The COVID 19 pandemic has forced the cancellation of the 2020 Open Championship at Royal St Georges in Kent, England. The 149th staging of the event will now take place next year, all being well. But for now, Christopher Vogt laments the gaping hole in golf’s calendar…
Golf’s oldest major won’t happen this year. That’s tough to take. But who doesn’t have a deep file of memories on which to draw at this unique time? The Open will return in 2021. But that seems forever away. In the meantime, my head and heart will be at Sandwich, missing the greatest tournament of all…
Dunes, pot bunkers, and wispy knee-high grass
Players wearing beanies
Golf played along the ground
Lesser-known players in contention early
The giant yellow scoreboard that looms over the 18th green, especially at the end when, this year, it would have carried the message ‘See you at St Andrews’
The proud, guttural roar that follows the birdie of any local player
Highlights of previous Opens, with Peter Alliss on the microphone
Aerial vision of the course, panning back to reveal coastal dunes and the sea
Snippets of Sandwich town, Pegwell Bay and the Kent countryside
Reference to Ian Fleming, author of the James Bond books and a devoted member of Royal St Georges. He called it “the best seaside course in the world”
“The Champion Golfer of the Year…”
