Fans flock to Royal Portrush

PORTRUSH, Northern Ireland — Royal & Ancient chief Martin Slumbers is fond of saying that a big-time sport needs a big-time crowd. That won't be an issue for the British Open's return to Royal Portrush for the first time since 1951.

Slumbers said Wednesday that a record 61,000 people have attended the practice rounds of the British Open this week, breaking the previous mark of 52,000 in 2006 when the Open returned to Hoylake after a 38-year absence.

Royal Portrush marked the first time in Open history that all tickets had to be sold in advance for competition days, meaning there were no walk-up sales. Demand was so high that an additional allotment was released in April, and the “all tickets” policy was extended to Tuesday and Wednesday practice rounds.

Add it up and the R&A says 237,500 people will have come through the gates at Royal Portrush, a record for all Opens except for St. Andrews.

“On another sign of the growth of this championship, our initial sales at Royal St. George's for next year have been even faster than they were this time last year for Royal Portrush,” Slumbers said.

Royal Birkdale in the populous northwest of England attracted 235,000 fans two years ago when Jordan Spieth won. Slumbers also said 30,000 fans are under 25, including 21,000 fans under 16 who can attend for free with an adult who has a ticket.

Slumbers said attendance often depends on the location of the links. He said the smallest crowd typically is Turnberry, which has limited access with roads on the southwestern coast of Scotland.

THE 700 CLUB

Miguel Angel Jimenez joins an exclusive club when he tees off Thursday in the British Open. Jimenez, eligible from winning the Senior British Open last year, will be only the second player in European Tour history to play 700 events.

The other was Sam Torrance.

The 55-year-old Spaniard, who turned pro in 1982, earned a European Tour card in 1988. A 21-time winner, Jimenez already holds the record as the oldest winner on the European Tour. He was 50 when he won the Spanish Open.

“This is a very proud moment for myself and my family, and to reach the milestone of 700 events on the European Tour at the Open Championship makes it even more enjoyable,” Jimenez said. “Of course, I am now only six tournaments away from tying, and seven away from beating, the record held by my great friend Sam Torrance. I don't know exactly when that will happen, but the record is definitely in my sights.”

Jimenez plays the opening two rounds with 60-year-old Tom Lehman and 20-yearold Joaquin Niemann.

EYE ON TOYKO

Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland chose not to play in the Olympics when golf returned to the program in 2016 at Rio de Janeiro. He cited concerns over the Zika virus but later told the Sunday Independent in Ireland that he resented how the Olympics forced him to decide whether to play for Ireland or the United Kingdom, and that it reached a point that it “wasn't worth the hassle.”

Now he reaffirmed that he wants a chance to play in Tokyo next year.

“I think I let other people's opinions of me weigh on that decision,” McIlroy said. “And at the end of the day, it's my decision. I can't please everyone. The only people that really care about who I play for, who I represent, don't mean anything to me. I don't care about them. So at the end of the day, with where golf is, with it being part of the Olympic movement, I think if I had to look back on my career and not played in one, I probably would have regretted it.

“So that was part of the reason I wanted to go,” he said. “It's a wonderful experience. I've never done anything like that before.”