When Royal Lytham & St Annes was overlooked as the venue for this summer’s Open Championship, on what is the centenary of Bobby Jones’s famous win, many wondered if the Open would ever return to the Fylde coast.
After all, it is now 14 years since Ernie Els raised his second Claret Jug here, following Adam Scott bogeying the last four holes.
For all those with an interest in the history of the game, the news that the 156th Open will be played at Lytham in 2028 is cause for celebration.
Mark Darbon, Chief Executive of The R&A, said: “Royal Lytham & St Annes is widely renowned as one of the world’s finest links courses and has witnessed many great championship moments since The Open was first played there in 1926 when the legendary Bobby Jones won.
“This is one of golf’s most cherished and historic venues and The Open’s return to these famous links will spark huge interest among fans to be part of one of the world’s great sporting events and celebrate the rich traditions of golf’s original Championship.
“We are grateful to the members of Royal Lytham & St Annes and the local authorities for their support in making this happen. We look forward to enjoying another fantastic championship on England’s golf coast in 2028.”
It will do so on an unfamiliar date, with that summer’s Olympics pushing the Open back three weeks, starting on August 3 and finishing on August 6.
So what has changed at Lytham since 2012? The context is that the Open’s footprint has grown considerably over the last decade and continues to do so, with Royal Birkdale set to welcome a record-breaking 300,000 fans over the course of the week this summer.
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At Lytham in 2012, the total attendance was 181,000.
The R&A continue to balance their desire to take their crown jewel event to the best and most historic venues – of which Lytham is certainly one – with an open acknowledgement that this profit-making week is what drives their investment in the sport as a whole.
Previous Lytham champions include Bobby Jones, Bobby Locke, Peter Thomson, Sir Bob Charles, Tony Jacklin, Gary Player, Seve Ballesteros, Tom Lehman and David Duval.
And in recent years, Lytham have reconfigured their 7th and 11th holes to make room for a new practice ground in between.
Darbon admitted that even after the infrastructure improvements, Lytham will not come near to being able to accommodate 300,000 fans.
The course is surrounded by houses on three sides and the railway line on the fourth, with these factors also making transport and accessibility more complicated than at many other venues.
“It’s not the easiest of our sites to operate,” said Darbon. “We need to be very thoughtful about how we manage everything that goes with a modern Open Championship but through that partnership with the club and other local stakeholders we’re really optimistic and excited for what we’ll deliver in 2028.”
Tim Walker, Chairman of Council at Royal Lytham & St Annes, said: “It is fitting that this announcement comes as we mark 100 years since Bobby Jones’ victory here in 1926 and the granting of our Royal status.”
Lytham is just one of several former Open venues whose place on (officially non-existent) rota was uncertain.
Darbon also provided updates on Muirfield, Portmarnock and Turnberry. None were definitive but each was at least cautiously positive.
• On Muirfield, where Phil Mickelson was the champion in 2013, he said:
“It’s similar to when we’ve discussed it previously. We’ve got a great ongoing dialogue with Muirfield and we’re there for the Women’s Amateur this summer. In the same way that there are with many of our venues there are some things that we need to overcome to facilitate a modern Open Championship. The practice ground is one of those aspects but there’s a few on-course infrastructural points we need to work on with the club. The dialogue is a good one and the team from Muirfield are with us in May to further that discussion,” said Darbon.
• On Turnberry, which last hosted in 2009, when Stewart Cink lifted the Claret Jug, he said:
“Turnberry is still in our thinking. There is not a huge amount of new news to report. We really like the golf course. We know that there are some logistical challenges that relate to staging a modern Open Championship.
“They’re primarily off the course – road, rail and accommodation infrastructure. We’ve got a really good dialogue with the club and its ownership, and there is a pretty transparent discussion there, and that dialogue will continue,” said Darbon.
• On Portmarnock, which would become the first Open venue outside the United Kingdom, he said:
“We remain excited by the potential to stage both an AIG Women’s Open and an Open Championship at Portmarnock. It’s a wonderful golf course. We have a long history of R&A championships in (the Republic of) Ireland but it would of course be the first Open Championship there if we were to go.
“It’s a complicated venue and so what we’ve been doing over recent months is undertaking a really significant body of feasibility work. If I’m honest, it’s taken us slightly longer than we originally envisaged but good progress is being made and I would say we’re cautiously optimistic about the ability to stage major championships at that venue.
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“We’re hoping to bring some clarity to that by the end of this summer and I should acknowledge the wonderful support that we’ve had from the Irish government in terms of supporting us on that feasibility work and their excitement around the potential for championships.
As for Carnoustie, which last held the Open in 2018? No mention, which always seems to be the way with the Open’s northern outpost and least glamorous venue – even if many believe it to be among the very best courses.
• Fans wishing to register their interest in attending The 156th Open at Royal Lytham & St Annes can do so via TheOpen.com. This year, the world’s best women’s golfers will compete in the AIG Women’s Open at Lytham from July 30 to August 2, with tickets still available via AIGWomensOpen.com.
NOW READ: Why our NCG Top 100s courses experts love visiting Lytham
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