Royal Portrush to host 2019 Open Championship
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Royal Portrush to host 2019 Open Championship

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It appears to finally be Royal Portrush's time.

Golf Digest is reporting the famed Northern Ireland course will host the 2019 Open Championship, with an announcement made at the end of June.

Almost exactly a year ago, the Irish Sun reported Portrush would host the '18 Open, but the R&A quickly dismissed the report as inaccurate. Weeks later, ESPN UK reported the Dunluce links were slotted for 2018 or '19.

Portrush is the only course outside of England or Scotland to ever host the Open Championship, doing so in 1951.

In an effort to demonstrate to the governing body that it could host an Open, Portrush hosted the Irish Open in 2013 for the first time since 1947. Over 100,000 spectators turned out for the tournament.

The R&A, seemingly impressed, offered the 2017 Amateur Championship to Royal Portrush while maintaining concerns over security in the strife-torn nation and having the infrastructure to handle the crowds that come with hosting the game's oldest major championship. According to the Digest report, the R&A intends to commission favored golf-course architect Martin Hawtree to build two new holes on the course for the championship, using the existing 17th and 18th holes for seating and corporate hospitality.

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