European Tour events may be played in Florida

THE European Tour will “explore all options” for staging tournaments amid reports that several could be held in the US for the first time.

Following the Masters in April, the Tour is scheduled to host events in Tenerife, Gran Canaria and Portugal, all of which could be affected by coronavirus travel restrictions.

If that is the case, reports have suggested the PGA Tour has proposed the idea of the European Tour staging a number of tournaments in Florida, a benefit of the recently announced “strategic alliance” between the two organisations.

A spokesman for the European Tour said: “As a global Tour, we face challenges due to current international travel restrictions.

“We will therefore continue to explore all options available to enable our members to play a full schedule.”

In a memo to players published by Golf Digest, European Tour chief executive Keith Pelley confirmed the option of playing in the US was being considered, adding: “As you can imagine, our preference is to stick to our current schedule.

“That remains our plan, but ever-changing government rules and regulations on travel might transpire against us so we have to proactively look at all options.”

With this week’s Oman Open postponed due to the ongoing threat of Covid-19, the European Tour is currently in its fourth week without staging a regular event.

However, action is due to get back under way with the Qatar Masters next week followed by a double-header in Kenya.