Mount Juliet awaits Irish Open green light; injured Meadow in card battle
Mount Juliet is the white-hot favourite to be announced as the host for the Dubai Dubai Free Irish Open from May 28-31 next year.
With Rory McIlroy a certain starter, the expected date change was confirmed when the European Tour released its full 2019-20 schedule yesterday.
European Tour officials, including the tournament's Championship Director Simon Alliss, are expected to visit the Thomastown venue next week.
The move to May was prompted by a clash of dates with the WGC FedEx St Jude Invitational in Memphis, which has moved from the week after The Open to the July 2-4 date occupied by the Irish Open for the last three years.
The World Golf Championship event will be played opposite the PGA Tour's Barracuda Championship in Nevada and the Open de France, which is one of several events changing date next year.
While nine venues have yet to be confirmed, including France, the schedule features a minimum of 46 Race to Dubai events in 29 countries, including eight Rolex Series events.
The date changes include a move for the Andalucia Masters at Valderrama from October to April 30-May 3 when it will become the first Ryder Cup qualifying event to multiply points by 1.5 until the team is finalised at the BMW PGA Championship next September.
This week's Mutuactivos Open de Espana will remain at the Club de Campo in Madrid next October.
Shane Lowry's nearest rival for the Race to Dubai, Jon Rahm, defends the title there this week and he's set his sights on breaking one of Seve Ballesteros' records.
Ballestros won his fifth title in his 49th start but the reigning Dubai Duty Free Irish Open champion Rahm, who does not plan to play again until the season-ending DP World Tour Championship, is hoping to win his fifth in his 39th start this week.
"I hope I can get to five before Seve did," said Rahm, who is joined in Madrid by Paul Dunne, Gavin Moynihan and Michael Hoey.
"I would love to do that. Those records are always nice. That's something I have in mind when I'm playing."
Dunne, currently ranked 106th, has been told his current Race to Dubai points tally is already beyond the projected minimum required to finish inside the top 119 who will keep their cards this year.
He will have Greystones professional Karl Holmes as his caddie in Madrid following his split with his bagman of four years, Darren Reynolds, at Wentworth.
Moynihan is 159th in the rankings and likely making his last regular European Tour appearance of the season as he prepares to return to the Q-School while 173rd ranked Hoey faces a similar scenario.
Leona ready to claim card but injured Meadow in last chance saloon
In women’s golf, fifth-ranked Leona Maguire will be aiming to secure her LPGA Tour card via the top-10 in the money list at the season-ending Symetra Tour Championship in Florida, but Stephanie Meadow is running out of time to keep hers.
Struggling with a shoulder injury that forced her to withdraw last week, the Jordanstown star needs a top-10 finish in the Volunteers of America Classic in Dallas to extend her season or face another trip to the Q-Series.
She is outside the top 100 in the rankings and will not qualify for any of the events in Asia over the next few weeks unless she has what she described as “a really big week.”
On the Challenge Tour, Portmarnock Links' Robin Dawson and Shannon's Danny Brennan are the only Irishmen in action in the Lalla Aïcha Challenge Tour at Royal Golf Dar Es Salam in Morocco.
Dawson is looking to move from 86th into the top 70 in the Road to Mallorca Rankings as soon as possible so he can secure his full Challenge Tour card for next season.
2019-20 European Tour International Schedule
November
28 - 1 Dec Hong Kong Open, Hong Kong GC, Fanling, Hong Kong
28 - 1 Dec Alfred Dunhill Championship, Leopard Creek CC, Malelane, South Africa
December
Dec 5 - 8 Afrasia Bank Mauritius Open, Heritage GC, Heritage Bel Ombre, Mauritius
19 - 22 Australian PGA Championship, RACV Royal Pines Resort, Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia
January
Jan 9 - 12 South African Open hosted by the City of Johannesburg, Randpark GC, Johannesburg, South Africa
16 - 19 ABU DHABI HSBC CHAMPIONSHIP PRESENTED BY EGA, Abu Dhabi GC, Abu Dhabi, UAE
23 - 26 Omega Dubai Desert Classic, Emirates GC, Dubai, UAE
30 - 2 Feb Saudi International Powered by SBIA, Royal Greens G&CC, King Abdullah Economic City, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
February
Feb 6 - 9 ISPS Handa Vic Open, 13th Beach GC, Geelong, Victoria, Australia
20 - 23 WGC - Mexico Championship, Chapultepec GC, Mexico City, Mexico
27 - 1 Mar Oman Open, Al Mouj Golf, Muscat, Oman
March
Mar 5 - 8 Commercial Bank Qatar Masters Education City GC, Doha, Qatar
12 - 15 Magical Kenya Open Presented by Absa, Karen CC, Nairobi, Kenya
19 - 22 Hero Indian Open, DLF G&CC, New Delhi, India
25 - 29 WGC - Dell Technologies Match Play Austin CC, Austin, Texas, USA
April
Apr 9 - 12 THE MASTERS, Augusta National GC, Georgia, USA
16-19 Maybank Championship, TBC, Malaysia
23-26 Volvo China Open, TBC, China
30-3 May Estrella Damm N.A. Andalucia Masters hosted by the Sergio Garcia Foundation, Real Club Valderrama, Sotogrande, Spain
May
May 9-10 GolfSixes Cascais, Oitavos Dunes, Cascais, Portugal
14-17 US PGA CHAMPIONSHIP, TPC Harding Park, San Francisco, CA, USA
21-24 Made in Denmark presented by FREJA, Himmerland Golf & Spa Resort, Farsoe, Denmark
28-31 DUBAI DUTY FREE IRISH OPEN TBC, Ireland
June
Jun 4-7 Trophee Hassan II, Royal Golf Dar Es Salam, Rabat, Morocco
11-14 Scandinavian Invitation, TBC, Sweden
18-21 US OPEN, Winged Foot GC, Mamaroneck, NY, USA
25-28 BMW International Open, Golfclub München Eichenried, Munich, Germany
July
Jul 2-5 Open de France, TBC, France
2-5 WGC - FedEx St. Jude Invitational, TPC Southwind, Memphis, TN, USA
9-12 ABERDEEN STANDARD INVESTMENTS SCOTTISH OPEN, The Renaissance Club, North Berwick, Scotland
16-19 The 149th OPEN, Royal St, George's GC, Sandwich, Kent, England
30-2 Aug Betfred British Masters hosted by Lee Westwood, Close House GC, Newcastle upon Tyne, England
30-2 Aug Olympic Men's Golf Competition Kasumigaseki CC, Saitama, Japan
August
Aug 6-9 UK Event Confirmed, TBC
13-16 TBC
20-23 D+D Real Czech Masters, Albatross Golf Resort, Prague, Czech Republic
27-30 Omega European Master, Crans-sur-Sierre GC, Crans Montana, Switzerland
September
Sep 3-6 Porsche European Open, Green Eagle Golf Courses, Hamburg, Germany
10-13 BMW PGA CHAMPIONSHIP, Wentworth Club, Virginia Water, Surrey, England
17-20 KLM Open Bernardus Golf, Cromvoirt, The Netherlands
25-27 The 2020 Ryder Cup, Whistling Straits GC, WI, USA
October
Oct 1-4 Alfred Dunhill Links Championship, Old Course St Andrews, Carnoustie & Kingsbarns, Scotland
8-11 ITALIAN OPEN, TBC, Italy
15-18 Mutuactivos Open de Espana, Club de Campo Villa de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
22-25 Portugal Masters, Dom Pedro Victoria GC, Vilamoura, Portugal
29-1 Nov WGC - HSBC Champions Sheshan International GC, Shanghai, China
November
Nov 5-8 TURKISH AIRLINES OPEN, TBC, Turkey
12-15 NEDBANK GOLF CHALLENGE HOSTED BY GARY PLAYER, Gary Player CC, Sun City, South Africa
19-22 DP WORLD TOUR CHAMPIONSHIP, DUBAI, Jumeirah Golf Estates, Dubai, UAE