Fans at next week’s Open are being asked to abide by a new code of conduct brought in by the R&A.<\/p>\n
More than 300,000 spectators are expected at Royal Birkdale for the week of the championship, amid growing concerns over the general behaviour of golf fans.<\/p>\n
Now the R&A has published ‘The Open Commitment’, which “encourages everyone attending to play their part in protecting traditions”.<\/p>\n
In a statement, R&A chief executive Mark Darbon said: “The atmosphere at The Open is unlike any other major sporting event and one of the things that makes it so unique.<\/p>\n
“It is built on a shared respect for the players, the course, fellow fans and the traditions of the Championship.”<\/p>\n
To avoid further unsavoury scenes, on-course signs will tell fans to respect the players, respect the links, respect each other, be aware and enjoy responsibly.<\/p>\n
Last year’s Ryder Cup was marred by unruly scenes during Europe’s victory over the United States at Bethpage.<\/p>\n
Recently the US Open, also held on New York’s Long Island, was affected by boorish behaviour as galleries targeted eventual champion Wyndham Clark.<\/p>\n
In 2024, the last time The Open was held in the north west of England, winner Brian Harmon received jeers from home fans during his emphatic victory.<\/p>\n
And a month after winning the Claret Jug at Royal Portrush last year, world number one Scottie Scheffler said: “I heard some fairly choice words when I was leading the tournament in Ireland.”<\/p>\n
“People have a tendency to say things that are dumb. I can think of a few things that were said to me in the final round in Ireland that were very far over the line,” he added.<\/p>\n
Scheffler repeated his criticism of the Portrush crowds last month when asked about the abuse Clark received during his US Open win at Shinnecock Hills.<\/p>\n
“The Open Commitment isn’t about changing what makes The Open so special, it is about maintaining its long-standing traditions,” Darbon said.<\/p>\n
“By following a few simple principles, everyone can help ensure The Open remains a welcoming, respectful and unforgettable experience for all.”<\/p>\n
The code of conduct will also be made available through The Open’s digital channels and ticket communications for the Birkdale championship near Southport.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Fans at next week’s Open are being asked to abide by a new code of conduct brought in…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":751200,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[71],"tags":[427,99],"class_list":["post-751199","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-golf","tag-golf","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/751199","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=751199"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/751199\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/751200"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=751199"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=751199"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=751199"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}