R&A solve the Portrush problem.

[Tony_Muldoon]

Over 130000 spectators attended the Irish Open held at Portrush in 2012 and on no day were the gates actually closed.   The R&A declared there would be problems with it being able to cope with the no's an Open Championship would bring.


Cut to 2013 The Open at Muirfield drew only 142000 spectators. It is widely believed this is because of recent massive price hikes.


http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/golf/theopen/10196203/Open-2013-RandA-avoids-a-sticky-moment-over-low-turnout.html

Turnberry 2009 drew 123000


Portrush, with a little of the R&A's money can cope with those sort of no's.  So what's the excuse now?


(Sorry for yet another bash at the R&A but....no on second thoughts I'm not sorry at all)

[Mark Chaplin]

Isn't the Open played in marching season? That annual excuse for a nightly riot because you cannot parade down certain streets. Does the R&A need the headache? If the Open is about commercial success then Sandwich needs two a decade.

[Padraig Dooley]

Isn't the Open played in marching season? That annual excuse for a nightly riot because you cannot parade down certain streets. Does the R&A need the headache? If the Open is about commercial success then Sandwich needs two a decade.

The troubles in marching season are confined to Belfast, so if the Open was on in Belfast there might be an issue but Portrush is far enough away not to have any problems.

It's not really a good reason to keep the Open away.

[Tom_Doak]

Isn't the Open played in marching season? That annual excuse for a nightly riot because you cannot parade down certain streets. Does the R&A need the headache? If the Open is about commercial success then Sandwich needs two a decade.

The troubles in marching season are confined to Belfast, so if the Open was on in Belfast there might be an issue but Portrush is far enough away not to have any problems.

It's not really a good reason to keep the Open away.

Wouldn't half or more of the spectators (and all of the players) be coming from Belfast or through Belfast?  And wouldn't the Open provide loads of news coverage for escalated protests?

[Doug Siebert]

Are they unwilling to consider closing the gate after enough people have come through, until some people leave?  Or is that against the ethos of how the R&A wants to run the Open?  I'm sure people would love it if the Masters opened their gates to whoever is willing to pay the entrance fee, but they probably couldn't handle a third of the crowd that would show up on sunny Sunday with Tiger in contention.

[Wayne_Kozun]

Why not play the Open in the Republic of Ireland?  Why does it have to take place in the UK as it is not the British Open (which would also rule out Northern Ireland) but it is the Open Championship and the R&A has Dominion over the game everywhere except the US and Mexico.

[Tim_Weiman]

Wayne,

It probably won't happen again, but perhaps the most enjoyable golf tournament ever was the 2000 Irish Open at Ballybunion. Memorable for many reasons, but I will certainly never forget the Saturday night parade with the ban playing the Rolling Stones' "Sympathy for the Devil". The party in town was still wall to wall at 3-4 in the morning.

[Tony_Muldoon]

Isn't the Open played in marching season? That annual excuse for a nightly riot because you cannot parade down certain streets. Does the R&A need the headache? If the Open is about commercial success then Sandwich needs two a decade.

The troubles in marching season are confined to Belfast, so if the Open was on in Belfast there might be an issue but Portrush is far enough away not to have any problems.

It's not really a good reason to keep the Open away.

Wouldn't half or more of the spectators (and all of the players) be coming from Belfast or through Belfast?  And wouldn't the Open provide loads of news coverage for escalated protests?

The International Airport is well to the west of the City and roads to Portrush are due North from there.


AT Troon the Event will start on the 21st July, nine Days after the traditional start of the Unionist marching season.   They will have finished by then but Mark is right the events this year are not what you'd want in the weeks before a major international event.  However if that is the resoan for not taking it to  Portrush, then shurely we should be told?

[Mark Chaplin]

Tony why does the R&A need to tell us anything? I would think the R&A would want 5 years of peace in Ulster before they consider taking the Open there.

Wayne I'm sure the USGA will take the lead and play the US Open in Mexico.

A few years back we were in Bali and a serious earthquake happened on the Indonesian main island some 2000 miles away. Lots of American kids were getting messages from their parents to leave the country. It would be like New York flooding and telling your kids in LA to move to high ground. Don't be fooled that people realise the problems are 20 miles from where they are landing.

[Matthew Hunt]

As a proud resident of NI, we should realise that the UN classes  Belfast is the safest major city in Europe, and the 2nd safest in the world after Tokyo. Portrush is even safer agian and Newcastle, Co. Down is (usually) even safer. Despite our low crime rate, a group of drunken thugs realise they can get themselves on the international news by putting a ridiculous political 'spin' on anti-social behavior. The same kind of recreational violence is ALOT worse in most large English, Scottish and Southern Ireland, yet the media call it out for what it is, people acting to economic suffering in a idiotic way, then move on.

Tom, the small junction where there is rioting is miles away from where any visitor (or local ) would want to go, unless you wanted to visit the Zoo, which may be why certian politicians feel so at home in the area! 

Mark, we have been more peaceful than all parts of the UK and Ireland for 5 years yet.  As for 'Ulster' i think Donegal, Cavan and Monaghan are great spots, yet they are in the South so bringing the open there is a whole different story!

[Martin Toal]

A Portrush Open would be a great attraction for many golfers from, as we used to call it, the Free State. The craic would be mighty.

[Niall C]

Tony

The first Open I went to, or was taken to, was at Carnoustie in 1975. Since then I've managed to attendat least for one day every Open in Scotland bar one. This year however I finally decided that btween the travel and the cost of the ticket, that c.£110 was too much, and thats before you start looking at buying some lunch/refrshments/souveniers when you're there.

I suspect that the fact it was Muirfield, which is the hardest to get to for me, played a part in deciding not to go but there's no doubt the cost was the major factor. If I'm typical of many and less folk go to the Open, and the R&A are happy with that, then it may well make other venues doable. Whether that would overcome other obstacles remains to be seen.

Niall

[Mark Chaplin]

Matthew we have had this discussion before but the PSNI's "Security Situation Statistics" whilst showing a welcome decrease over the past year are still unacceptable in modern society. In the year to 30th June 2013 there were 46 bombing incidents and 57 shooting incidents, 29 of these were paramilitary style shootings of victims. Of course the vast majority of residents are never affected by the security situation.

Rather than highlighting incidents they are actually suppressed in the media on the mainland.

[Ally Mcintosh]

Possible talk (or just speculation?) about Portrush in 2019

http://www.irishexaminer.com/sport/golf/portrush-in-major-frame-263765.html

[Rich Goodale]

If the R&A really wants the champion of their annual Open tournament to be The Champion (except in Mexico and the USA), they should check their cojones and ask vis a vis their venues "Why not Japan?  Or Australia?  Or China?  Or Argentina?  Or Canada? or Zimbabwe?  Or even Portmarnock?  Or France, or New Zealand, or India, or Madagascar........?

Why Northern Ireland?  Nice place, a few really nice golf courses, most people there speak a dialect of English.  Part of the "UK of GB and NI."  Otherwise?  Reach out to the rest of the world?  No.  Show some sort of vision of the future?  No.

Put it at Portrush again and it will forever be the "Bristish Open" and not "The Open."  If it ever was .....

Rich

[Tony_Muldoon]

Hey it’s been a good week for me, somebody in Scotland is obviously listening.

Strike 1
The R&A have apparently bought my argument about visitor no’s and are preparing to announce Portrush for 1919.

Strike 2
The other issue I was banging on about last July as referenced above, was the self imposed damage they do to image of the game when the R&A takes the Open to a single sex Club. In the same week they are making moves on this and It’s still only Monday.


So my predictions for further ‘announcements/leaks’ tomorrow.

Strike 3.  Tuesday 1st April.
Peter Dawson seen out on the course with a spade and wheel barrow. He’s digging up the scars inflicted last year on the right of the 4th green and putting the soil extracted onto the back left of the 11th green.

Strike 3
Reduce the rules to a point where I can read them without falling asleep.

Strike 4
Rollback

Strike 5
I open the post and there’s a form inviting me to join.

Well two out of 5 ain’t a bad start!

Hadn’t seen these before
http://livingasalinksgolfer.blogspot.co.uk/2013/11/st-andrews-old-course-changes-phase-2.html 

[Scott Macpherson]

Well, should it happen, mark me down as being in favour of The Open returning to the Royal Portrush Golf Club. It was last there in 1951 and since that time golfers from N.I. have made a significant and extended contribution to the game of golf and the course is terrific.  I could imagine a few alterations may be required to the course both for the infrastructure that is needed to host this major championship in the modern era, and due to tighten up the test for the best golfers in thew world, but this should not rule the course out as a possible host venue.

Scott

[Thomas Dai]

I wonder if RPGC do hold 'The Open' again whether they will actually let the players into the Clubhouse or will the doorman usher them down the road recommending they use the clubhouse at Rathmore GC instead (sic). A pretty unimpressive attitude when you've forked out serious £$£$ to play the Dunluce Championship course.
atb

[Jon Wiggett]

If the R&A really wants the champion of their annual Open tournament to be The Champion (except in Mexico and the USA), they should check their cojones and ask vis a vis their venues "Why not Japan?  Or Australia?  Or China?  Or Argentina?  Or Canada? or Zimbabwe?  Or even Portmarnock?  Or France, or New Zealand, or India, or Madagascar........?

Why Northern Ireland?  Nice place, a few really nice golf courses, most people there speak a dialect of English.  Part of the "UK of GB and NI."  Otherwise?  Reach out to the rest of the world?  No.  Show some sort of vision of the future?  No.

Put it at Portrush again and it will forever be the "Bristish Open" and not "The Open."  If it ever was .....

Rich

Rich,

the winner is The Champion Golfer not the World Champion. Wrong side of the bed was it  Now you might have a point if you were talking baseball

[Rich Goodale]

Hi Jon

Did I not use the term "Champion Golfer" (see below) and was it not you who added the word "World"?  You are just a naughty boy.

Rich

[Mark Chaplin]

"Police have said that a bomb found at a County Tyrone golf course had the capability to kill or cause serious injury.
Bomb disposal experts made the device safe after it was discovered at Strabane Golf Club on Monday morning."

The terrorists clearly don't like golf as they tried to fire bomb a golf store in December. Then the would be bomber got a bit of "summary justice" as he was seen running away in flames!!

[Ryan Coles]

I believe the Open, even with the recent price hikes, is still great value that compares favourably with any other UK sporting event.

I've spent hundreds on not great seats at boxing, football etc. you can watch the Open from dawn until dusk if you wish.

Is Portrush really that good to warrant marking all sorts of concessions and compromises? More importantly, is the club male only?

[Ted Harris]

I believe the Open, even with the recent price hikes, is still great value that compares favourably with any other UK sporting event.

I've spent hundreds on not great seats at boxing, football etc. you can watch the Open from dawn until dusk if you wish.

Is Portrush really that good to warrant marking all sorts of concessions and compromises? More importantly, is the club male only?

Is it that good

Are you having a laugh ?...........    Yes it is beyond good !!!!! Harry Colt masterpiece on some of the finest linksland in existence just a stones throw from Dunluce Castle and The Giants Causeway. A top 15 ranked course on most if not all world lists.

[Ted Harris]

I wonder if RPGC do hold 'The Open' again whether they will actually let the players into the Clubhouse or will the doorman usher them down the road recommending they use the clubhouse at Rathmore GC instead (sic). A pretty unimpressive attitude when you've forked out serious £$£$ to play the Dunluce Championship course.
atb

What happened ?

[Jon Wiggett]

Hi Jon

Did I not use the term "Champion Golfer" (see below) and was it not you who added the word "World"? and you emplied You are just a naughty boy.I know, is Canada not USGA?

Rich