Captain condemned for negative Open views

Tournament can only be good thing for town and county, say residents

Residents have hit back at comments from Carnoustie Golf Club captain Bill Thompson, who told the BBC the town was “not built for 40,000 or 50,000” and that the modern Open Championship was run “as a corporate machine”.

Mr Thompson highlighted road closures, parking issues and the loss of playing time on the course and added that “for the first time, we’ve actually seen pieces of the golf course torn up for corporate hospitality tents.”

The claims sparked fears that the Open would not return to the town but R&A chief executive Martin Slumbers pointed out that a few weeks’ disruption was of “huge value to Carnoustie as a golf course and as a town for decades to come”.

Residents were dismayed by the claims.

Independent councillor Brian Boyd said: “Having known Bill and supported him along with the Carnoustie Golf Club for many years as local councillor, I find his comments disappointing.

“Many golfing friends have contacted me and are most annoyed at what he has said, one going as strongly as to say he’s lost the plot.

“Rumours are rife that he has written to members apologising but he should also be apologising to our town.

“It’s ridiculous to say the town can’t cope.

“Everything is running extremely smoothly, with the 180,000 visitors arriving and leaving very easily at possibly the most accessible course in Scotland”

Councillor David Cheape said: “Carnoustie is immensely proud to host the 147th Open Championship this year.

“It has taken an extraordinary amount of preparation to deliver one of the world’s most important sporting events at one of the world’s most iconic golf courses.

“Having spoken with Carnoustie residents and, indeed, members of Carnoustie Golf Club, it is tremendously disappointing that the first day of play of the Open has been marred by the negative views that we have seen reported in the national press.

“With the first day of play under way, I think it is important to note that there has not been a single email in my inbox from any Carnoustie residents complaining that the Open is somehow too big for the town, or that the short inconvenience is not worth the tremendous economic benefits that the town, and indeed the county reap from hosting this incredible spectacle.”

Resident Suzi Caesar accused Mr Thompson of being “detached from the 21st Century” and said his comments were “not representative of the town’s views and capabilities.”

She added: “We have demonstrated we are a town that embraces global events and can accommodate them. Golf underpins our local economy and without it we’d be a very different town.”

Mr Thompson declined to comment.

Pictures: Getty/Dougie Nicolson. Above: Justin Rose tees off at the fourth. Right: Dustin Johnson and his caddie share a joke. Below: Satoshi Kodaira, from Japan, blasts out of a bunker at the first.