THE absence of Tiger Woods from the 137th Open is not expected to deter spectators from lining the fairways at Royal Birkdale. According to the Royal and Ancient, the organisers of the championship, advance tickets sales are up by nearly 30 per cent on the same venue ten years ago. More than 200,000 are expected through the gates to follow the most open Open in years.
Asked if staging an Open without the world No1 for the first time since 1994 had cooled interest in Lancashire, David Hill, the R&A's director of championships, said: "They're pouring in today more than we anticipated. I think people, more than ever,
are coming to see the Open.
"It's disappointing Tiger is not here, but the fans think this is a special week and have made up their minds to come."
Hill added that weather conditions would have an impact on the size of the galleries. "If the weather isn't brilliant, then we'll finish up at 200,000. If the sunshine comes out, as it did at Hoylake, we could get 230,000," he added.
Peter Dawson, the chief executive of the R&A, was quick to point out that Woods will be missed and conceded there could be a negative impact on the size of the worldwide TV audience.
"He's the world No1, he's a fantastic player and a huge draw for both on-site crowds and on television," reflected Dawson. "It would be silly to say there will be no effect. There will be some effect.
"But I'm not one who subscribes to the theory that it will devalue the championship. I think Tiger has played in 11 Opens and won three of them. That means he hasn't won the other eight. The odds are whoever wins this week would have won anyway.
"Tiger would be the first to admit that he doesn't make or break a championship. But we do miss him and let's hope he comes back next year (at Turnberry] better than ever."
With strong winds forecast for the first two rounds of the championship, some of the players have already expressed concern that it could tricky to reach the 16th fairway from the back tee.
Dawson said the distance from the tee to the short grass on the par 5 was 200 yards. He thinks the world's best players should be able to cope. "But if the wind is this strong, I'm sure we'll be favouring the front end of the tee rather than the back. I'm usually answering questions about the ball going too far. It's the first one for a while about the ball not going far enough…"
Apart from the breeze, the combination of thick rough and quickening fairways will add to the difficulty. Above average rainfall encouraged growth in the rough while the fairways have dried out and are reasonably firm.
One part of the course which has attracted criticism is the new undulating green on the 17th, which has been likened to a skateboard park. "With the pin positions we have in mind, I'm quite happy that it's perfectly playable," Dawson added. "I'm sure the green will be reviewed after the championship."
Officials are confident there will be no repeat of the "horribly slow" play at the US Masters, with tighter time-per-shot restrictions applied in Europe. The final two-ball at Augusta in April took five hours and 10 minutes, and a repeat of similar times on the first two days here could see players struggling to finish before dark.
The full article contains 598 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
