Donald Trump gets update on dream Open Championship scenario at Turnberry
Donald Trump's son, Eric, has held talks with the R&A about the Open Championship returning to Turnberry
Mark Darbon, the chief executive of the R&A, which is overseeing this week's Open Championship, disclosed that he had discussions with Eric Trump, but President Trump's aspirations for Turnberry to host the tournament are still far from reality.
The Ailsa Course at Turnberry hasn't been the venue for the Open since 2009. After President Trump acquired the renowned Scottish links course in 2014 for an estimated $60 million, his attempts to bring back the prestigious event have yet to bear fruit.
President Trump's contentious political stance has certainly influenced the R&A's reluctance to revisit Turnberry, yet Darbon has consistently emphasized in recent times that logistics pose the primary hurdle. The R&A has concluded that the site lacks the capacity to hold an Open given the event's significant expansion and the necessary infrastructure.
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During a press briefing on Wednesday before the commencement of this week's Open at Royal Portrush in Northern Ireland, Darbon reiterated his position and provided insights into his conversation with the President's son.
"I think we've been extremely clear on our position in respect of Turnberry. We love the golf course but we've got some big logistical challenges there," Darbon remarked. "You see the scale of their setup here and we've got some work to do on the road, rail and accommodation infrastructure around Turnberry."
"We've explicitly not taken it out of our pool of venues but we'd need to address those logistical challenges should we return. We've had good conversations with the ownership and the venue like we do with all of our venues.
"We'll continue to assess the feasibility and work collaboratively not just with the venue but with local and national government to understand what may be possible and that process at Turnberry is no different to any of our other locations.
"I met a couple of months ago with Eric Trump and some of the leadership from the Trump golf organisation and from Turnberry. We had a really good discussion. I think they understand clearly where we're coming from. We talked through some of the challenges that we have so we've got a good dialogue with them."
In September, President Trump plans to visit the UK for a state visit, where he will be received by King Charles and the British Government. Speculation suggests that during his visit, Trump might encourage Prime Minister Kier Starmer to exert influence on the R&A regarding Turnberry's prospects of hosting The Open.
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When questioned about the situation, Darbon responded: "We have an ongoing dialogue with the UK government given that we're a major event that creates significant value into the UK economy. I think this week's event will generate £210 million ($281 million) of economic impact for the region which is fantastic. So we have an ongoing conversation with them.
"We've spoken to them specifically about Turnberry and I think they've made it clear that the decision around where we take our championship rests with us.
"I would find it difficult to predict whether there will be any discussion on The Open if the President is making a visit here."
