Wait and see.
That’s the approach R&A leadership is taking to England possibly qualifying for the World Cup final against Spain on Sunday. If England were to make it past Argentina (match starts 3 p.m. ET Wednesday) reports suggested the 154th Open Championship’s final-round tee times would be changed.
Mark Darbon, chief executive of the R&A, rebuffed Wednesday that any decision had been made to alter Sunday’s start time at Royal Birkdale. That’s not to say Darbon won’t be paying attention to the World Cup semis, in multiple capacities.
“I’m an England football fan, so it would be a great problem to have. But I guess also, because I’m an England football fan, we should also wait to see how the semifinal goes before we get too far ahead,” he told reporters.
Darbon said The Open’s final putt is currently scheduled for around 6:40 p.m. local time on Sunday. Spain vs. the England-Argentina winner won’t begin until 8 p.m. local.
“We’ve been doing a lot of thinking about this,” Darbon revealed. “We think that, even if we go to a three-hole playoff, we’ve got time to complete the championship. So at this stage, no plans to alter anything, but we’ll maintain that under review and finalize our position after the semifinal.”
The last bit is important — if England wins, things could change in Southport.
What is firm, other than the greens and fairways at Royal Birkdale this week, is that the first round will tee off at 1:35 a.m. ET on Thursday. The first trio out is Matthew Baldwin, Thomas Detry and James Nicholas.
Peacock will kickoff live first-round coverage at 1:30 a.m. ET with USA Sports and Golf Channel mobile showcasing from 4 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. ET. A two-hour “Live From The Open” recaps the day at the conclusion of play.
