OPEN GETS SHUT DOWN
KENT WILL NOW STAGE CHAMPIONSHIP IN 2021
By Neil Squires
THE OPEN has been cancelled because of the coronavirus outbreak and the remaining three Majors shoehorned into a revamped schedule which will now see the Masters played in November.
The R&A yesterday confirmed golf’s oldest Major – set for Royal St George’s in July – had been scrapped.
It is the first time since the Second World War that it will not be played.
The organisers explored the option of a September Open but reluctantly opted against it on safety grounds. Instead, they set a new date on the Kent coast for July 15-18 next year in the slot originally awarded to St Andrews.
The Home of Golf will now host what will be the 150th Open in 2022.
R&A chief executive Martin Slumbers said: “We care deeply about this historic championship and made this decision with a heavy heart.
“We appreciate that this will be disappointing for a great many people around the world but this pandemic is severely affecting the UK and we have to act responsibly. It is the right thing to do.
“I can assure everyone that we have explored every option for playing The Open this year but it is not going to be possible.”
It means Irishman Shane Lowry, who won the Claret Jug at Royal Portrush last year, will not have the chance to defend his title in 2020.
“Like everybody else I’m obviously very sad and disappointed that the R&A have had to cancel this year’s Open,” said Lowry.
“At the end of the day, people’s health and safety come way before any golf tournament and I’m sure the R&A have thought long and hard about this.
“You can trust me when I say the Claret Jug is going to be in safe hands for another year.”
Tommy Fleetwood, the runner-up in 2019, also expressed his sadness.
“It’s tough news – it’s The Open, and for a lot of people their best event of the year, and for us the main part of the summer,” said Fleetwood.
“It must have been an unbelievably tough decision to make.”
While the Ryder Cup at Whistling Straits will retain its original September 25-27 schedule, the other big events that survive will be playing Major musical chairs. The run now starts with the USPGA Championship at Harding Park from August 6-9.
That tournament will be followed by the US Open at Winged Foot from September 17-20.
The Masters – the traditional Major season-starter at Augusta National – is last up from November 12-15.
It will be the first time the tournament has been played in the autumn.
“A lot has happened in the last couple of months that haven’t happened in our generation’s lifetime,” said 2016 Masters champion Danny Willett.
“I was very surprised that The Open was cancelled, but if you have 200,000 people at a golf tournament it is impossible to keep to all the guidelines.
“In the grand scheme of things, sport is a very minor thing.
“We just have to go with the flow and make sure that everyone is safe. That’s everyone’s top priority.”