ゴルフの賞金高騰、持続可能ではない　全英ＯＰ主催者が警告

【ホイレイク（英国）ＡＦＰ＝時事】男子ゴルフのメジャー大会の一つ、全英オープンを主催するロイヤル・アンド・エンシェント・ゴルフ・クラブのマーティン・スランバーズ最高経営責任者（ＣＥＯ）は１９日、ゴルフ界は賞金を増やし続けることで競技の将来を危機にさらしてはならないと警告を発した。（写真はロイヤル・アンド・エンシェント・ゴルフ・クラブのマーティン・スランバーズ最高経営責任者〈ＣＥＯ・右〉）
　男子ゴルフでは、サウジアラビアの政府系基金「パブリック・インベストメント・ファンド（ＰＩＦ）」の後援を受けたＬＩＶゴルフリーグが、数億ドル規模の契約金を武器にスター選手を引き抜くと、米国ツアー（ＵＳ ＰＧＡ Ｔｏｕｒ）も賞金を増額して対抗し、トップ選手の引き止めを図った。
　ＰＧＡとＤＰワールドツアー（欧州ツアー）はその後、財政的な将来を守るため、ＬＩＶゴルフを含むＰＩＦのゴルフ事業との統合にかじを取った。
　スランバーズＣＥＯは、対立に終止符を打つことになる統合案を歓迎するとしつつ、トップレベルの賞金が増え続けることで、草の根レベルの競技の財源は食いつぶされつつあると警告している。
　今週から始まる全英オープンの賞金総額は２０１６年から約２倍の１６５０万ドル（約２３億円）、優勝賞金は３００万ドル（約４億２０００万円）に増えているが、ＬＩＶゴルフの１大会の賞金２５００万ドル（約３５億円）や米国で開催される他のメジャー３大会の賞金は依然として下回る。
　「全英オープンの賞金と、草の根や新しいゴルフの取り組みへの適切な投資のバランスを取らなければならない」というスランバーズＣＥＯは、他の団体も同様の厳しい選択を迫られているのではないかと指摘し、「われわれは短期的な解決策を見つけるのではなく、長期的に見て財政的に持続可能なアプローチを取らなくてはならない」と主張した。
　また、全英オープンが賞金増額の手段として、タイトルスポンサーをつける案については明確に否定した。【翻訳編集ＡＦＰＢＢＮｅｗｓ】
〔ＡＦＰ＝時事〕（2023/07/20-17:17）

British Open organisers the R&A warned on Wednesday that golf cannot jeopardise its financial future by ever increasing prize money for players after the influx of cash to the sport from the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF).
Backed by the PIF, the breakaway LIV Golf series lured star names such as Phil Mickelson, Brooks Koepka and Cameron Smith to join the rebel tour with signing bonuses worth hundreds of millions of dollars.
The PGA Tour reacted with increased prize funds to try and retain its top talent.
But the PGA and DP World Tours have now turned to a proposed merger with the PIF's commercial golf businesses, including LIV, to secure their financial future.
Details of how the framework agreement will work in practice remain unknown, with leading players from both the PGA Tour and LIV voicing their frustration this week at being left in the dark.
The R&A are not part of that deal, but chief executive Martin Slumbers welcomed a deal to bring golf's civil war to an end.
To be clear, we're not party to the agreement, and while we absolutely welcome an end to the disruption in the men's professional game, there is a lot still to be understood, said Slumbers at a pre-tournament press conference ahead of the start of the British Open on Thursday..
The disruption being caused by the game is not good for the sport. It's tearing the sport apart. We need to move beyond that.
However, Slumbers warned that ever increasing rewards at the top of the game are eating into resources to grow the sport at grassroots level.
The prize money on offer at the British Open has almost doubled since 2016 to $16.5 million, with the winner at Hoylake this week walking away with $3 million.
But that remains below the $25 million on offer at each LIV event and the other three major championships in the United States.
We have to balance the prize fund at The Open with ensuring the appropriate investment in grass-roots and new golf initiatives, he added.
There's no doubt that our ability to achieve this has been impacted by the much more rapid acceleration in men's professional prize money than we had anticipated or planned for.
These are the stark choices which we, and I'm sure the other leading bodies in golf, are facing, and we have to take a strategic approach that is financially sustainable over the longer term rather than just finding short-term solutions.
Slumbers, though, categorically rejected suggestions the British Open could turn to a title sponsor as a means of increasing revenue.
Organisers are also preparing for potential disruption at the Royal Liverpool course this week from environmental protestors Just Stop Oil.
The group have targeted a series of leading sports events in Britain in recent months, including Wimbledon and the Ashes cricket series between England and Australia.
England wicketkeeper Jonny Bairstow carried one protester off the pitch at Lord's, but Slumbers is keen for players not to get involved.
We have advised the players please don't get involved and I stand by that, he said.
We have enough things in place to be able to deal with that. Beyond that I think security matters I need to keep confidential.