The Open chiefs tell Donald Trump his Scottish golf course is STILL blocked from hosting – despite renewed pressure from indicted ex-President following shock PGA and LIV merger
- Organisers of The Open say Turnberry is still blocked from hosting the event
- The course was denied hosting rights because of its owner Donald Trump
- Trump increased his pressure on The Open following Tuesday’s shock merger
The organisers of The Open have reiterated there has been no change in their position on Turnberry staging the tournament despite renewed pressure from Donald Trump’s family to reinstate the famed venue to the rota.
It was reported on Friday that the shock merger between the PGA Tour and Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund could prove favourable to Trump’s cause owing to his connections to the LIV series.
The former US President has lobbied hard for his Turnberry course to host The Open but he has been left out in the cold by the R&A, who run the major and stated in the wake of the 2021 Capitol riots that there would be no return until they are sure the focus would be solely on the tournament.
That position seems eminently more relevant since Trump’s indictment in the early hours of Friday, but Trump’s son Eric has used a column in the Daily Telegraph to request that politics are kept out of the matter.
The Open organisers have reiterated that Turnberry will not host the event at the present time
Course owner Donald Trump had increased the pressure on The Open to change their mind
He wrote: ‘In a family so deeply dedicated to the birthplace of golf, never could we have imagined that politics could potentially jeopardise Turnberry’s ability to host another Open.’
Despite suggestions that Trump will have greater leverage in golf now that the Saudis have bought enormous influence within the sport, the R&A say there has been no shift in their view.
A spokesman told Mail Sport on Friday that they remain ‘unchanged’ and referred to the 2021 comments of their chief executive Martin Slumbers, who said at the time: ‘We have no plans to stage any of our championships at Turnberry and will not do so in the foreseeable future. We will not return until we are convinced that the focus will be on the championship, the players and the course itself and we do not believe that is achievable in the current circumstances.’
Turnberry, which was bought by Trump in 2014, has not staged The Open since 2009 and is regarded as one of the finest courses in the world.
The merger between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf could prove favourable to Trump’s cause
