Reports in the Irish Examiner today suggest that the Irish Open may be on the point of signing up a new title sponsor and confirming Fota Island in Cork as the venue for the 2014 tournament.
Fáilte Ireland have supported the event as headline sponsor for the past three years, enabling it to maintain a place among the higher ranks of the tournaments on the European Tour. It is a popular event on the calendar and is the only one to have ‘sold out’ in terms of attendance when it was held at Royal Portrush in 2012. Before that it was held in Killarney and in 2013 it was won by Paul Casey at Carton House.
Carton House has expressed an interest in hosting the event again when it is held between June 19th and 22nd next year, one week earlier in the schedule than has previously been the case.
Former headline sponsors of the tournament include Three, Murphy’s and Nissan while the roster of official partners in 2013 was impressive with the inclusion of Heineken, BMW and Emirates Airlines among others.
It is not yet clear whether the new sponsor will come from this existing group of organisations that have had a previous association or whether it will be a new brand to the sport but we will keep you informed as the story develops.
