It is unlikely the Ryder Cup features prominently in the minds of Italian politicians as they seek a solution to the latest bout of instability. Those presiding over the Ryder Cup, however, simply cannot ignore what is a crisis in Rome, even by Italian governmental standards.
The political chaos threatening imminent ecomonic turmoil coincides neatly with the most significant date in Italy’s golf calendar – the Italian Open is this week – while the sport has been high up the news agenda after Francesco Molinari, the nation’s pre-eminent player, saw off Rory McIlroy to win PGA Championship on Sunday.
Indeed, Italy’s financial commitment to its national Open, to the tune of a $7m prize fund to guarantee inclusion in the blue-chip Rolex Series, was crucial to it being awarded the 2022 Ryder Cup three years ago. Bids from Germany and Spain were rejected, with Italy committing to an overhaul of the Marco Simone course, just north of Rome, so that it would be Ryder Cup-ready. Eyebrows were raised from the outset.
You need not have dug particularly deep during the intervening three years to discover doubts over whether the Ryder Cup’s debut in Italy will actually come to pass. Keith Pelley, the European Tour’s chief executive, remains bullish but others take a far more pessimistic view.
Some government ministers had vehemently opposed the bid in the first place, with a funding package worth €97m delivered at the last minute, 12 months ago. The economic benefits of hosting the Ryder Cup are widely known – and increasing – but Italian outlay both for this week’s event and to rip up a golf course presents specific challenges even before distinct political matters are contemplated.
All the while, it must be noted, Italy has met financial targets when due to the European Tour. With this bid, more than any other in Ryder Cup history, money talks. The Tour has refused to confirm where precisely those funds arrive from – be it the Italian government directly, the Italian Golf Federation or another party. “We do not discuss internal financial arrangements on any of our golf tournaments, but all monies related to the Italian Open and the 2022 Ryder Cup have been received and are in place,” a spokesperson for Ryder Cup Europe said.
Still, recent weeks have not provided much to alter the sentiment of those sceptical about Italy and the Ryder Cup. The host course of the 2018 Italian Open, Gardagolf in Brescia, was late in being confirmed to participants. Players were subsequently warned by the European Tour to expect a course short of the standard they would expect for such a high-profile and lucrative competition. Given the emphasis placed on Rolex Series performances in respect of Ryder Cup points, this is an ominous scenario. It would be a surprise if players don’t speak out over the coming days regarding what is little more than a standard members’ course.
Of greater significance is a lack of action at Marco Simone. The European Tour’s plan to host the Italian Open there from 2019 made perfect sense; Le Golf National has hosted the French Open every year since 2002 and it takes charge of the Ryder Cup this year. However, the Italian proposal has been undermined by the absence of renovation work at this midway point between Ryder Cup award and playing. It is now understood there will be no Italian Open there until 2021 at the earliest.
“A considerable amount of work has already been undertaken at Marco Simone in terms of planning, including the transport plan and the parking plan,” the spokesperson said. “In terms of the work on the golf course, the process has taken longer than ourselves, the Italian Golf Federation and Marco Simone envisaged and this is due, in part, to changes to the political landscape in Italy since the country was chosen as host. However, we are now in the final stages of concluding detailed planning approvals with the companies who will conduct the work on the golf course.”
The prospect of a Plan B raises intrigues of its own. Adare Manor was recently relaunched in stunning fashion, with those in charge of the Irish resort – including JP McManus – perfectly open about a desire to host a Ryder Cup. It is hardly a stretch to suggest Adare Manor would be able to do that at short notice. Whether Padraig Harrington would leave his European captaincy aspirations until 2022, with scope to lead in his home country, is one of many fascinating subplots.
“As it was in December 2015, when we awarded the hosting of the 2022 Ryder Cup to Italy, our focus remains firmly on following in the footsteps of this September’s match in Paris with another sensational home Ryder Cup in four years’ time in Rome, another of Europe’s iconic cities,” the Tour said when asked what alternatives might be in place. Privately, it would be a dereliction of duty if contingency did not exist.
It would be a terrible shame if Italy does not produce the Ryder Cup it promised. It is clearly beneficial for golf’s development that new territory is entered, just as the Ryder Cup should not be the dominated domain of the UK and Ireland. This was a project that always carried significant risk; a risk that has been emphasised rather than offset as time has passed.
Players agitate for preferred lies at Shoal Creek
There are competitors in the women’s US Open who would rather more than a century of golf tradition was imminently dismissed. Torrential rain in Alabama, more than six inches over a week, has led to a sodden Shoal Creek – cue a collision course between players and organisers, with the event to start on Thursday.
In 123 years of organising major events in the US, the Golf Association has never permitted preferred lies, or “lift, clean and place” from fairways as they term it. Barring a late change the ball will be “played down” or as it lies. That has sparked concerns from the world’s best female golfers, who fear a lottery of muddy balls affecting scoring.
“If they play it down, it’s a joke,” said Cristie Kerr, the 2007 champion. “The course is saturated beyond comprehension. I know they run a lot of championships, but how many have they run after a tropical storm came through? There’s going to be mud on every ball. It’s not fair. Tropical storms aren’t part of the game.” Stacy Lewis, a two-time major champion, said: “I’d rather the tournament be decided based on good golf, rather than luck in whether mud stays on your ball or not.”
The USGA, which has been involved in controversy over course set-up at the men’s US Open before, appears unmoved. “We have a lot of experience with this sort of thing,” its senior managing director, John Bodenhamer, said. “Our intention is to rely on our considerable experience. We [have] played 72 of these US Women’s Opens, in fact 117 US Open Championships, playing the ball as it lies, finishing the competition, and so it’s our intention to do that this week as well.
“We play an outdoor game. Unless we’re ready to put a dome over our golf courses, we always will. That’s part of the charm and the greatness of our game, that there is randomness.”
