Senior officials of the United Kingdom’s (UK) government have approached The R&A to explore the possibility of hosting the 2028 Open Championship at Turnberry Golf Club, owned by President Donald Trump.
It has been reported that the UK’s Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) raised the idea during discussions around potential logistical challenges to host the event.
Trump bought Turnberry, in 2014, and has invested millions in renovations. Both Prime Minister Keir Starmer and King Charles privately acknowledged the course’s importance. Turnberry could expect a huge financial boost from hosting and OPEN Championship, which would help ease a reported £1.7m operating loss last year.
Turnberry remains on the R&A’s list of eligible Open venues, but has not hosted an OPEN since 2009. With the Open’s crowds doubling since then, infrastructure upgrades to host that large of an event would cost millions.
After previously distancing itself from Turnberry following the 2021 U.S. Capitol attack, the R&A’s new chief executive, Mark Darbon, recently signaled an openness for a return to Turnberry, citing ongoing feasibility studies to assess road, rail, and accommodation improvements.
Turnberry hosted The Open Championship four times, 1977, 1986, 1994, and 2009. The most memorable Open at Turnberry was in 1977, when Tom Watson defeated Jack Nicklaus in a dramatic “Duel in the Sun.” Greg Norman won his first OPEN at Turnberry in 1986. Nick Price won in 1994 and in 2009, at the age of 59, Tom Watson lost a playoff to Stewart Cink.
Turnberry is one of the most iconic links courses in the world and despite the political fallout from Trump’s ownership, it deserves to be in the OPEN Championship rota.
