The European Tour will resume on 22 July with a run of six tournaments over six weeks in the UK. The calendar has been wiped out since 8 March because of the coronavirus pandemic but a return date has now been set, with the British Masters at Close House near Newcastle the opening tournament in July. With the season to run through until December, all tournaments will be played behind closed doors and subject to strict safety and testing protocols. Other events in the British swing are a revived English Open at Forest of Arden, the English Championship at Hanbury Manor, back-to-back tournaments at Celtic Manor – the Celtic Classic and the Wales Open – and the UK Championship at the Belfry. They are all subject to the lifting of the two-week quarantine by the government. Four Rolex Series events have also been announced, with the Scottish Open and PGA Championship in back-to-back weeks in October, while the Nedbank Golf Challenge and the World Tour Championship will take place in December. Keith Pelley, the European Tour chief executive, said: “We have consistently said that safety is our absolute priority and that is why today we are announcing our resumption in two months’ time supported by a comprehensive health strategy which has been led by our medical team. Without question we have had to think differently about the remainder of our 2020 season which is reflected in today’s announcement. As golf’s global tour, diversity is ordinarily one of our biggest strengths, but in this instance it has become one of our biggest challenges. “Initially, therefore, based on the expert guidance we received, playing in clusters, in one territory, is the best option in terms of testing, travel and accommodation.” While the Race To Dubai will still name a champion in December, the European Tour’s committee has decided that no player will lose his card this year, nor will there be any formal graduations from the Challenge Tour.
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