The argument is tiresome, on both sides of the Atlantic.
Every summer, factions of ardent fans in the UK take any American reference to the “British Open” quite personally, though most Yanks use the term merely to differentiate it from the US Open.
Territorialism aside, the former is British to the bone, even by the most liberal definition of the term.
The Open Championship, as most prefer to call it, is run by the Royal & Ancient Golf Association, the sport’s governing body in every nation but the US and Mexico. Yet, the Open has never been staged outside the UK.
On Monday, after years of encouragement from fans and media, the R&A confirmed it will stage an Open at Northern Ireland’s Royal Portrush, most likely in 2019 or 2020, marking the first visit to the Emerald Isle since 1951. That also represents the last time the Open was staged outside England or Scotland.
The Open dates to 1860 and employs a nine-course rotation that includes many of the game’s oldest links venues, a tradition that admittedly defines the tournament. But as the Portrush decision signals, it is time to think outside the box, much less beyond borders.
Given the R&A’s international responsibilities, much less the flagging interest in the game, continental Europe deserves future consideration. Same for Asia, the only place where the game is flourishing. Why not Scandinavia?
In other words, make it less British and more Open.
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