“But in terms of what the European Tour has done, I think they’ve done the right thing by standing beside one of their mainstays of the European Tour. They’ve showed loyalty to the French Open and rightly so”.
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Love III plans to use this year’s Presidents Cup between USA and the Internationals as a test run for next year’s tournament at Hazeltine National Golf Club in Minnesota.
“Several events were impacted and while we have had numerous conversations with the European Tour with respect to the scheduling of the World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational, we were ultimately unable to find a solution that satisfied all parties”, the PGA Tour said.
A crowded 2016 schedule because of the Olympics means the Bridgestone Invitational will move up one month to June 30 to July 3.
“I trust those guys implicitly with their decisions that they make”.
Darren’s team will be gunning for a fourth consecutive victory for Europe over the USA and we’re sure DC, who’s played in no less than five Ryder Cups, as well as acting as Vice Captain in 2010 and 2012, will do a cracking job as skipper.
With the Open de France to be staged for the 100th time next year, the European Tour has opted not to sanction the Invitational, with any money won not counting towards The Race to Dubai or earning Ryder Cup points.
Graeme McDowell is a two-time victor in France and indicated he will not be at Firestone if eligible.
With the French Open holding particular gravitas next summer on its 100th anniversary, many European stars are expected to skip the Akron, Ohio, competition. “I don’t think the European Tour had other options”. And I think a breakthrough win for him last week is very important for him at this stage of his career. The schedule is a mess next summer, let’s be honest.
The worldwide Federation of PGA Tours, of which the PGA Tour, European Tour and others are a part, typically sanctions the event. It will be hard not to go back and defend the title, but it’s a Ryder Cup year and it’s going to be a difficult decision to make for everyone.
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Given that the championship is a Tier Two event on the PGA Tour of Australasia’s schedule and carries only A$110,000 in prizemoney, tournament organisers will be delighted with the support they have received from many of Australia’s emerging and established players and several leading amateurs. “It’s a tournament which I want to be loyal to because of how good they’ve been to me and how much success has been there”. Europeans will lose one of those.
