Eddie Pepperell backs possible run of UK-based European Tour events
Tuesday 12 May 2020 18:00, UK
Eddie Pepperell believes the European Tour are doing all they can in their bid to resume the golf season and would relish the opportunity to play multiple events in the UK.
Get the best prices and book a round at one of 1,700 courses across the UK & Ireland
The European Tour's calendar has been decimated by the coronavirus pandemic, with no events since the Qatar Masters finished on March 8 and the schedule currently not set to return until the British Masters at the end of July.
European Tour chief executive Keith Pelley admitted in an open letter last month that is impossible to pinpoint a return date, with travel restrictions in place in most countries, while Pepperell backed recent reports of multiple UK-based tournaments in succession once golf can resume.
"I've heard similar rumours in that there's going to be three or four UK-based events to begin with," Pepperell told The Golf Show. "My understanding is that they would be based at golf clubs or locations whereby there are hotels on site and it could be somewhat more manageable.
"There would be no support staff and this type of thing. That's my understanding as of the plan at the moment. It could be a little bit inaccurate, but I think that's somewhere in the ballpark we're hoping to get to as a Tour.
"From my perspective that's obviously a good thing, because I live in the UK. But also for the guys from Europe, they can travel here, deal with the quarantine period for the week or two before and then stay here for four weeks.
"It makes a lot of sense and I think it's as good as an option as we've got at the moment, as we haven't got any really great options. There'll be some interesting scenarios potentially thrown up."
The PGA Tour remain confident that they will resume their season from June 11-14, although Pepperell is unsure whether he would commit to playing events in America under the current restrictions.
"I saw a memo that went out to caddies on the PGA Tour, outlining a number of things," Pepperell added. "One interesting thing that stood out to me was that if a PGA Tour player gets tested positive then they will be disqualified and asked to quarantine in that state for 14 days.
The Golf Show
"That will throw up some really interesting scenarios and that might mean that foreign players have to question whether they will want to travel with that risk. I know I would reconsider it."
