The R&A does not rule out adjusting the Sunday schedule at Royal Birkdale if England eliminate Argentina and reach the final against Spain. Mark Darbon, chief executive of the body, says that right now there are no changes planned, but admits they will review the situation after the semi-final.
The Open Championship has this week an unexpected guest at Royal Birkdale: the FIFA World Cup. Mark Darbon, chief executive of The R&A, acknowledged on Wednesday that the body is considering the scenario of a possible change to the Sunday timings if England win their semi-final against Argentina and qualify for the final, where they would face Spain.
It makes sense when you consider that Royal Birkdale is in England. The final putt at the Open is currently scheduled for around 18:40 on Sunday, Darbon himself explained. In principle, The R&A believes that even in the event of a three-hole play-off there would be time to complete the championship. However, the reality is that such an addition would easily mean another 40 or 50 minutes of play, perhaps more, and that would greatly complicate life for the spectators at Royal Birkdale who want to get back in time to watch the start of the World Cup final.
Darbon was cautious but left the door open. “At the moment there are no plans to alter anything, but we will keep it under review and will finalise our position after the semi-final”, he said. He also admitted that, as an England supporter, it would be “a great problem to have”. In reality, it is assumed that it will change if England progress, but he did not want to say so in advance for fear of tempting fate.
The reading is obvious. If England do not progress, there is no issue. If England eliminate Argentina and play Spain in the World Cup final on Sunday, it would be logical for The R&A to bring forward the tee times to avoid any risk. England do not reach a World Cup final every day. And the Open is not often played in England during that same final. The atmosphere on the course, especially in the final hours on Sunday, could suffer if a large portion of the crowd has one eye on getting to a screen.
Darbon would not go that far in public, but the key phrase was that post-semi-final review. The Open wants to protect its climax, but it also knows that, in the event of an English final, it would be competing with a national event of the highest magnitude.
Portmarnock increasingly close to entering Open history
Darbon’s press conference raised other significant issues about the future of the Open rotation. The most important concerns Portmarnock, in Ireland. The R&A has been studying the possibility of bringing the championship there for some time and the organisation’s chief executive was quite clear: the feasibility study is practically finished and The R&A now believes it can stage an Open Championship at Portmarnock.
“We have confirmed that we believe we can take an Open Championship there”, Darbon explained. Negotiations are now focused on building a model that would open the door to both the AIG Women’s Open and the Open Championship for many years. Talks with the Irish Government are, according to Darbon, moving in the right direction, although no date has been set. The R&A expects to have a fairly clear view before the end of the year.
He also spoke about Muirfield. Darbon confirmed that the dialogue with the club is very good and that The R&A is “excited” about the possibility of returning the Open to that venue in the future. That said, he warned that some adjustments are needed, both to the course and the facilities, to meet the current demands of the championship.
Royal Birkdale changed because members wanted it, not because of an Open threat
Another interesting matter was the changes made at Royal Birkdale. Darbon rejected the idea that The R&A had forced architectural changes at rotation venues under the threat of not returning. He explained that the alterations at Birkdale were driven by the club’s own members, although The R&A took part in the conversations due to the close relationship it maintains with its venues.
“At no point would we threaten a venue with not coming back for that reason”, he said when asked directly whether the changes had been a condition to guarantee the Open’s return.
Darbon argued that the balance achieved at Royal Birkdale is good and assured that the feedback from members has been “very, very positive”. He also made clear that not all changes to courses are made to accommodate more spectators. In his view, they are decisions for the clubs and their members.
New code of conduct: any spectator who crosses the line will be expelled
The R&A also launches this week a new code of conduct for spectators. Darbon explained that it was not born as an improvised reaction, but as something the body had been studying for some time. The aim is to set out in writing the expected behaviour at the Open.
There will be no fines like those suggested in some recent debates, but there will be one clear measure: anyone who crosses the line may be expelled from the venue.
Darbon explained that The R&A has its own staff, volunteers, marshals and officials distributed across the course, all briefed to spot behaviour that breaches the code. “If someone crosses the line, we can ask them to leave the venue, and that is a fairly powerful measure”, he said.
More than 300,000 people at Royal Birkdale and craze for St Andrews
The Open at Royal Birkdale expects this week a record attendance of more than 300,000 spectators. Darbon also highlighted that they received “comfortably” more than one million ticket applications for this edition.
The fever shows no sign of stopping. The ballot for tickets for the 155th Open Championship at St Andrews opened last week and, in just nine days, The R&A had already received close to three quarters of a million applications.
Darbon also reminded that The R&A maintains its kids-go-free programme, with free entry for under-16s. Almost half a million young people have entered the Open free of charge since the initiative was launched.
Rotation is not decided only by spectator capacity
Darbon wanted to clarify another point: The R&A does not choose Open venues only for the size of the venue or the ability to fit more spectators. The perfect example is Royal Lytham & St Annes, which will host the championship again in 2028.
“Lytham is smaller. There is no chance we will be near the volume of spectators we have here this week”, he explained.
For Darbon, the basic principle remains another: taking the Open to venues that offer a true test of links golf. Size matters, of course, because the modern Open is a gigantic event, but it is not the primary criterion. Royal Lytham will not have the capacity of Royal Birkdale, but it will return because it belongs to the soul of the championship.
In addition, The R&A announced a memorandum of understanding with the Liverpool City region and the councils of Sefton and Wirral to stage at least three Opens in the region by 2050, as well as other championships from the body. This week’s Open at Birkdale is expected to generate an economic impact in excess of £200 million.
