There won’t be an Open Championship in 2020, but there will be a British Open.
The R&A announced Tuesday that it has received the go-ahead to conduct the AIG Women’s British Open as planned in mid-August at Royal Troon. The decision came as the governing body adjusts to a season light on events after canceling the Open Championship due to the spread of Covid-19.
The tournament will be played without fans, with safety protocols in place for players, caddies and tournament officials.
“We believe that playing the AIG Women’s British Open is a significant step for players whose playing opportunities have been severely impacted this year,” R&A chief executive Martin Slumbers said in a release. “As they compete to be the 2020 champion in historic circumstances, these athletes will continue to inspire golfers and sports fans around the world, who will be closely following events from Royal Troon on TV and social media.”
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The event will run Aug. 20-23, three weeks after the LPGA Tour restarts in central Ohio with the Drive On Championship at the site of next year’s Solheim Cup, the Inverness Club. The Women’s British will be women’s golf’s first major championship of 2020.
“It’s fantastic news that the AIG Women’s British Open will be going ahead this summer and broadcast to millions of fans around the world,” said Nigel Huddleston, the United Kingdom’s sports minister. “Getting elite women’s sports back safely remains a top priority – we’re working hard to ensure we don’t lose any of the great momentum that has built up in recent years.”
According to reports from Golf Channel and the Scotsman, it is believed that the United Kingdom will waive its current mandatory 14-day quarantine in order to allow golfers to travel from the United States to participate in the event.
This year marks the first time the Women’s British Open will be played at Royal Troon, a course that ended its male-only membership requirement in 2016. Royal Troon has been in the men’s Open Championship rota for nearly a century, first hosting golf’s second major in 1923.
The 149th Open was originally scheduled for next week at Royal St. George’s, but instead will be held at the Scottish venue in 2021. This year marks the first since World War II, and only the fourth in the event’s 150-year history, that the men’s Open will not be played.
