SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2016
S P O R S
Bernd two-shots clear of chasing pack at Almouj European Tour chairman hails significance of NBO Classic
The German played flawless golf, making five birdies to move to 18 under par at Almouj Golf and put himself in contention for a third European Challenge Tour
GOOD GOING: Bernd Ritthammer of Germany hits an approach shot
during Day Three of NBO Golf Classic Grand Final at Almouj Golf.
victory of the season
MUSCAT: Bernd Ritthammer was an immovable object at the top of the leaderboard on Moving Day at the NBO Golf Classic Grand Final, a five under par third round of 67 taking him two shots clear of the chasing pack. The German played flawless golf, making five birdies to move to 18 under par at Almouj Golf and put himself in contention for a third European Challenge Tour victory of the season. Following Saturday’s final round, the top 16 on the seasonlong Road to Oman will graduate to the European Tour, and even though Ritthammer has long known he will be among them, he is keen to end the year in style. “It doesn’t matter too much what happens here with me, but I do still really want to win,” said the 29 year old. “It would be very special to win the Grand Final as it is very different to all the other tournaments and I would love to do it. “If you’re in a good position then expectations rise, but I am trying
TENNIS
to stay the same as I was coming into this week because I was playing without any pressure. “It wasn’t as easy as yesterday (Thursday). I hit a couple of wayward shots on the front nine but managed to make some good saves, and I am pleased with not dropping a shot today (Friday). I am slightly surprised with the scoring today (Friday) as the pins were a lot tougher and I have seen there are a lot of guys that are chasing me with plenty of low scores. It is going to be tough tomorrow but I am ready for it.” Matthieu Pavon will lead the hunt in Muscat, the Frenchman’s 65 giving him outright second on 16 under par, while Ryan Fox went one shot better to reach 15 under par and secure his place in the final group of the season. The New Zealand Olympian has also given himself a chance to overtake Jordan Smith at the top of the Rankings if he is able to win on Saturday for the second time this season. Behind them Julien Guerrier and Gary King have both given themselves an unlikely shot
at European Tour cards by making significant moves, Guerrier shooting 64 and King tying the course record with a 63 as they reached 14 under par. Mathematically only a toptwo finish will suffice for either player, and King was delighted to have produced such a good performance when it mattered the most. “I came into today knowing what is at stake,” said the 26 year old. “I felt a bit lethargic this morning after oversleeping last night, but I turned to my caddie after the seventh and said ‘six birdies on the spin really wakes you up.’ “It was really nice to get off to that strong start, and it was plain sailing from there for the rest of my round really. “Knowing what is on the line, I would say this is probably the best round of golf I have ever played. I have had a couple of rounds where I have shot ten under and nine under before, but I think in the circumstances and with the pressure of knowing I had to go out there today and post a number like that, it has to be up there.”
MUSCAT: The European Challenge Tour’s season-ending NBO Golf Classic Grand Final, currently taking place at the stunning Al Mouj Golf in Muscat, received a special visitor today in the shape of European Tour Chairman David Williams who was hugely impressed with the set up at the Oman event. “It’s a fantastically well-run tournament,” said Williams. “They’re very lucky to have the sponsors they have – whether it’s NBO, Oman Air, the Shangri-la or the other great sponsors, everybody is contributing towards it being a wonderful event and a great end of season tournament.” The Challenge Tour’s tagline is ‘Where Heroes Are Made’ and Williams believes that it’s a highly appropriate one given that the top 16 players on the Road to Oman Rankings following the conclusion of this week’s tourna-
ment will be promoted to play on next season’s European Tour where they will have the opportunity to compete for golf’s biggest prizes. “This is a very important tournament for the Challenge Tour and then, by definition, for the European Tour,” said Williams. “So many of the players from this Tour go onto perform at a really high level on the global golf stage, including in the recent Ryder Cup which featured six former Challenge Tour players.” Nick Tarratt, Director of the European Tour’s Middle East office, who accompanied Williams on his visit, added: “The proof of where the Challenge Tour sits in the world golfing pyramid is the progress of two players who competed last year in Muscat: Brandon Stone (SA) and Nacho Elvira (Spain) who sit in 40th and 50th respectively in the 2016 Race to Dubai.”
SMILING GROUP: From left to right are Jose Zamora, Tour-
nament Director, NBO Golf Classic Grand Final; Alain De Soultrait, Director European Challenge Tour; Dr Mohammed bin Hamad Al Rumhy; David Williams, Chairman European Tour; Nick Tarratt, Director European Tour Middle East.
GOLF
Growth of golf in Oman ‘encouraging’
Fatma enters final MUSCAT: Fatma Al Nabhani stormed into the final of the $10,000 Casablanca ITF Pro Circuit tournament in Morocco on Friday. According to information received here, the Omani girl moved into the final of the singles but lost in the doubles semifinals partering Spain’s Olga Parres Azcoitia. Earlier in her singles quarterfinal, second seeded Fatma eased to a 6-2, 6-2 win over Spain’s Arabela Fernandez Rabener. Later
in the semifinals, Fatma Al Nabhani proved too good for Romanian Daiana Negreanu 6-4, 6-2. She will now take on Georgina Garcia Perez of Spain, who struggled past Oana Georgeta 6-2, 5-7, 6-3 in the other semifinal. In the doubles semifinals, Fatma and Olga were defeated by Spanish-Bulgarian combo of Georgina and Julia Stamatova, the latter winning 7-6, 10-6 after being pushed to the wire.
ISC BADMINTON
Nayan, Joshua supreme
GIRLS U-15 FINALISTS: Shreya Krishna, left, and Nayan Anil.
BOYS U-13 FINALISTS: Joshua
MUSCAT: Nayan Anil and Joshua Reji won titles at the Dalma Energy-sponsored Annual Badminton Tournament organised by the Indian Social Club. Nayan won the girls under-15 singles title and Joshua claimed the boys under-13 singles crown.
Nayan Anil won the girls under-15 singles title after a hardfought 17-21, 21-17, 21-18 victory over giant-killer Shreya Krishna. Joshua Reji came through a tough top half of the boys under-13 singles draw to defeat Mebel Manoj 21-7, 21-6 in the final.
Reji, left, and Mebel Manoj.
MUSCAT: Oman’s Minister of Oil and Gas Dr Mohammed bin Hamad Al Rumhy was a guest of honour on Friday at the NBO Golf Classic Grand Final, currently taking place at Almouj Golf in Muscat. His Excellency was taking part in the final round of an amateur tournament for Omani players which has formed part the week’s schedule of events and after finishing his round on the same championship course that the Challenge Tour’s top 46 players are competing on, he revealed his optimism regarding the gradual growth of the sport in the Sultanate. “The encouraging thing is seeing the number of young players, some of them as young as seven or eight showing an interest in golf in Oman now,” said the Oil and Gas Minister. “Another very encouraging aspect is that we have a lot of local girls taking up the sport. I think golf really suits the local girls here. It’s a very private kind of sport and family orientated so I hope we’ll see more kids taking up the sport and competing with us. We’re trying to give them a good game but our days are numbered as they say!” The NBO-sponsored tournament has been running at Al Mouj Golf since 2013, and was elevated in significance last year when it became the Challenge Tour’s season-ending grand finale, offering a prize fund of €400,000 and the opportunity for the top 16 players on the Road to Oman Rankings to earn promotion to play on next season’s European Tour. “It’s very good of NBO to sponsor this event, we’re trying to bring big tournaments to Oman,” said Dr. Rumhy. “It’s great to have corporate support, particularly for golf. It’s not only encouraging golf within the country it’s also a good advertisement for the country itself. “Hopefully people outside Oman will see the country for the first time. Many people outside Oman don’t know about it and we want people to know where the
TOP AMATEURS: Top finishers of the Amateur tournament with Dr Mohammed bin Hamad Al Rumhy and NBO chairman Mohammed bin Mahfoudh Al A’ardhi.
country is on the map of golf and other sports, so we’re quite pleased with the role of NBO.” His Excellency’s sons, Azaan and Hamed, are both keen golfers, with Azaan widely regarded as the country’s number one amateur, but it is the time the sport allows them to spend together as a family Dr Al Rumhy cherishes most. “Golf has really served us as a family quite well,” said his Excellency. “We all used to play tennis but then we gave that up when my knees started to give up on running around the court. Luckily I got both of my sons to join me playing golf and we have a great time. Where else do you spend five hours with your kids these days? “They grew up on golf courses and I think golf has helped me in raising my sons. Golfers are 99 per cent decent people. They speak well, they treat others well. The golf etiquette is something we like
The encouraging thing is seeing the number of young players, some of them as young as seven or eight showing an interest in golf in Oman now and also lot of local girls taking up the sport Dr Mohammed Al Rumhy Oil & Gas Minister
to see at home, so there are a lot of positives but people often don’t realise the role golf can play in raising your family.” Ahmed Al Balushi won the Amateur tournament held on the sidelines of NBO Classic, while Ali Humaid and Amjad Al Tooqi came second and third respectively. The tournament was organised under the auspices of Dr Mohammed bin Hamad Al Rumhy and Mohammed bin Mahfoudh Al A’ardhi, chairman of NBO among other dignitaries at the Ras Al Hamra Club. The tournament saw participation of 36 Omani players and the top 12 have qualified for the European challenge championship. The top three will also participate in Bahrain International Tournament and will be handed all support by NBO. The fourth and fifth place of the Amateur event went to Fahd Al Kitani and Hussain Al Balushi, respectively.