FOR the first time in 92 years, the 2028 Open Championship is set to be held outside its traditional July slot.
Organisers R&A confirmed the tournament, one of golf‘s four Majors, will conclude on August 6 to avoid a clash with the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics to be held from July 19 to 29.
The venue for the groundbreaking 2028 Open Championship has not yet been announced.
It will be the first time since 1936 in Hoylake, when the British Open was held from June 25-27, that the annual event will be held completely outside the calendar month of July.
Alf Padgham won The Claret Jug and the winner’s prize of £100 that year, when the third and final rounds were played on the same Saturday.
In 2028, the LA Olympics will be held earlier than usual as NFL pre-season begins in August.
Flag football will debut as an Olympic sport, and NFL owners have voted to allow their players to participate.
The move will break a 92-year-long tradition in golf.
This has never happened post-World War Two, although the 1948 edition began on the last day of June.
R&A chief executive Mark Darbon said: “We have worked collaboratively with the relevant bodies and our partners to agree alternative dates for staging our major championships in 2028 to accommodate the Olympic golf competitions.
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“We appreciate the constructive discussions we have had with all of the stakeholders and believe that providing clarity on the dates now will assist with the planning of the global golf calendar in 2028.
“We can also confirm that The Open will be returning to its normal mid-July dates in 2029.”
The Open, first held in 1860, is the oldest golf tournament in the world.
The inaugural event was a one-day tournament on October 17, with Willie Park Snr emerging as the champion at Prestwick, Scotland.
Defending champion and World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler won his first Claret Jug at Royal Portrush in 2025.
The 2026 and 154th edition will be played in Royal Birkdale, along the North West coast in Southport.
