Matt Kuchar and Gary Woodland win World Cup for USA at Mission Hills

USA won the golf World Cup after a final round of 67 was enough for Matt Kuchar and Gary Woodland to take the title by two shots – from Germany and England.

Kuchar and Woodland, starting the foursomes two behind the overnight leaders Ireland, had six birdies and a bogey at the Mission Hills course on Hainan Island to finish 24-under par and take the trophy to the US for a 24th time.

England enjoyed a strong finish as Ian Poulter and Justin Rose returned a 63 that featured an eagle, eight birdies and a bogey, to end 22-under, tied for second with Germany, who shot a 69.

The Irish pair, Rory McIlroy and Graeme McDowell, could only produce an even-par 72 as they missed out on day four for the second consecutive time, after finishing runners-up to Italy in 2009. Their score of 21-under left them in a tie for fourth with Scotland, Holland and Australia.

After ending the USA's 11-year wait for the title following Tiger Woods and David Duval's victory in 2000, Kuchar said: "When I got selected to represent the United States I also got to choose my partner, and I knew it was going to be a great honour to come here to play for the United States. I thought that if I picked the right partner I'd have a real shot at winning the title.

"And I chose Gary Woodland, thinking that he would team up well with me, we would have the best shot of winning this title, and he played fantastic this week.

"I have no doubt that he was the best player in the field and for me it was a lot of riding his coat-tails, trying to keep encouraging him to keep it going, because he played some great golf.

"And I'm fortunate and really, really excited that I picked him."

Woodland added: "We played phenomenal, especially today. It's a tough format, and both of us picked each other up when the other one got in trouble. We got off to a hot start early, played solid on the back and really we were not in trouble in the back [nine] at all. It was a good day."

Birdies at the 1st and 2nd set the Americans on their way as they assumed the lead and after picking up further shots at the 6th and 7th, Kuchar and Woodland had established a strong position by the turn.

Ireland, by contrast, began poorly with a bogey at the 1st and although McIlroy and McDowell recovered with two birdies, another dropped shot at the 6th again set them back. However, a birdie at the 10th allied with a bogey at the 11th for the Americans saw the two tied at the top.

That was as good as it got for Ireland, though, as Kuchar and Woodland went on to sink birdies at the 12th and 13th that proved enough for them to triumph.

McDowell and McIlroy, on the other hand, faded as bogeys at the 12th and 15th followed and a birdie at the 16th was only good enough for them to finish tied for fourth. "We just didn't have it out there today," said McDowell. "We didn't make anything.

"We had two of probably the best breaks we had all year on the two par fives and we made six off both of them. That was really just the story of the day.

"We knew what we had to do. Our target was to go and shoot four-under par and that's exactly what we needed to do. We just couldn't get it done."

Poulter and Rose produced the round of the day as they followed up four birdies on the front nine with four more coming back, alongside an eagle and a bogey, but just fell short of a remarkable comeback and had to settle for second alongside Germany at 22-under.

"I felt like today was a bit about coming out and playing for pride," said Rose. "You always have pride when you are playing for your country but it was about restoring individual pride for ourselves, really.

"Both fourball days were uncharacteristic for us and today was fun. We gelled and finally got the right rhythm and right intensity and I think when we do get that, we match up really, really well."

Poulter added: "Saturday was disappointing to shoot four-under par in fourball and to go and shoot nine-under par in foursomes is crazy."

Martin Kaymer and Alex Cejka shot a 61 on Saturday but only picked up three birdies in their closing 69 to share second place.

Scotland's Martin Laird and Stephen Gallacher signed for a 66 containing eight birdies and two bogeys as they ended in a four-way tie for fourth on 21-under, while Rhys Davies and Jamie Donaldson of Wales picked up five birdies to finish fifth, four shots behind the United States.

Read more »

Will Thomas Cook ad offer take holidaymakers to a happy place?

Thomas Cook has come up with a truly valiant wheeze to make a virtue of its recent solvency wobble. A new promotional campaign from the debt-laden tour operator seeks to put a positive gloss on the borrowing crisis, which last week briefly cast doubt over whether the 170-year-old company would survive long enough to take some 5 million or so UK holidaymakers on summer breaks next year.

"We've been delivering great value for 170 years – 2012 will be no different," reads a new poster in all its high street shop windows. "Guaranteed: £170 off any of our summer 2012 holidays." That's 170 years … £170 off – Geddit?

It is not unusual for Thomas Cook, as with its rivals, to tempt customers into early bookings with bold promotional claims this time of year. But there is no doubt – in theme at least – that this latest promotional campaign is a little unorthodox. (Don't get too excited, however: the small print says the offer applies only if there is a minimum spend of £1,200 per booking)

Goodness knows Thomas Cook had to come up with something. Bookings were said to be down 30% in the UK last week, and insurance group Northern & Western had briefly withdrawn cover on Thomas Cook products. Elsewhere, rival group Tui was taking out whole page ads in newspapers gleefully declaring: "Another holiday company may be experiencing turbulence, but we're in really great shape."

It is perhaps a blessing that Thomas Cook does not trade under its corporate name outside of the UK, so bookings in other countries have not been shaken as badly. David Cameron may have described it last week as "an important and iconic British brand", but in truth the UK only generates about 10% of profits for the firm.

What a mess. Shareholders are unhappy, lenders are unhappy and staff are unhappy. Let's hope incoming chairman Frank Meysman, who takes over from the curiously absent Michael Beckett on Thursday, can quickly appoint a new chief executive to rebuild support among all stakeholders.

Read more »

MPs push UK bank bosses to boost lending to small firms

'How to get banks lending to small businesses?' was the question dominating the Treasury select committee's grilling of bank bosses on Wednesday and is also on the mind of the chancellor, who used his conference speech last month to promise a new set of measures to get money flowing. He used the phrase "credit easing" (CE) and described it as "another form of monetary easing".

The expectation is that George Osborne will use next week's autumn statement to provide a bit more clarity about what this CE might look like – but it's also thought that a lot of work is still under way about how to get this scheme going.

One idea put forward was for the banks to put all their small business lending into a separate subsidiary, or special purpose vehicle (SPV), that could have some sort of guarantee from the government – AAA-rated, of course. That vehicle would then be able to borrow money more easily on the markets.

The aim would be to reduce the cost of borrowing for banks, which, theoretically, should in turn reduce the cost of loans to small businesses, which argue that they are being charged more to borrow than bigger businesses.

The latest Bank of England survey of agents – its eyes and ears up and down the country – reports that credit terms for small businesses are indeed tightening.

But the idea of using an SPV-style arrangement now seems to be receding. Other ideas on the table include setting up a separate fund, similar to the European Investment Bank, which could help direct lending to firms.

No decision has yet been taken, but Osborne will not want the Treasury to end up guaranteeing non-performing loans which then hinder his deficit reduction programme.

Read more »

European Stars flock to Berlin for European Film Awards

European Stars flock to Berlin for European Film Awards

The 24th European Film Awards returned to Berlin on 3 December. An impressive line-up of European filmmakers joined by German actresses and actors as well as other colleagues presented the individual awards.

The 1,000 guests – winners, nominees and EFA Members – gathered at the Tempodrom where German comedy star Anke Engelke lead through the evening as the show’s host. Among the guests this year: the German State Minister for Culture and the Media Bernd Neumann, the Austrian Minister for Education, Arts and Culture Claudia Schmied, EFA President Wim Wenders and the recipients of the honorary awards Stephen Frears and Mads Mikkelsen.

Read more »

European Commission will propose Creative Europe and Erasmus for All programmes on the 23 November

On Thursday 23 November, the European Commission will announce its detailed proposal for 'Creative Europe', the new programme for the cultural and creative sector and 'Erasmus for All', the new programme for education, training, youth and sport.

Both programmes are part of the Commission's proposal for a multi-annual budget for 2014-2020.

The 'Creative Europe' programme will bring the current Culture, MEDIA 2007 and MEDIA Mundus programmes together under a common framework which will support the cultural and creative sectors with a budget of €1.8 billion (+37%). The focus will be on helping cultural and audiovisual professionals to safeguard and promote cultural and linguistic diversity by making to make the most of the Single Market and to reaching new audiences in Europe and beyond, as well as promoting cultural diversity and contributing to the Europe 2020 objectives for jobs and sustainable growth.

The new programme for education, training and youth would allocate €19.5 billion (+ 70%) over seven years; the increase underlines the priority given to investing in knowledge and skills to support job creation and growth in Europe. The programme would ensure that more people benefit from EU grants to study or train abroad; it would also promote cooperation between governments, educational institutions, businesses and other partners, to support the policy reforms needed to modernise education systems and promote innovation, entrepreneurship and employability.

Read more »

Facebook float could value company at $100bn

Social network will cross the critical 500 shareholder mark by end of 2011, which will force it to file financial data with SEC even if it does not choose to raise $10bn in IPO

Facebook, the world's largest social network, is preparing for a public stock offering next spring which could raise up to $10bn, according to sources.

The Wall Street Journal reported on Monday night that the company is hoping that the IPO, which has been long rumoured, would value the company at around $100bn.

Facebook's chief financial officer, David Ebersman, had discussed a public float with Silicon Valley bankers, but founder and chief executive Mark Zuckerberg had not decided on any terms and his plans could change, the Journal said.

The social network, which now claims more than 800 million members worldwide after seven years of explosive growth, has not selected bankers to manage what would be a very closely watched IPO.

But it had drafted an internal prospectus and was ready at any moment to go for a flotation, the Journal said, citing "people familiar with the matter" – a standard form of words for insiders at the company.

At $100bn valuation, the company started by Zuckerberg in a Harvard dorm room would have double the valuation of Hewlett-Packard.

A formal S-1 filing could come before the end of the year, though nothing was decided, the Journal added.

A Facebook representative declined to comment.

One matter which could force Facebook's hand is the number of people – especially employees – who have received stock options as an incentive for working at the startup. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) says that "a company must file financial and other information with the SEC 120 days after the close of the year in which the company reaches $10m in assets and/or 500 shareholders, including people with stock options".

Google was forced to file for an IPO in 2004 after it passed the 500 shareholder figure. It is unclear how many of Facebook's 3,000 staff are shareholders, but the company said in January that it will exceed 500 shareholders this year, and that in accordance with SEC regulations, it will file public financial reports no later than 30 April 2012. That will be obligatory even if it does not file for an IPO.

Facebook does not disclose its financial results, but a source told Reuters earlier this year that the company's revenue in the first six months of 2011 doubled year-on-year to $1.6bn (£1bn).

If it does debut in 2012, Facebook's IPO would dwarf that of any other dotcom waiting to go public.

Farmville creator Zynga has filed for an IPO of up to $1bn. In November, the daily deals service Groupon debuted with much fanfare – only to plunge below its IPO price within weeks. It is now one of the worst-performing technology flotations ever.

LinkedIn and Pandora, which also floated this year, are now also trading significantly below the levels their stocks reached during their public debuts.

Facebook has become one of the world's most popular online destinations, challenging established companies such as Google and Yahoo for consumers' time and for advertising dollars.

Eric Feng, a former partner at venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield and Byers who now runs social-networking site Erly.com, said that the cash Facebook will get in an IPO would allow it to make more acquisitions and refine or work on new projects, such as a rumoured Facebook phone or a netbook.

Having tradeable stock will also allow Facebook to attract more engineering talent who might have been more attracted to the company in earlier days when it was growing faster but now perhaps might be attracted to other companies. "It'll be a powerful bullet for them," Feng said.

Investors have been increasingly eager to buy shares of Facebook and other fast-growing but privately-held internet social networking companies on special, secondary-market exchanges.

Read more »

Bhanwari Devi case: Key accused tells CBI missing nurse is dead

NEW DELHI: One of the main accused in the Bhanwari Devi case has told the CBI that the auxiliary nurse who is at the centre a sleazy scam in Rajasthan is dead.

Shahabuddin, one of the main accused in the crime that has jolted Rajasthan politics, told his CBI handlers that the attractive nurse who was close to sacked Rajasthan minister Mahipal Maderna was killed soon after her abduction.

However, agency sources said they had not found any evidence to substantiate the claim and were yet to trace Bhanwari's body.

Sources claimed the investigations were going in the right direction and "there will be a major arrest" in the next few days. "There will be an important arrest in the case in the coming days," a top CBI official said. Agency sources said they were questioning all the accused persons to find out where Bhanwari's body was dumped after her killing. CBI has in past few days questioned Mahipal Maderna, Malkhan Singh and other leaders in Rajasthan and also collected evidence in connection with Bhanwari's mysterious disappearance on September 1. The agency also sent Maderna's medical report to AIIMS for doctors to give an opinion on it.

The agency on Thursday filed its second status report in a Rajasthan court, claiming it had made significant progress in the case in which Maderna is a key suspect. CBI, which appeared before the bench of Govind Mathur and N K Jain (II) to submit the status report, requested the court for a private hearing in the matter.

During hearing on the habeas corpus petition filed by Bhanwari's husband in the chamber, CBI submitted the status report in a sealed envelope. The court put the matter for hearing on December 15. CBI had filed the first status report on November 11.

During his questioning, Maderna claimed innocence but admitted that he had met Bhanwari several times. The agency also recovered a camcorder and a computer from Jodhpur from which some video footage and photographs were deleted. CBI officials suspect the camera and computer might have been used to film and store controversial footage which could hold vital clues about the reasons behind Bhanwari's disappearance.

Read more »

Egypt army picks new PM, protesters plan mass rally on Friday

CAIRO: Egyptian former prime minister Kamal Ganzouri accepted a request from the ruling generals to form a new government, state media reported, but protesters brushed away their choice and vowed to hold another mass rally on Friday to demand the army quit power.

Ganzouri confirmed he had agreed in principle to lead a national salvation government after meeting with the head of the ruling military council, Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi, the website of state newspaper Al Ahram reported, citing sources close to Ganzouri.

In an attempt to defuse protests by thousands of Egyptians frustrated by nine months of military rule, the army council promised parliamentary elections would start on time next week. It earlier said it would speed up the timetable for a handover from military to civilian presidential rule.

Violent clashes with police in and around Cairo's Tahrir Square since Saturday have killed dozens, in scenes reminiscent of the popular uprising that toppled Hosni Mubarak in February.

"The people demand the execution of the marshal," crowds chanted, referring to army chief Tantawi who was Mubarak's defence minister for 20 years.

Ganzouri headed a cabinet from 1996 to 1999 that introduced some economic liberalisation measures. Many Egyptians viewed him as an official who was not tainted by corruption, but his record serving under Mubarak could stir opposition from those demanding a clean break with the past.

As talk of a Ganzouri appointment filtered through the crowds packed into Tahrir Square, reactions were mixed. Some said his age made him a bad choice. Ganzouri is in his late 70s.

"Ganzouri is no good for this transitional period, which needs youth leaders, not grandparents," said student Maha Abdullah.

Metwali Atta, a 55-year-old taxi driver who was camped out in Tahrir, disagreed: "I would like to see Ganzouri as prime minister. The man has a strong character, unlike (outgoing prime minister) Essam Sharaf who was easily bossed around by the military council."

In a communique, protesters called a million-man march on "the Friday of the last chance" to back demands for an immediate transfer to civilian rule via a national salvation government.

The Egyptian Independent Trade Union Federation called for a workers' march to Tahrir. Another labour rights group called for a general strike to back the protests. Labour unions played an important role in the movement that toppled Mubarak.

The heads of two political parties who took part in a meeting with the military council on Tuesday said they now regretted attending and apologised to the protesters in Tahrir.

The demonstrations appear to have polarised Egyptians, many of whom worry unrest will prolong economic stagnation.

Supporters of the army council had said they would hold a rally to back the military. In a statement on its Facebook page, the army council said it was "appealing to them to cancel the demonstration", saying it wanted to avoid divisions.

ECONOMY REELS:

In fresh blows to confidence, the Egyptian pound weakened to more than six to the dollar for the first time since January 2005, and Standard & Poor's cut Egypt's credit rating.

The agency cut Egypt's long-term, foreign and local-currency sovereign credit ratings to B+ from BB-, saying a "weak political and economic profile" had worsened further.

The Central Bank raised interest rates unexpectedly in what bankers was an attempt to shore up the pound.

Egypt's ruling army council said it was doing all it could to prevent more violence. In a statement, it apologised, offered condolences and compensation to families of the dead, and promised a swift investigation into who was behind the unrest.

A ruling council member, General Mamdouh Shaheen, told a news conference the parliamentary vote, whose first stage is due to begin on Monday, would go ahead on time. "We will not delay elections. This is the final word," he said.

Another council member, Major-General Mokhtar al-Mullah, took a swipe at the demonstrators. "If we look at those in Tahrir, regardless of their number, they do not represent the Egyptian people, but we must respect their opinion," he said.

Mullah said the army hoped to form a new government before Monday to replace Prime Minister Essam Sharaf's cabinet, which resigned during this week's violence without giving a reason.

Demonstrators in Tahrir said the truce had taken hold from midnight. Cranes hauled concrete barriers, later reinforced with barbed wire, across streets leading to the nearby Interior Ministry, flashpoint for much of the recent violence.

HUMAN CHAINS

Protesters linked arms in human chains to prevent further clashes with security forces guarding the Interior Ministry.

"We have created a space separating us from the police. We are standing here to make sure no one violates it," said Mahmoud Adly, 42, part of a human cordon four people deep.

The protests in Cairo and elsewhere pose the gravest challenge to Egypt's army rulers since they took over from Mubarak, overthrown on Feb. 11 after an 18-day uprising.

The United States and European nations, alarmed at the violence of the past few days, have urged Egypt to proceed with what has been billed as its first free vote in decades.

The army and the Muslim Brotherhood, which expects to do well in the election, say it must go ahead, but many protesters do not trust the military to oversee a clean vote. Some scorn the Brotherhood for its focus on gaining seats in parliament.

In Tahrir, two groups were chanting against other, one saying, "Muslim Brotherhood, we don't want you in the square," and another responding in a unity call, "One hand, one hand."

The military council originally promised to return to barracks within six months of the fall of Mubarak, but then set a timetable for elections and drawing up a new constitution that would have left it in power until late next year or early 2013.

Tantawi pledged this week to hold a presidential vote in June that could pave the way for a transfer to civilian rule, but the demonstrators, angered by army attempts to shield itself legally from future civilian control, are unconvinced.

"The protesters of Tahrir Square announce their absolute rejection of ... Tantawi's speech, and stress they have been humiliated that the regime moved to offer solution only after martyrs fell," the protesters' communique said.

Before the truce, protesters had fought running battles with security forces around the interior ministry. The bloody chaos there contrasted with normal life in streets nearby.

Read more »

Sachin Tendulkar misses 100th international century

MUMBAI: Millions of Sachin Tendulkar fans were left disappointed as the iconic batsman again came very close to his historic 100th international century only to miss it by six runs in the third Test against the West Indies at the Wankhede stadium on Friday.

There was a deathly silence at Tendulkar's home ground as pacer Ravi Rampaul turned the "villain" by dismissing their favourite hero.

Interestingly, West Indies captain Darren Sammy's statement on Thursday evening that he intended to "break a few Indian hearts" turned out to be prophetic as he took a sharp catch at the second slip off Rampaul delivery that bounced a trifle more with Tendulkar trying to play a square drive.

The disappointment was writ large on his face as he slowly trudged back to the pavilion with the crowd stunned into silence.

Starting on his overnight score of 67, the legendary batsman was in a mood to get the coveted ton as quickly as possible.

The second new ball taken by rival skipper Sammy didn't pose any problems as Tendulkar was sweetly timing the ball. In fact he reached the 90s hitting a six off Fidel Edwards employing the upper cut over third man.

He also ran a few quick singles with his partner Virat Kohli. His 153-ball knock contained eight boundaries and a couple of sixes hit in an identical manner off Edwards.

Tendulkar's last international century came on March 12 during a World Cup group league match against South Africa at Nagpur. It's been more than eight months that the entire nation has been waiting with bated breath for the elusive century.

Tendulkar scored most of his initial runs on Friday with the flick shot as the West Indian pacers bowled at his pads.

He flicked Rampaul for a two and a four off his legs but then saw overnight partner VVS Laxman perish to the first ball the latter faced, caught at gully trying to drive.

But Virat Kohli, the new batsman in his fourth Test, was looking very confident while Tendulkar at the other end played a glorious straight-drive off Rampaul which streaked to the boundary line even before the bowler could stop in his run up.

Then came the over from Edwards that proved extremely fruitful as Tendulkar took 14 runs that included a classic front-footed off drive and the cut over third man for a six when the bowler pitched short and wide.

That took the right-hander to 93, a single off the bowler in Edwards' next over getting him to one shot short of the landmark century of tons.

Kohli hit a four off Rampaul and then Tendulkar got the strike in the same over which proved to be his last, as he reached for the ball to drive and ended up giving a catch to the slip cordon.

Read more »