The future of The European Tour looks bright

The European Tour’s Chief Operating Officer, Keith Waters, talks exclusively to Worldwide Golf about the future of The European Tour and the importance of  Dubai, the United Arab Emirates in particular and the Middle East region in general.

WORLDWIDE GOLF:  With the recent appointment of Keith Pelley to Chief Executive are you pleased with the progress of The Tour and the new relationship with the Asian Tour?

KEITH WATERS: I’m very pleased. While there are some immediate benefits or improvements to the way The Tour operates Keith is building a new culture and framework for sustained development and success for the future.

WORLDWIDE GOLF: You have said that Dubai and the Middle East has become an important stronghold for The Tour. Do you see more tournaments coming in the area in the future?

KEITH WATERS: Clearly there is a limit to how many tournaments a region or country can host but the existing tournaments are very important to The Tour and have even greater potential. We will work with each tournament promoter to ensure we maximise this potential which, as you say, is growing again.

DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES - NOVEMBER 23:  Henrik Stenson of Sweden hits his tee-shot on the tenth hole during the final round of the DP World Tour Championship at Jumeirah Golf Estates on November 23, 2014 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.  (Photo by Andrew Redington/Getty Images)

WORLDWIDE GOLF: With the new JGE clubhouse now established along with the ETPI do you believe it has finally become the sort of facility that The Tour is proud to be associated with?

KEITH WATERS: The excellent Earth course has been maintained to an exceptionally high level for the past eight years and now we have the ETPI and the clubhouse to complement the Earth course and the Fire course we are delighted to be associated with such a world-class facility which is worthy of hosting our end of season finale, the DP World Tour Championship.

WORLDWIDE GOLF: With Julian Small now installed at JGE as Managing Director, Club Operations, do you envisage even greater growth in certain areas, as he achieved when he was at Wentworth?

KEITH WATERS: Julian is a very capable manager and has a proven track record which can only benefit JGE, our relationship with JGE and the DP World Tour Championship.

WORLDWIDE GOLF: This upcoming DP World Tour Championship has a special significance with Stenson bidding for a hat-trick – do you think this will make it an even bigger event?

KEITH WATERS: Henrik going for an unprecedented hat-trick and Rory aiming to finish the season with a flourish and retain his Race to Dubai crown combines to make the tournament a very exciting prospect.

WOBURN, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 11:  (L-R) Ian Poulter, The Duke of Bedford, Matthew Fitzpatrick, Barney Francis (Head of Sky Sports) and Keith Waters (COO of The European Tour) poses with the trophy during the final round of the British Masters supported by Sky Sports at Woburn Golf Club on October 11, 2015 in Woburn, England.  (Photo by Andrew Redington/Getty Images)

WORLDWIDE GOLF: The revamped British Masters at Woburn supported by Sky SPORTS and hosted by Ian Poulter was a huge success and with Luke Donald hosting the tournament next year at The Grove it promises to be another big success. Lee Westwood is due to host the event in 2017. Do you think this is the way forward for the future with leading players hosting top tournaments?

KEITH WATERS: I think there is a real chance this concept will develop further. Rory has committed to hosting the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open again, at the K Club, which promises to be even bigger and better event than this year and there are other illustrious players who could host their national tournament.

WORLDWIDE GOLF: Are there any plans to reduce the minimum number of 13 events that players have to play to qualify as a Tour Member and be considered for The Ryder Cup – with the four Majors and the four WGCs they only have to play five more tournaments, do you think it’s a reasonable ask?

KEITH WATERS: We feel that five European Tour tournaments is a realistic number in addition to the eight Majors and World Golf Championships events, as the top 50 world-ranked player has worldwide commitments to fulfil on both Tours and we obviously want the best European Tour players to qualify for the Ryder Cup team, so we think this currently works very well.

WORLDWIDE GOLF: Rickie Fowler and Patrick Reid have intimated that they would like to play more events on The Tour – do you think this is a possibility?

KEITH WATERS: We hope so. It’s up to us at The European Tour to make our tournaments and our Tour itself more attractive for the World`s best players, and that’s what we intend to do.

WORLDWIDE GOLF: Is it feasible to group the biggest Tour events around The Open to encourage players to play several events in successive weeks?

KEITH WATERS: The AAM Scottish Open already attracts many of the World`s best players so this definitely works but the scheduling, by its very nature, is complicated. For instance, hosting a tournament in London and competing against Wimbledon tennis fortnight is challenging and players don’t want to travel too extensively just before a Major.  So playing outside the UK is not an attractive proposition. After The Open, players focus on the WGC and the US PGA Championship. This is a busy time of the year and there just aren’t enough slots in the calendar  to accommodate additional events.

WORLDWIDE GOLF: Will the new relationship with the Asian Tour mean that more Asian Tour players are likely to play on The Tour?

KEITH WATERS: Yes, providing they can play well enough to gain a top 110 place in the Race to Dubai rankings. It’s always difficult predicting where the best players will come from. European players have been consistently strong for many years now but that may change over the next ten years.

 

WORLDWIDE GOLF: Is the Final Series attracting the big name players as intended?

KEITH WATERS: The stats show that it has. But, of course, you can always name the two or three players who miss each tournament. The DP World Tour Championship has consistently attracted all the best players. Only injuries have stopped a top-15 Race to Dubai-ranked player from playing in Dubai in eight years. We expect all the top 60 players to compete at JGE this month unless injuries or personal circumstances prevent it.

WORLDWIDE GOLF: What is the schedule for 2016 looking like?

KEITH WATERS: The 2016 Tour Schedule is looking very strong and it will be announced on the final day of the DP World Tour Championship.

WORLDWIDE GOLF: With the clash of the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational and the French Open what sort of feedback has The Tour had from members?

KEITH WATERS: The Tour members have been, and continue to be, very supportive and many have already stated publicly that they will play in Paris next year.

WORLDWIDE GOLF: Are you pleased with the situation The Tour is in at present and how rosy does the future look?

KEITH WATERS: There is much work to be done but we are very optimistic about the long term future as the co-operation with the other Tours (South Africa, Australia, Korea, Asia and Japan) is at an all-time high. n

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