Donald Trump has been dealt a major blow in his bid for the Open Championship to be staged at his golf course in the UK, according to reports.
Trump, who met with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer in Washington on Thursday, is hoping for the major tournament to be held at his course in Turnberry, Scotland, Sky News presenter Mark Austin claimed on X earlier this week.
The American president’s golf request is said to sit high on his wish list to the UK, which Starmer is likely to have heard in full during their meeting at the White House.
However, The Telegraph is reporting that Scottish golf chiefs are unlikely to accept his demands.
It is believed the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews, which serves as governing body for golf in Scotland, has no plans to host the Open at Turnberry and will not be swayed by any government requests to appease Trump.
Mark Darbon, the recently-appointed R&A chief executive, is quoted as saying: ‘At the core of our decision making will be the factors that have served us well in the past and we hope will continue to serve us well into the future.’
Donald Trump is unlikely to receive one of his top demands to UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer
The US president wants the famous Open Championship to be held at his Scotland golf course
His predecessor, Martin Slumbers, revealed back in November that Turnberry was not being considered as a venue for the Open ‘until we’re comfortable that the whole dialogue will be about golf’ – despite the course remaining on the official roster.
The R&A is also hesitant to bring the Open to Turnberry due to the relatively low income it generates for them, with Darbon claiming most of its other venues typically attracts over double the amount of spectators.
‘We need a venue that is appropriate from both a logistical and commercial perspective,’ he said. ‘That’s critical for us, because through the Open, we generate most of our revenue that we use that to invest into the rest of the game all around the world. So the reality is that modern-day open requires a venue that can support us logistically and commercially.
‘So we do have some questions that we need to work through on the logistical and commercial front. When we were there in 2009, we had just over 100,000 [123,0000 spectators] for the week. We are operating at comfortably more than double that at most of our venues today.
‘So it’s not quite as simple as just saying ‘would we go back?’. There’s a chunk of work that’s required to investigate.’
