The Open 2020 has been cancelled

open-cancelled

The Open 2020 has been cancelled

The Open 2020 has been cancelled in response to the Coronavirus pandemic, meaning this year will be the first time since World War II that the major has not been played.

The Open was due to be played at Royal St George’s from 12-19 July but will now be held at the Kent course in 2021 instead. 

St Andrews, which had been due to host The Open in 2021, will now play host to the 150th Open a year later than planned, in 2022.

Martin Slumbers, chief executive of The R&A, said: “Our absolute priority is to protect the health and safety of the fans, players, officials, volunteers and staff involved in The Open. We care deeply about this historic Championship and have made this decision with a heavy heart. We appreciate that this will be disappointing for a great many people around the world but this pandemic is severely affecting the UK and we have to act responsibly. It is the right thing to do.”

Other golf majors, like the Masters, PGA Championship and US Open, are exploring the possibility of rearranging for later in 2020, in the hope that the Coronavirus pandemic will have abated enough to make it possible for them to be played, but The 2020 Open has been cancelled. 

“I can assure everyone that we have explored every option for playing The Open this year but it is not going to be possible,” added Slumbers. “There are many different considerations that go into organising a major sporting event of this scale. We rely on the support of the emergency services, local authorities and a range of other organisations to stage the Championship and it would be unreasonable to place any additional demands on them when they have far more urgent priorities to deal with.”

Tickets and packages already purchased for The Open this year will be transferred to 2021. Purchasers who no longer wish to (or are no longer able to) attend the Open in 2021 will receive a full refund. Further information on this process will be sent directly to ticket and hospitality purchasers in due course.

2019 Open champion Shane Lowry is understandably disappointed not to have the opportunity to defend his title in 2020, but quite rightly points out that health and safety must be the top priority: