Donald Trump has been dealt a major blow in his bid for the Open Championship to be staged at his golf course in the UK, according to reports.
Trump, who met with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer in Washington on Thursday, is hoping for the major tournament to be held at his course in Turnberry, Scotland, Sky News presenter Mark Austin claimed on X earlier this week.
The American president’s golf request is said to sit high on his wish list to the UK, which Starmer is likely to have heard in full during their meeting at the White House.
However, The Telegraph is reporting that Scottish golf chiefs are unlikely to accept his demands.
It is believed the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews, the Scottish governing which organizes the tournament, has no plans to host the Open at Turnberry and will not be swayed by any government requests to appease Trump.
Mark Darbon, the recently-appointed R&A chief executive, is quoted as saying: ‘At the core of our decision making will be the factors that have served us well in the past and we hope will continue to serve us well into the future.’
Donald Trump is unlikely to receive one of his top demands to UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer
The US president wants the famous Open Championship to be held at his Scotland golf course
His predecessor, Martin Slumbers, revealed back in November that Turnberry was not being considered as a venue for the Open ‘until we’re comfortable that the whole dialogue will be about golf’ – despite the course remaining on the official roster.
The R&A is also hesitant to bring the Open to Turnberry due to the relatively low income it generates for them, with Darbon claiming most of its other venues typically attracts over double the amount of spectators.
‘We need a venue that is appropriate from both a logistical and commercial perspective,’ he said. ‘That’s critical for us, because through the Open, we generate most of our revenue that we use that to invest into the rest of the game all around the world. So the reality is that modern-day open requires a venue that can support us logistically and commercially.
‘So we do have some questions that we need to work through on the logistical and commercial front. When we were there in 2009, we had just over 100,000 [123,0000 spectators] for the week. We are operating at comfortably more than double that at most of our venues today.
‘So it’s not quite as simple as just saying ‘would we go back?’. There’s a chunk of work that’s required to investigate.’
The Open, which is one of the four men’s major golf championships, was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland when first founded in 1860.
It has since been rotated between several coastal links golf courses in the UK, but is still organized by the R&A.
Trump purchased Turnberry from a Dubai-based company for $60million back in 2014, before renaming it ‘Trump Turnberry’ and extensively refurbishing it.
But Scottish golf chiefs are reportedly unwilling to appease Trump despite his demands
The 78-year-old also has another Scottish golf course – Trump International Golf Links Scotland – which operates north of Aberdeen after being built from scratch on until then protected sand dunes.
Despite his golf setback, Trump could be set to make two trips to the UK in the near future, including for an informal sleepover with King Charles at Balmoral.
The president accepted an invitation from Charles, delivered by Starmer, to make an unprecedented second state visit to the UK, six years after he was hosted by the late Queen.
The King’s letter, which Trump displayed to reporters in the Oval Office, suggested he could drop in at Balmoral or Dumfries House to discuss plans for the future state visit should he be visiting either of his Scottish golf courses.
