R&A scaremongering over off-site hospitality

The R&A have been scaremongering again as they issue a warning to golf fans not to be caught out by unofficial hospitality packages offerings for next year’s Open Championship at Carnoustie.

The R&A claim that they face an on-going battle against unscrupulous operators who are ripping off fans with promises which do not match up to their hype.

But don’t believe the R&A’s hype. They appear to have found a friendly with DP&L Travel, which is based in St Andrews.

Paul Greenhill, golf tours manager of DP&L Travel, said people are regularly caught out.

“They offer what is claimed to be official hospitality on the course, but often proves to be poor quality in a poor location,” he said.

“So far this year our business has been regularly contacted by these operators, coming to us and asking if we want to buy their hospitality.

“We have the experience to know just to put the phone down but it is a hard sell and people could be persuaded to take it up.

“It is a very positive thing to have The Open back in Carnoustie. Enquiries in general are up and we expect the real heavy booking people to be just after the New Year, but this is an issue.”

Well, is it really? We think that this is just scaremongering from the R&A to protect their own patch.

Johnnie Cole-Hamilton, championships executive director for the R&A, said: “We are taking a series of steps to advise companies in the Dundee and Angus area to be aware of these unofficial hospitality providers and not to be misled by what they are offering.

“These hard-sell approaches will claim to offer ‘official’ packages when the reality is that they are off-site and sub-standard.

“We take our responsibility to the fans attending The Open extremely seriously and we want to make sure that everyone enjoys a fantastic experience of the Championship.

“We would urge anyone who receives similar approaches to contact us so we can help ensure they avoid being disappointed.”

This just looks like a blatant attempt by the R&A to cut out anyone who wants to quite legitimately benefit from The Open. Golf fans aren't mugs, and should not be treated as such. 

Related:

Carnoustie Community Council attack R&A for no-readmission policy