The Turnberry golf course owned by Donald Trump will not be considered as a potential venue for The Open.
Trump's golfing resort in Ayrshire, Scotland, has received considerable investment from the former President in order to try and get the course in a position to host The Open once more. But organisers are concerned about potential protests against Trump, and have therefore opted to blacklist it.
The course last hosted The Open in 2009 before being bought by Trump five years later, and the businessman is adamant that "everybody wants to see the Open Championship here". But according to The Telegraph, sources close to the R&A have stated that Trump will be denied his dreams.
It's been suggested that for the resort to host The Open, Trump would have to sell the course as his links make the event a major security risk. But the Trump family remain committed to going through with it anyway, hoping that they can win the battle due to the quality of their course.
"My family is deeply committed to Scotland and has one singular focus – preserving Turnberry as the best golf course anywhere in the world," Trump's son Eric said in a statement. Trump's son helped redesign the Trump National Doral course in Miami, and has been involved in talks to push their Scotland resort into The Open conversation.
"We have invested nearly $200 million in the property," Trump's son added. "We achieved the most prestigious accolades in the world of golf and have a course which is universally considered to be the best in the Open Championship rota."
But he's been backed up by his father and the former President, who's tried to further sell his course to The Open organisers. "It was done with a great architect," Trump said. "A great golf architect recommended by Peter Dawson... I said, give me the best one and Martin Grant Hawtree.
"He’s a fabulous guy, a fabulous man.... What he does is this type of course, he really did a great job. We’re going to make a couple of little minor adjustments but it’s fantastic. Everybody wants to see the Open Championship here – the players, it’s their favourite course, it’s the No 1-rated in Europe."
But it looks like Trump may have to hold on to hope for now though, as a source in R&A claimed: "We have no plans to stage any of our championships there in the foreseeable future and will not return until we are convinced that the focus will be on the championship, the players, and the course itself."
