DP World Tour and LIV Golf stars BLAST new St Andrews golf event

DP World Tour's Richie Ramsay and LIV Golf's Lee Westwood are fuming with St Andrews' decision to not invite a UK university to its new event at the Home of Golf.

Andy Roberts

26 Jul 2023

DP World Tour and LIV Golf stars BLAST brand new St Andrews golf event

DP World Tour pro Richie Ramsay and LIV Golf star Lee Westwood have both hit out at St Andrews Links' new college event that will comprise of four distinguished universities in the United States competing on the historic Old and Jubilee Courses at St Andrews this October.

Ramsay, 40, is a four-time winner on the DP World Tour with an impressive record as an amateur having won the Scottish Amateur (2004), Irish Amateur (2005) and US Amateur (2006).

The Scot took to Twitter to vent his frustration at seeing the Home of Golf confirm a new partnership with NBC Sports this October to host an event solely for US universities (Georgetown, North Carolina, Notre Dame and Vanderbilt).

Sky Sports will also be providing coverage of the tournament in the UK.

So u putting on a college event but don’t invite a UK university ??????????? Please explain this https://t.co/iy4i6YQF1k
— Richie Ramsay (@RamsayGolf) July 26, 2023

Ramsay tweeted:

"So u putting on a college event but don’t invite a UK university ??????????? Please explain this."

LIV Golf's Westwood, who needs little introduction with 25 wins on the European Tour including three Order of Merit / Race to Dubai titles, also chimed in to the thread.

Westwood tweeted:

"Is there a reason that a UK university hasn’t been invited?"

The tournament, which will be known as the St Andrews Links Collegiate moving forwards, will be presented by both TopGolf and World Wide Technology.

Is there a reason that a UK university hasn’t been invited?
— Lee Westwood (@WestwoodLee) July 26, 2023

The news has not sat well with a number of golf fans, either.

"NBC didn't realize the UK had universities," read one irate tweet.

Another golf fan commented: "Which UK universities are represented? Seriously, get it together."

"Where do you start with this announcement?" wrote one golf fan bluntly.

Where do you start with this announcement ?
— Amateur Golf Bible (@GolfBible) July 26, 2023

The St Andrews Links article reads as follows:

NBC Sports and St Andrews Links Trust have announced the inaugural St Andrews Links Collegiate Presented by TopGolf and World Wide Technology, to be held on the Jubilee Course and the Old Course in St Andrews, Scotland, this 23rd-25th October.

The signature three-day event will feature men’s and women’s golf teams from Georgetown University, the University of North Carolina, the University of Notre Dame and Vanderbilt University with two days of stroke play on the Jubilee Course followed by a day of medal match play on the Old Course at St Andrews.

NBC Sports will present live coverage of the St Andrews Links Collegiate on GOLF Channel and Peacock in the United States. Sky Sports will provide coverage in the UK. The broadcast will introduce a strong international audience to the broader offering of golf at St Andrews Links, with the Jubilee Course featuring on a live broadcast for the first time.

“We are honoured and proud to partner with St Andrews Links Trust on this new collegiate invitational at the Home of Golf,” said Tom Knapp, NBC Sports EVP, Golf. “The St Andrews Links Collegiate elevates and enhances our already impactful college golf platform. We’re excited to have TopGolf and World Wide Technology join us as presenting sponsors, and we’re thrilled to showcase men’s and women’s student athletes from distinguished universities like Georgetown, North Carolina, Notre Dame and Vanderbilt this October in Scotland.”

Neil Coulson, CEO of St Andrews Links Trust, said: “We are delighted to partner with NBC to bring the first collegiate event to the Home of Golf, creating a new invitational which will see some of the game’s brightest young stars from four distinguished institutions compete in the birthplace of the game. We firmly believe this event has the potential to evolve and develop over time, exploring the established US collegiate system as well as institutions further afield to create one of the most anticipated events on the calendar.”

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