WHY CAN’T THE FANS RETURN?
Willett unhappy that British Masters will be another ghost-town event
The pride felt by Danny Willett at being the host for the Betfred British Masters beginning at the Belfry tomorrow is tempered by frustration at the fact it will be another fan-free zone.
In the week when more than 20,000 spectators will attend the FA Cup final at Wembley, it’s not hard to see why golf feels seriously aggrieved at being excluded from the Government’s pilot scheme.
You allow people indoors at the Crucible for the snooker, but don’t permit the european Tour to mark their return to the UK with 2,000 spectators roaming over hundreds of acres in Sutton Coldfield?
‘It is a great shame,’ says the 2016 Masters champion, choosing his words carefully. ‘We were convinced we would be one of the pilot events, the first golf tournament to have a decent number of fans since the first Covid lockdown.
‘We were only asking for a relatively small number as well, certainly in comparison to the FA Cup final. how could you get a safer environment, where the fans would be getting plenty of exercise as well? It looked such a good fit.’
The decision proved a double whammy for Willett, with the field seriously weakened by the absence of the strong english contingent based in America.
‘You can hardly blame the guys for not coming back when it would have meant going straight into the bubble and seeing no family,’ says the 33-year- old Yorkshireman. ‘If we’d have been allowed a bit of leeway, with their friends and relatives able to watch, I think a few would have come back over to play.’
Willett would have looked into staging the tournament at a course closer to his home in Rotherham if it had been known that the wide- open spaces at the Belfry would not be utilised. ‘We could have considered smaller venues that don’t get to host big events but, having said that, the Belfry has it all and it’s a pleasure to go to such an iconic venue,’ he says.
‘I remember going there for the first time for the 2002 Ryder Cup to watch the practice rounds and sitting behind the 10th tee watching the guys. I couldn’t get over how many people attended a Ryder Cup. It was insanely busy.’
It should have been moderately busy this week with Willett getting the occasion he deserved, as one of only two englishmen to win a major in the last 25 years.
Instead it will be another ghost-town event, albeit one that marks a ramping-up of the Ryder Cup qualification process, with double points on offer.
Willett still has hopes of making that team in September. ‘I’m playing a lot better than my scores indicate but no stellar weeks so far,’ he says.
‘It’s just been one of those years where I’ve missed halfway cuts by one, got on the wrong side of draws weather-wise, and I had Covid and missed a few big events. I’m happy with my game, though. I wouldn’t be surprised if I go on a nice little run this summer.’
It would be some consolation if that nice little run began this week.