5.23.11
06the ryDer cup goes to france
when the european tour announced may 17 that the 2018 ryder
cup would be played at france’s le golf national course (shown),
there were more than a few raised eyebrows. some lamented the
fact the tournament will not be played at st. andrews or on any
of britain’s wonderful links venues, others that the tour sold out
and awarded the ryder cup to the highest bidder. but it has been
known for some time that the tournament was going to be played
on the continent, and of the five candidates to host the biennial
event—the netherlands, spain, portugal and germany were the
others—the tour got it right. the venue, outside paris, hosts the
alstom french open and at least one world-class player sings its
praises. geoff ogilvy, who played last year’s french open, told
Golf World’s John huggan “the last five or six holes have obviously
been designed with atmosphere and big events in mind. at the
french open the noise and buzz are incredible.” playing the ryder
cup in france will undoubtedly grow the game in a country that
currently boasts about 400,000 golfers, most of whom donated
€ 1 to the ryder cup cause, which includes, according to the plan,
the development of 100 six-to-nine hole courses. the only draw-
back to the french bid: no french golfer is ranked in the top 75 on
the world ranking. still, raphael Jacquelin (91st) and others have
seven years to improve their position. —John Antonini
philippe millereau/dppi/icon smi
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