PORTRUSH, Northern Ireland – With next year’s Open Championship to feature an on-site Monday qualifier for the first time in decades, R&A CEO Mark Darbon pushed back against the suggestion that the move could be viewed as “gimmicky.”
Earlier this month, the organization announced that next year it will host a one-day, 18-hole qualifier at Royal Birkdale for as many as 12 competitors on the Monday of tournament week.
The event, which the R&A is billing as a “winner-take-all Last-Chance Qualifier,” is part of the organization’s effort to grow spectator interest in the tournament outside of the competition days.
Few details have been released surrounding the event, including how the field will be made up, leading to speculation that it could be filled by popular but undeserving players.
“It will absolutely be true to our broad principles around exemptions and qualifications for The Open,” Darbon said. “Everyone who hits their first tee shot here has earned the right to be here, so it will not be staged – or, to use your term, in a gimmicky fashion. It will be robust in its approach.”
The Open has a variety of avenues for players to gain entry into the year’s final major, from the Official World Golf Ranking to Final Qualifying (on July 1, there were four sites with five available spots each) to an Open Qualifying Series that highlights events on various tours throughout the year.
