligators can be spotted from hotel room balconies, as can several rocket launch sites. The hotel also boasts cool space-themed decor.
When to go: Florida is best experienced during the winter months, from November to May, before the humidity kicks in.
How to get there: Emirates currently flies from Dubai to Orlando five times a week.
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
Company%20Profile
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Kanguva
Director: Siva
Stars: Suriya, Bobby Deol, Disha Patani, Yogi Babu, Redin Kingsley
