We're excited to have the world’s top golfers at Royal Lytham and St Annes Golf Club for the Open Championship
In 27 months’ time, the scene will be very different at Royal Lytham and St Annes
What a difference two years and a few months will make to the scene at Royal Lytham and St Annes Golf Club.
On a sedate Tuesday, with the sun drifting in and out behind clouds, there was no hint that in little more than 27 months’ time, the club will be hosting the first and greatest golf tournament in the world for a 12th time.
It is already 14 years since the Fylde course was last the venue for the Open Championship and the game has rocketed even further in popularity in that time.
Consequently, in the summer of 2028, hundreds of thousands of spectators are expected at Royal Lytham and St Annes to see the world’s greatest players vying for the coveted Claret Jug prize.
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Add to that the accommodation and refreshment needs of the players, their entourages, media from across the world and golf officials and it all adds up to a likely multi-million pound boost for the Fylde area economy.
The AIG Women’s Open, being staged at the course in early August and for which the official press launch was being held today, will offer a welcome taste of what is to come in two years’ time.
But it is the Open Championship itself - with its history, prestige and true world renown - which is the ultimate prize for all of the links courses on the circuit - and in parallel in getting reading to welcome the AIG Women competitors, preparations are already underway.
“It’s wonderful news that the Open is returning to Royal Lytham and St Annes,” said club secretary Richard Cutler.
“The next two years will fly by and the work is already under way to welcome the world’s best golfers.
“It’s great for the club and great for the area and we are all so looking forward to a successful championship.”
A lot of work has already gone into preparing the course to stage the Open for the first time since South African Ernie Els’ triumph in 2012.
Remodelling works two years ago included a new practice ground and practice tee; building of a new tee on the 14th hole; alterations to reroute the 11th fairway; and works to improve the road system to provide access around the course.
The road outside the course, Links Gate, is currently being resurfaced to ensure it is at its best in time for the AIG Women’s Open and beyond.
Fylde Council leader Coun Karen Buckley, in speaking of the area’s enormous pride in welcoming the tournament, the thousands of visitors it brings and the consequent boost for local businesses, has pointed out its lasting legacy.
“It strengthens our visitor economy, inspires future generations and showcases Fylde as a destination of choice long after the final putt is sunk,” she said.
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Coun Buckley has also pointed out that research from Sheffield Hallam University’s Sport Industry Research Centre found that the event generated around £65m in economic benefits to Lancashire when the Open was hosted here in 2012, with £25m of that extra spending being received by the Fylde coast.
Fourteen years on already since then, a telling illustration of the growth of the game’s appeal is that the 151st Open, held at the Royal Liverpool in 2023, generated more than £187m in overall economic benefit for the Wirral and the wider Liverpool City Region - a growth of 35 per cent compared to the last event there in 2014.