In the wake of recent problems in tennis and cricket, new R&A CEO Martin Slumbers "admitted that inappropriate gambling is a subject moving towards the top of the agenda for golf's authorities," according to Iain Carter of the BBC. Slumbers spoke to BBC Sport "in his first major interview since taking over at the St Andrews-based governing body."
He "was cautiously optimistic regarding golf's return to the Olympics, said the game must do better at attracting young players" and addressed the issue of controversial U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump's ownership of Ayrshire golf course Turnberry.
His comments regarding the hot topic of betting irregularities "were most striking." Only last week European Tour CEO Keith Pelley said that "there was absolutely no concern over the issue in golf." Slumbers, though, "is striking a more vigilant note."
Slumbers said, "We have not been made aware of any evidence yet of the type of issues currently being discussed happening in the game of golf. That doesn't mean we are complacent about it." Golf "prepares to return to the Olympics in Rio this summer."
It "is being viewed as a massive opportunity for the sport to grow on a global scale." So, "how much will the sport be strengthened by returning to the Games?"
Slumbers said, "Hopefully very much stronger. I'm always amazed every four years when the Olympics comes along at what sports I watch. So there will be a lot of people out there who will say 'Right let's watch the golf,' and that exposure to hundreds of millions or billions of people watching the Olympics could be fantastic." For Slumbers, the biggest challenge is "to actually capitalise on the Olympic enthusiasm that will arise." Slumbers warned,
"But we mustn't let that enthusiasm die." Slumbers "is also aware that the enthusiasm for golf among the younger generation should not be dimmed by an old-fashioned stuffiness that he accepts remains prevalent in the sport." The R&A has a relationship with the man who wants to be Obama's successor in the White House, Trump. Following the "outrage sparked by the presidential candidate's comments on Mexicans and Muslims, can golf do business with him?" Slumbers said,
"The important thing for us is to focus on what is the right thing for golf. Politics is something that we should not comment on and we should not stray into." But "is that at odds with taking The Open to a Trump-owned Turnberry?" Slumbers "dodged the question by stating the championship could not go to the Ayrshire course until 2022 at the earliest." He said,
"That's something we don't have to consider for a couple of years yet. The world may change quite a lot in the next six years and we will consider it at that point" (BBC, 1/28).
