Laura Davies, Britain’s most decorated woman golfer, has reiterated her concerns over the state of their European Tour – raising fears of the consequences for emerging players and the Solheim Cup.
Thursday sees the start of the Women’s British Open, a €3.25m event and by far the most lucrative in this continent. The backdrop, though, is a threadbare schedule in Europe, with Davies backing up previous comments on playing opportunities and financial reality. “Well, it’s not good, is it?” she said. “I mean, we’ve not got enough tournaments to play and I feel sorry for all the young girls that are great players that need to play tournaments.
“It’s not easy to get to America, play in the Symetra Tour to try and get on the LPGA Tour. I know everyone behind the scenes is working incredibly hard trying to get things going. We just need the backing of corporate Europe really to see the value in us, because I think we’re well worth it. What the magic formula is, I don’t know. I’m a golfer. I don’t get involved in that side of it and I just wish them the best because we deserve a good strong European Tour.”
Last week’s Scottish Open was the first 72-hole event in Europe this year and the next mainstream event, the French Open, has a prize fund of €275,000. When asked what would represent an acceptable schedule, Davies replied: “Anything is better than this year. You’re not going to get an immediate 25 tournaments.
“It’s like the Spanish federation and the Swedish; not to have the Swedish Open, I don’t understand that. They’ve had so many great players over the years. We had a really good Swedish event but the prize money wasn’t good enough. Players weren’t going because it was too low. But how we don’t have tournaments in most countries … I’ve got no idea.
“If we got 15 really good European events; and I’m not talking €200,000 events, because no one is making any money on 200,000. It would have to be 4-, 5-, 600,000 now because things are expensive on tour.”
Davies, a 12-times Solheim Cup player, believes it may eventually impact on the biennial event. “The trouble is what it will become,” she added. “The top Europeans who play on the LPGA against the top Americans of the LPGA and that would be a shame.”
Catriona Matthew, the Solheim Cup captain, offered a slightly more positive outlook. “From what I’ve heard the schedule next year is looking strong. There’s already two new tournaments and hopefully a few others in the pipeline. So hopefully it’s hit the bottom and we’re on the way up now.” When Georgia Hall, last year’s LET order of merit winner, came in to echo Matthew’s sentiment, it had the feeling of an edict from above.
Home hopes for the Open will undoubtedlyrest to a large extent on Charley Hull, who is seeking a maiden major win. The 22-year-old shared 10th in this event a year ago. In 2006 Hull made her Lytham debut as a 10-year-old invitee in the tournament pro-am.
“Monday was my first time back on the course since,” she said. “I think there’s a little bit of extra pressure here because it’s your home championship but I don’t really think of it like that. I just want to go out there, give myself a chance and see if I can push it and go ahead and win it. I really like the feeling of the pressure over the last few holes.”
