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Golf

"Financially, it would probably be better to have the Ryder Cup next year" - Harrington

Europe's Ryder Cup captain Padraig Harrington insists that financial factors won't decide if the ...



Golf

"Financially, it would probably be better to have the Ryder Cup next year" - Harrington

Europe's Ryder Cup captain Padraig Harrington insists that financial factors won't decide if the event takes place this year.

His team are set to face America at Whistling Straits in September and Rory McIlroy suggested this week that players would rather wait for 12 months and have fans in attendance.

Harrington insists the European Tour don't need the team event to played in 2020 and that it would make more money should it take place next year.

"The European Tour is sitting on one of the biggest assets in sport. They're not going anywhere," he said. "When you look at the financial side of it, it's not for financial reasons to have it this year. Nobody needs it for that reason.

"Financially, it would probably be better to have it next year."

The Dubliner added that he feels the event would be "diminished" by not having fans in attendance:

"My friends who don't play golf are into the Ryder Cup because of the buzz, the atmosphere, the excitement, that's why the players enjoy it and play it. It's going to be missed.

"The question is, do they take one for sport? Do people sitting at home want the Ryder Cup in a diminished format, just so they have sport on TV?

"There's a much bigger thing going on. Put it in context of what's going on in the world. But this is why we're actually talking about the Ryder Cup going ahead. Because, in its current form, it certainly would only go on because sport may need - and people may need - a bit of an uplift."

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