R&A 'pretty close' to staging Open at Portmarnock

Chief executive Mark Darbon says the R&A is "getting pretty close" to staging an Open Championship at Portmarnock Golf Club in Dublin.

The R&A - the governing body which organises and runs the Open - first revealed the possibility of Portmarnock hosting golf's oldest championship in 2023, with the Irish government announcing its support of up to 40 million euro (£34m) in 2024.

Portmarnock, which has previously hosted the men's and women's amateur championships, would become the first venue outside of the United Kingdom to host the Open or Women's Open.

"I think we're getting pretty close. It's a complicated venue because of the scale of the Open Championship, so there's been a lot of great feasibility work with the golf club themselves, with the local authority, the government," Darbon said on the eve of this year's tournament at Royal Birkdale.

"We've undertaken a big feasibility study, that work is pretty much done. We've confirmed that we believe we can take an Open Championship there.

"What we're looking to do is to do a build a model that opens up opportunities for the AIG Women's Open and the Open for many, many years to come.

"That's the dialogue we're in right now with the Irish Government and we're optimistic that those discussions are heading in the right direction."

Pressed for a timeframe on a possible announcement, Darbon added: "In the spirit of transparency, it's taking a bit longer than I and we thought it may, but it's complicated doing all that feasibility work.

"We're hoping to have a pretty clear view by the end of the year."

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'It would be amazing'

Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry have previously voiced their support for an Open at Portmarnock, with the latter telling BBC Sport NI earlier this week that he visited the club last week.

"They're not giving too much away over there but all the rumours are that it's going to be announced at some stage," said the 2019 Open champion.

"Who knows, it would be amazing to have an Open Championship in Dublin. One of the biggest tournaments in the world coming to a place where I live would be very cool.

"I think Portmarnock is one of the best golf courses in the world so I think it's fit for an Open. It would be a good Open for the R&A, it would be very successful. The infrastructure is all there."

St Andrews will host next year's Open before the tournament returns to Royal Lytham & St Annes for the first time in 16 years in 2028.