European Ryder Cup captain Padraig Harrington predicts The Open will be postponsed but also declared golf has ‘a duty’ to ensure the 2020 Ryder Cup is held this September and not postponed twelve months.
Should the Coronavirus pandemic should continue into late August/early September the Dubliner suggests forget the qualifying system and each team simply pick their 12 best players.
And Harrington believes the 43rd staging of the Ryder Cup could very well be a perfect ‘return tournament’ would be the Ryder Cup along the shores of Lake Michigan.
“We’re playing on, if at all possible, because the merit of getting out there and showcasing our sport far outweighs a perfect qualifying system,” said Harrington to the Daily Mail.
“It wouldn’t worry me if we were the first tournament back and I had to go with 12 picks with no qualifying. In many ways, it would be perfect if the Ryder Cup was the first tournament back. Just 12 guys from Europe and 12 from America, with no prize money at stake and competing just for the glory? Wouldn’t that be a nice way for sport to start back?.
“The models are changing regularly, as you can imagine, as we lose more tournaments,’ he says, but there is no consideration given yet to what he plainly regards as the doomsday one of postponement. Look at this way. Imagine if they showed a live game from the National League in football on television tonight. The whole of Britain and Ireland would be watching.
Padraig Harrington predicting the Open to be postponed & declaring the Ryder Cup needs to be staged in 2020 (Photo – European Tour)
“That’s the power of live sport, and how much we’re missing it. Multiply that by so many times and you get to the scale of the Ryder Cup. Don’t we have a duty and a responsibility to try to hold it? Qualifying can always be sorted out.”
Harrington made his Ryder Cup debut in the Mark James’ hopelessly led 1999 ‘Battle of Brookline’ team and qualified automatically for the 2001 Team only for the 9/11 events three weeks earlier to see the series of matches postponed to 2002.
He then knows first hand the pressure that then faced though that pales compared to this 2020 global crisis.
“I’m a reasonable person when it comes to preparing for all eventualities but how could you have foreseen anything so horrifying? he also said to the Daily Mail.
“We’ve got all our different scenarios but none of them really add up to anything important in the real world. But we go on, and we’re trying to be ready. If we can play, we’ll be there, and I know the PGA of America are on the same page.”
And he was asked what he thought the scenario with regards to any postponement of The Open, and event he captured back-to-back in 2007 and 2008.
“I have an inside track regarding the Ryder Cup and I can tell you our date is set in stone and the other authorities are working around us but but I’m not privy to other details,” said Harrington.
“I’d say the Open will move from July to a later date rather than be cancelled, and there must be a strong chance there will be two majors played back to back.
“Right now, though, wouldn’t we all just love to be worrying about such a hectic playing schedule?”.
