Your Cookies. Your Choice.
Cookies help provide our news service while also enabling the advertising needed to fund this work. We categorise cookies as Necessary, Performance (used to analyse the site performance) and Targeting (used to target advertising which helps us keep this service free).We and our vendors process data for the following purposes:
Use precise geolocation data. Actively scan device characteristics for identification. Store and/or access information on a device. Personalised advertising and content, advertising and content measurement, audience research and services development.
Cookies Preference Centre
Manage Consent Preferences
Necessary Cookies
These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in or filling in forms. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work.
Targeting Cookies
These cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.
Functional Cookies
These cookies enable the website to provide enhanced functionality and personalisation. They may be set by us or by third party providers whose services we have added to our pages. If you do not allow these cookies then these services may not function properly.
Performance Cookies
These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies we will not be able to monitor our performance.
Store and/or access information on a device 109 partners can use this purpose
Cookies, device or similar online identifiers (e.g. login-based identifiers, randomly assigned identifiers, network based identifiers) together with other information (e.g. browser type and information, language, screen size, supported technologies etc.) can be stored or read on your device to recognise it each time it connects to an app or to a website, for one or several of the purposes presented here.
Personalised advertising and content, advertising and content measurement, audience research and services development 141 partners can use this purpose
Use limited data to select advertising 111 partners can use this purpose
Advertising presented to you on this service can be based on limited data, such as the website or app you are using, your non-precise location, your device type or which content you are (or have been) interacting with (for example, to limit the number of times an ad is presented to you).
Create profiles for personalised advertising 83 partners can use this purpose
Information about your activity on this service (such as forms you submit, content you look at) can be stored and combined with other information about you (for example, information from your previous activity on this service and other websites or apps) or similar users. This is then used to build or improve a profile about you (that might include possible interests and personal aspects). Your profile can be used (also later) to present advertising that appears more relevant based on your possible interests by this and other entities.
Use profiles to select personalised advertising 83 partners can use this purpose
Advertising presented to you on this service can be based on your advertising profiles, which can reflect your activity on this service or other websites or apps (like the forms you submit, content you look at), possible interests and personal aspects.
Create profiles to personalise content 38 partners can use this purpose
Information about your activity on this service (for instance, forms you submit, non-advertising content you look at) can be stored and combined with other information about you (such as your previous activity on this service or other websites or apps) or similar users. This is then used to build or improve a profile about you (which might for example include possible interests and personal aspects). Your profile can be used (also later) to present content that appears more relevant based on your possible interests, such as by adapting the order in which content is shown to you, so that it is even easier for you to find content that matches your interests.
Use profiles to select personalised content 34 partners can use this purpose
Content presented to you on this service can be based on your content personalisation profiles, which can reflect your activity on this or other services (for instance, the forms you submit, content you look at), possible interests and personal aspects. This can for example be used to adapt the order in which content is shown to you, so that it is even easier for you to find (non-advertising) content that matches your interests.
Measure advertising performance 132 partners can use this purpose
Information regarding which advertising is presented to you and how you interact with it can be used to determine how well an advert has worked for you or other users and whether the goals of the advertising were reached. For instance, whether you saw an ad, whether you clicked on it, whether it led you to buy a product or visit a website, etc. This is very helpful to understand the relevance of advertising campaigns.
Measure content performance 60 partners can use this purpose
Information regarding which content is presented to you and how you interact with it can be used to determine whether the (non-advertising) content e.g. reached its intended audience and matched your interests. For instance, whether you read an article, watch a video, listen to a podcast or look at a product description, how long you spent on this service and the web pages you visit etc. This is very helpful to understand the relevance of (non-advertising) content that is shown to you.
Understand audiences through statistics or combinations of data from different sources 74 partners can use this purpose
Reports can be generated based on the combination of data sets (like user profiles, statistics, market research, analytics data) regarding your interactions and those of other users with advertising or (non-advertising) content to identify common characteristics (for instance, to determine which target audiences are more receptive to an ad campaign or to certain contents).
Develop and improve services 83 partners can use this purpose
Information about your activity on this service, such as your interaction with ads or content, can be very helpful to improve products and services and to build new products and services based on user interactions, the type of audience, etc. This specific purpose does not include the development or improvement of user profiles and identifiers.
Use limited data to select content 38 partners can use this purpose
Content presented to you on this service can be based on limited data, such as the website or app you are using, your non-precise location, your device type, or which content you are (or have been) interacting with (for example, to limit the number of times a video or an article is presented to you).
Use precise geolocation data 46 partners can use this special feature
With your acceptance, your precise location (within a radius of less than 500 metres) may be used in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
Actively scan device characteristics for identification 27 partners can use this special feature
With your acceptance, certain characteristics specific to your device might be requested and used to distinguish it from other devices (such as the installed fonts or plugins, the resolution of your screen) in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
Ensure security, prevent and detect fraud, and fix errors 90 partners can use this special purpose
Your data can be used to monitor for and prevent unusual and possibly fraudulent activity (for example, regarding advertising, ad clicks by bots), and ensure systems and processes work properly and securely. It can also be used to correct any problems you, the publisher or the advertiser may encounter in the delivery of content and ads and in your interaction with them.
Deliver and present advertising and content 97 partners can use this special purpose
Certain information (like an IP address or device capabilities) is used to ensure the technical compatibility of the content or advertising, and to facilitate the transmission of the content or ad to your device.
Match and combine data from other data sources 72 partners can use this feature
Information about your activity on this service may be matched and combined with other information relating to you and originating from various sources (for instance your activity on a separate online service, your use of a loyalty card in-store, or your answers to a survey), in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
Link different devices 53 partners can use this feature
In support of the purposes explained in this notice, your device might be considered as likely linked to other devices that belong to you or your household (for instance because you are logged in to the same service on both your phone and your computer, or because you may use the same Internet connection on both devices).
Identify devices based on information transmitted automatically 86 partners can use this feature
Your device might be distinguished from other devices based on information it automatically sends when accessing the Internet (for instance, the IP address of your Internet connection or the type of browser you are using) in support of the purposes exposed in this notice.
Save and communicate privacy choices 68 partners can use this special purpose
The choices you make regarding the purposes and entities listed in this notice are saved and made available to those entities in the form of digital signals (such as a string of characters). This is necessary in order to enable both this service and those entities to respect such choices.
Cookie List
In the swing: Rock's improvement finally nets him a big payday
ROBERT ROCK IS a fine player who has consistently improved in recent years. In winning the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship at the weekend, where the theme tune to the “Rocky” movies was sung by the fans as he held the winning putt, he reached a new level in the game.
Some of us will remember him as the guy who lost out to Shane Lowry in a playoff for the 2009 Irish Open, but since then he has been slowly progressing towards the big win that he has now achieved.
The manner of victory was extremely impressive – it takes serious composure and confidence to hold off Rory McIlroy and Tiger Woods on the final day of a golf tournament.
There was a minor blip on the 18th hole on Sunday when Rock’s tee shot found the hazard and that set up a very interesting situation. A bogey was a highly probable out come from where his drive finished, so if Tiger Woods, his playing partner, had somehow managed to make eagle on the last, a par 5, he would have forced a playoff.
It certainly wasn’t beyond the realms of possibility for that to happen, but Woods’ drive into the left rough meant it was almost impossible for him to find the green in two and thus it took some of the pressure off Rock and made it easier for him to take his medicine and make a six.
“A colder and more objective eye”
The dialogue between player and caddie as Rock pondered whether to play his ball out of the hazard or take the penalty drop was very interesting. Rock clearly wanted to try and play the shot and contend with all the rubble and shrubbery in the hazard. It would have been an incredibly high-risk shot that could have ended in disaster.
His caddie stepped in and changed his thinking. He assertively explained to Rock that a six would almost certainly win him the tournament and that he could easy make that six by taking the penalty drop.
The importance of the caddie in the grand context of a player’s success is often debated, but that was a prime example of the importance a caddie can have and how the caddie can bring a colder and more objective eye to a pressure-cooker situation.
Similarly, Rory McIlroy will rue the two-shot penalty he incurred for brushing away some sand on the grass during the second round. He probably didn’t think it at the time, but those two shots were the difference between him winning and coming second.
Progress
Rock can only play what’s put in front of him, though, and he did so with great poise. With a world ranking of 117 before the tournament started, it probably wasn’t a surprise that he didn’t feature in the pre-tournament debate. He’s also quite an unassuming character, noted predominantly for the fact that he does not wear a cap or sun visor.
But since his second place at the Irish Open in 2009, he has steadily progressed in European golf. His stroke average has come down each year along with his average finishing position and he recorded his first win last year at the Italian Open. That experience undoubtedly stood him in good stead in Abu Dhabi and even at such an early stage in the season, he is now halfway to the €800,000 that he earned in the entire season last year.
There was of course golf being played at Torry Pines over the weekend as well as the Farmers’ Insurance Open was won by Brandt Snedeker. But in as much as Snedeker won it, Kyle Stanley lost it.
At one point in the final round Stanley led by seven shots. Standing on the 18th tee he led by three shots.
What ensued was just heart-breaking. Not only did he make a grave error by hitting it into the water, he committed golf’s cardinal sin – a three putt.
YouTube Credit: pgatour
You can’t but feel for a guy in that situation. Every golfer in the world has been there, but none of us have experienced what it’s like when there’s a six or seven-figure sum on the line. On the positive side, I’m sure it won’t be the last we’ll hear of Kyle Stanley and with his talent, there’s a good chance that next time it’ll be for better reasons.
New Zealand’s Lydia Ko becomes youngest pro tour winner at 14
Clarke fires his caddie six months after British Open win
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship Caddy Shack In the Swing Opinion Robert Rock Rory McIlroy Tiger Woods