Every five years, there is a huge charity event sponsored by Dermot Desmond and JP McManus, and a lot of the big name players will turn up for that, so the Irish Open might be a big deal that year. But the PGA TOUR isn’t involved with the Irish Open so it’s not likely to be elevated in status.
The assumption that more great players would turn up if the event was played at, say, Portmarnock, is projection. As Mr Dye used to say, they would play in a parking lot for $5 million. They want a few days in Scotland to get over the jet lag and adjust to the slower greens. But you can only sell a links summer to the guys who are on what’s left of the European Tour.