Euro Tour undecided about Irish Open date

NEGOTIATIONS about the future of the 2012 Irish Open are ongoing with a June 28 to July 1 date favourite to get the green light according to sources close to the European Tour.

Given that the powers at Wentworth continue to search for a new title sponsor before settling on a venue, it was no great surprise that the early part of the 2012 European Tour schedule released yesterday stopped just before the proposed new date for the Irish Open.

The new European Tour campaign will begin in January with the Africa Open and the Joburg Open in South Africa followed by the €2m Volvo Golf Champions event.

Scheduled from January 19-22, the ‘winners only’ Volvo Golf Champions event will leave strife-torn Bahrain, with the Fancourt Golf Resort in South Africa believed to be the likely new venue.

There are also new venues for the Volvo China Open, the Sicilian Open and the Spanish Open, which will return to the Real Club de Golf de Sevilla, where Peter Lawrie won in 2008.

While the Madeira Islands Open returns to Santo da Serra Golf Club, the most significant date change sees the Nordea Masters in Stockholm move from its traditional July date – the week after the Open Championship – to the week before the US Open. There will be a Saturday finish to the event in Sweden, which will allow players such as Darren Clarke and Rory McIlroy, who have already signed up, an extra day to make the journey from the Swedish capital to the Olympic Club in San Francisco.

Killarney Golf and Fishing Club is still regarded as the favourite to host the Irish Open for the third year in a row but a June 28 to July 1 date could present McIlroy with an intriguing choice. It clashes with the PGA Tour’s AT&T National at Congressional, where the Holywood player won the US Open by eight shots this year.

European Tour Schedule

January: 5-8: Africa Open, East London GC, South Africa; 12-15: Joburg Open, Royal Johannesburg & Kensington GC, South Africa; 19-22: Volvo Golf Champions TBA; 26-29: Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship, UAE.

February: 2-5: Commercial Bank Qatar Masters, Qatar; 9-12: Omega Dubai Desert Classic, Emirates GC, Dubai, UAE; 16-19: Avantha Masters, New Delhi, India; 22-26: WGC — Accenture Match Play Championship, Ritz-Carlton GC, Arizona.

March: 8-11: WGC — Cadillac Championship, Doral, Florida; 15-18: Open de Andalucia de Golf, TBA; 22-25: Trophée Hassan II, Golf du Palais Royal, Agadir, Morocco; 29-Apr 1: Sicilian Open Verdura Golf & Spa Resort, Sicily, Italy.

April: 5-8: Masters Tournament; 12-15: Maybank Malaysian Open, TBA; 19-22: Volvo China Open, Binhai Lake GC, Tianjin, China; 26-29: Ballantine’s Championship, Blackstone GC, Seoul, South Korea.

May: 3-6: Open de España, Real Club de Golf de Sevilla, Spain; 10-13: To be confirmed; 17-20: Volvo World Match Play Championship, Finca Cortesin, Spain; 17-20: Madeira Islands Open, Santo da Serra; 24-27: BMW PGA Championship Wentworth; 31-Jun 3: The Celtic Manor Wales Open, Celtic Manor Resort.

June: 6-9: Nordea Masters, Bro Hof Slott GC, Stockholm, Sweden; 14-17: US Open, Olympic Club, San Francisco; Saint Omer Open, Lumbres, France.