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This year’s Champion Golfer of the Year will take home a record winner’s cheque of $2.07 million, following the R&A’s decision to increase prize money for the 149th Open Championship at Royal St George’s. The total prize purse this year is $11.5 million compared to $10.75 million in 2019, equal to the Masters but less than the $12 million at the PGA Championship and $12.5 million for the U.S. Open.
The St George’s winner will earn $135,000 more than the $1.93M Shane Lowry received when he won the 2019 Open Championship at Royal Portrush, and equal to what Hideki Matsuyama took home from the Masters in April. Phil Mickelson ($2.16M) took home a record sum from the PGA Championship while Jon Rahm ($2.25M) earned the same total as Gary Woodland and Bryson DeChambeau in the previous two U.S. Opens.
“We have increased the prize fund for the Open this year and believe it fully reflects the Championship’s stature in world sport,” R&A chief executive Martin Slumbers said. “As the only men’s major championship played outside of America, the Open has a global role to play and we are determined to continue to attract the top players.”
Slumbers confirmed the increase in prize money does not jeopardise what the R&A has pledged to invest to grow the game worldwide in the next decade.
“We are further enhancing the status of our professional championships at the same time in making good progress towards our investment of £200 million over 10 years in growing golf around the world,” he said.
On Thursday, the R&A opened the ticket ballot for the 150th Open Championship at St Andrews. Interest in next year’s championship, to be held over the Old Course from 10-17 July, is expected to be high, hence the reason the R&A has instituted a system for fans within the British Isles and globally to have a fairer chance of attending the milestone event.
In a statement, the R&A stated: “The ticket ballot is available exclusively to members of the One Club, the free-to-join membership programme. Members who have already registered their interest for the ballot can now apply for tickets. Fans can still sign up at any time via www.theopen.com and apply for tickets.”
Tickets cost £95 for an adult on championship days and range from £20 to £50 on practice days. Kids still can enter for free with an adult, while 16- to 24-year-olds can buy half-price tickets. The R&A has discontinued weekly tickets to allow as many people as possible to attend.
“The ticket ballot gives as many fans as possible the chance to be part of this fantastic championship and make it an occasion to remember,” Slumbers said.
The ballot will remain open until 4 October, with results to be announced at the end of November.
South Africa’s Christiaan Burke won’t forget his most recent medal round over his home course of Potchefstroom Country Club. It turned out to be the round of his life.
The GolfRSA National Squad member returned a 16-under-par 56 to set a course record that might stand for a long time. Burke posted four birdies and three eagles on the front nine to be out in 10-under 26. He played the back nine in 30 shots with an eagle and four birdies.
Burke had no bogeys on his card and just six pars. As The South African website reported, Burke plays off a handicap of plus-8, which he had to add to his score for a net score of 64.
Al Geiberger was dubbed “Mr 59” when he shot that number in the second round of the 1977 Danny Thomas Memphis Classic at Colonial Country Club in Cordova, Tennessee, the first player to break 60 on the PGA Tour. That was impressive, but “Mr 56” has a much nicer ring to it.
The Hero Indian Open has become the latest major golf event to fall foul of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The tournament was scheduled to take place on 28-31 October but has been scrubbed from the European Tour’s international schedule because of the ongoing threat posed by the virus.
A European Tour statement announcing the cancellation said: “With the safety of everyone involved in the tournament being the main priority and travel to and from India remaining challenging, the decision has been taken following consultation with the Indian Golf Union, the Asian Tour and the tournament title sponsor Hero MotoCorp Ltd.
“The European Tour will look to schedule a replacement tournament in the final week of October but there are no definitive plans as to where that will be at this stage.”
English amateur Sam Bairstow earned a spot in the 149th Open Championship after finishing in a tie for second place in the Final Qualifier at St Annes Old Links.
The Yorkshireman fired nine birdies in an opening 63 and then backed that up with a 69 in the afternoon to share second place with Spanish European Tour player Gonzalo Fernández-Castaño, just a shot behind former English amateur international Ben Hutchison.
Bairstow will join 2020 Amateur champion Joe Long, 2021 Amateur champion Laird Shepherd, 2020 European Amateur champion Matthias Schmid, 2021 European Amateur champion Christoffer Bring, 2019 Mark H McCormack Medal winner Cole Hammer, 2019 Asia-Pacific Amateur champion Yuxin Lin and 2020 Latin American Amateur champion Abel Gallegos among the amateurs playing in this year’s field.
“It’s going to be amazing to be in the Open at Royal St George’s,” said Bairstow, a member of the England Golf elite squad from Hallowes Golf Club near Sheffield. “I just want to enjoy the experience and whatever happens, happens.
“The Open is my favourite major so to play in it will be an absolute honour. This is definitely at the top of my career so far.
“I can’t really believe it, to be honest.”
Twelve players earned places in the Open at four Final Qualifying courses – St Annes Old Links, Hollinwell, Prince’s and West Lancashire.
Australia’s Deyen Lawson topped the leaderboard at Prince’s with rounds of 70 and 71 to finish one shot ahead of England’s Connor Worsdall and Sam Forgan. Forgan holed a 10-foot birdie putt on the last to avoid a play-off.
Former Brabazon Trophy winner Nick Poppleton was the leading qualifier at West Lancs, where he shot 65-69 to claim a three-shot victory ahead of South Africa’s Louis de Jager on 10-under-par 134. England’s Daniel Croft also made it through on 138.
There was a second qualifier from Australasia when New Zealand’s Daniel Hillier shot 64-69 at Hollinwell to finish a single shot ahead of England’s Jonathan “Jigger” Thomson on 11-under-par 133. Richard Mansell was the other qualifier on 135.
Seven-time European Tour winner Fernández-Castaño is the only member of the 12 qualifiers to have played the Open before.
Kevin Streelman tops the list of 12 golfers to earn a place in the Open as the highest-ranked non-exempt players in the Official World Golf Ranking as of 30 June.
Streelman (52nd on the ranking) is joined by fellow Americans Russell Henley (53), Charley Hoffman (57), Bubba Watson (59), Brendon Todd (64), Chris Kirk (69), Talor Gooch (70), Lanto Griffin (72) and Cameron Tringale (73), Mexico’s Carlos Ortiz (55), Canada’s Mackenzie Hughes (65) and South Korea’s KH Lee (67).
An additional place in the Open is available for the highest non-exempt player who finishes in the top five (and ties) at the John Deere Classic at TPC Deere Run in Silvis, Illinois, on 8-11 July.
The Open will be played at Royal St George’s from 15-18 July.
Denmark’s Christoffer Bring entered the World Amateur Golf Ranking top 50 for the first time as a result of his European Amateur Championship win at Golf du Médoc Resort in France. Bring, who won by two shots to earn a place in the Open Championship at Royal St George’s, made a 65-ranking rise to 42nd following the biggest victory of his life.
Dylan Menante’s Northeast Amateur Invitational triumph saw him move into the top 25 with a climb of 16 rankings to 22nd, the U.S. player’s highest position on the WAGR table.
Germany’s Alexandra Försterling and Andrea Lignell of Sweden also achieved personal-best status on the world pecking order. Victory in the German International Amateur helped Arizona State player Försterling make a 32-position rise to 71st. Lignell won the JSM Slag, Teen Tour Elite #3 in her homeland to move 20 spots to 111th.
A punter based in London has won more than £1 million from a golf and football accumulator bet.
UK-based online betting company Betfair forked out £1,039,544 after his six-leg accumulator came up trumps.
The gambler bet Croatia would beat Scotland, and England defeat the Czech Republic at Euro 2020. Those bets both came good as did Steve Stricker’s win in the Bridgestone Senior Players Championship, Nelly Korda’s KPMG Women’s PGA Championship victory, and Viktor Hovland’s triumph in the BMW International Open.
That meant the whole bet hinged on Harris English winning the Travelers Championship. When he won at odds of 35-1 after an eight-hole play-off, one of the longest in PGA Tour history, the bet came good at combined odds of higher than 90,000-to-1.
“I thought I was going to have a heart attack when the winning putt went in,” the anonymous punter said. “I couldn’t believe it.”
He told Betfair he planned to take several months off work to travel with his partner.
Betfair elected to pay out in full despite the fact they have a £100,000 pay-out limit on golf. “It’s the fair thing to do,” the company said.
Robert MacIntyre missed last week’s Irish Open after coming in close contact with someone who tested positive for COVID-19.
The 24-year-old Scot did not have symptoms but had to withdraw in compliance with the current safety regulations.
“Unfortunately, I have had to withdraw from the Irish Open this week due to having tracked and traced following my return flight from the U.S. Open,” he told his Twitter followers. “We all know you have to respect the rules at the moment and wish whoever tested positive a speedy recovery.”
MacIntyre finished in a share of 35th at the US Open to extend a run that has seen him make the cut in his first six starts in the majors.
He will return to competitive action in the star-studded field at the Scottish Open at the Renaissance Club. Rory McIlroy is the latest big name to sign up for the event preceding the Open. Jon Rahm, Justin Thomas, Collin Morikawa, Xander Schauffele, Billy Horschel, Scottie Scheffler, Will Zalatoris, Tyrrell Hatton, Tommy Fleetwood, Francesco Molinari, Danny Willett and Henrik Stenson all indicated previously they would play. England’s Aaron Rai is the defending champion.
Kirsten Rudgeley became the first Australian to clinch the title when she came from behind to pip Scotland’s Hannah Darling and England’s Emily Toy at the Helen Holm Scottish Women’s Open Championship at Troon Portland.
Rudgeley started the final round four shots behind Darling but carded a best-of-the-day 6-under-par 66 to storm through the field and claim a one-shot victory on 12-under 204.
The native of Perth, Australia, has won three times on her domestic circuit this season and finished runner-up to Grace Kim at the Australian Women’s Amateur Championship in February.
“It feels awesome,” she said. “Getting an international win was definitely on my bucket list. Winning is always awesome but claiming an international victory means even more.”
Darling was one of six Scots to finish inside the top 10, but Rudgeley’s win makes it 19 years since a home player won her national women’s stroke-play title.
Welsh football superstar Gareth Bale has become a supporting partner of the Cazoo Open at the Celtic Manor Resort on 22-25 July.
The striker, who has made 96 appearances for his country and is its all-time top scorer, is a golf fanatic and believes that becoming involved in partnership with his management group ICM Stellar Sports will enhance the tournament’s profile and will attract more Welsh people into the game.
“ICM Stellar Sports and I decided we wanted to play a part in the development of golf in Wales,” he confirmed. “We want to make golf in Wales bigger and we believe this event can play a big role in that. Hopefully, we can get more people watching and grow the game of golf in Wales.
“We want to make it a real spectacle. To have the Welsh public involved would be amazing. We’re looking to do other things with junior golf to try to build up golf in Wales. We want youngsters out there to watch the players play and do as much as we can to promote it.”
TAP-INS
Golf Australia confirms the Australian Open will return after missing 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, and will be played Nov. 25-28 at the Australian Golf Club in Sydney (READ MORE).
Colin Callander and Alistair Tait