The membership of the R&A, golf’s world governing body and organiser of The Open Championship, has backed fully a reorganisation plan to establish a new charitable foundation and a new corporate structure for rules and championship management.
Work on the reorganisation plan began in the summer of 2000 and won backing from members earlier this month.
The plan legally separates the worldwide rule making, championship and commercial activities of the R&A from those of its private members‘ club.
The R&A operates with the consent of 127 golf-playing nations and on behalf of an estimated 26 million golfers in Europe, Africa, Asia and The Americas (outside the USA and Mexico). The United States Golf Association (USGA) is the games governing body in the United States and Mexico.
The establishment of a corporate structure will allow broader representation on committees by removing the burden of unlimited personal liability on committee members, as well as on all members of the Club.
The planned R&A Foundation will take over the administration and distribution of surpluses generated from The Open Championship and will provide increased funding for the worldwide development of the game of golf. The new R&A Foundation is forecast to distribute £50 million by 2010.
Having voted in favour of the plan, the R&A membership will be asked to ratify the detailed proposal in September with a view to seeing the new structure in place by the end of the year.
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