British Open waits on Turnberry call after Trump remarks
Jul 15, 2015, 4:24 AM
Donald Trump answers questions surrounding his bid for the U.S. presidency in Albemarle House, a property of his outside of Charlottesville, Va., Tuesday, July 14, 2015. (P. Kevin Morley/Richmond Times-Dispatch via AP)
(P. Kevin Morley/Richmond Times-Dispatch via AP)
ST. ANDREWS, Scotland (AP) — British Open organizers are biding their time before deciding whether Turnberry should be removed from the championship rotation following comments by the course’s owner, Donald Trump, about Mexicans.
Trump, a Republican candidate for U.S. president, is facing a backlash after saying some Mexican immigrants to the U.S. bring drugs and crime, and some are rapists.
Trump recently purchased Turnberry, a links resort on the west coast of Scotland that has hosted the British Open four times.
Asked if Trump’s comments compromised Turnberry’s place on the Open rotation, Peter Dawson, chief executive of the R&A, said: “We’ll just let a bit of time pass, and future championship committees will deal with them at the time.”
The PGA of America announced last week it will move the Grand Slam of Golf from Trump’s course in Los Angeles.
The Women’s British Open is to be played this month at Turnberry, and organizers have said there are no plans to change the venue.
Turnberry last staged the British Open in 2009, when Stewart Cink beat Tom Watson in a playoff, and is one of nine courses on the rotation. Royal Portrush will be added in 2019.
“It’s had a lot of publicity, hasn’t it?” Dawson said about Turnberry and its links with Trump. “We don’t have any decisions to make about Turnberry for quite some time.”
Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
