The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
R&A aim to get events played by September
GOLF: Amateur and Women’s Amateur now being planned for the same week
The R&A will attempt to play their major amateur championships, postponed due to the coronavirus lockdown, in August and September, with the Amateur and Women’s Amateur in the same week.
Most of the championships are usually played in May and June but were postponed almost immediately the lockdown came into force.
The R&A went on this month to cancel outright the Open Championship at Royal St George’s in Kent, set for July, and also postponed the Curtis Cup event between amateur women’s teams from GB and Ireland and the USA until 2021.
The intention remains to play most of their other amateur events, although the R&A stress that all the rescheduled dates are dependent on the developing situation with the Covid-19 pandemic and guidance from government, health authorities and their own health advisers.
The governing body for amateur golf earlier this week released new guidelines for a return to playing golf at club level in the next few weeks which will involve strict social distancing measures.
The Amateur is now set for August 25-30 at the original venues, Royal Birkdale and West Lancashire Golf Clubs, while the Women’s Amateur is also to be played at the original host at Kilmarnock (Barassie) Golf Club from August 25-29.
Both events usually have big fields of 200-300 players drawn from all over the globe, but it is likely that with international travel still restricted there will be fewer players taking part.
Three events are still on their scheduled dates – the Girls’ Amateur at Southport and Ainsdale on August 11-15, the Boys’ Amateur at Moortown and Alwoodley on August 11-16, and the Senior Amateur Championship at Ashridge on August 19-21.
The R&A’S Senior Amateur will move from July to September 23-25 at Royal Cinque Ports in Kent.
The R&A’S Junior Open, played in the week before the Open Championship, has been cancelled, as have five other scheduled amateur events the governing body runs or co-hosts.
The St Andrews Trophy, the Junior Vagliano Trophy and the Jacques Leglise Trophy matches between GB&I and the Continent of Europe have all been cancelled, as have the Boys’, Girls’ and
Women’s Home Internationals, and the men’s and women’s Senior Home Internationals.
Meanwhile LPGA Tour commissioner Mike Whan says the coronavirus pandemic will have a “staggering” impact on the organisation’s finances.
A new-look LPGA schedule was unveiled on Wednesday, with the tour now hoping to resume with the Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational in Michigan on July 15.
The Evian Championship in France – one of five majors in the women’s game – remains scheduled for August 6-9 despite French prime minister Edouard Philippe recently announcing an extension to the country’s ban on sporting events until September.
The second major of the year, the AIG Women’s British Open at Troon, also remains on the rejigged calendar from August 20-23, but Whan says plans are in place for all three European events on the schedule to be played without fans if necessary.
“It’s a staggering financial impact year,” he said. “It doesn’t take us to our knees. It doesn’t put us on a death watch.
“We’ve saved more money in the last 10 years than in the 60 years before, but it’s possible in 2020 we could eat up most of the savings we saved in the last 10 years in 10 months.”