CASEY SAYS ENGLAND'S LACK OF TOUR EVENTS IS EMBARRASSING

FROM THE AOL.COM SPORT WEBSITE
By Ben Hunt
A few months ago, FanHouse UK looked at Lee Westwood's justification for the European Tour to stage more events in England.
Currently, England stages just one - The BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth - where as in the past it held other events, such as the popular English Open at The Belfry or The HSBC World Match Play.
The Tour has swollen to include many co-sanctioned events in South Africa and Asia, and that is good news for the players and the overall state of the game.
However, you cannot escape that while the chiefs at the European Tour are always looking to expand, they have ignored the golf fans who set them on their road to success in the first place.
Since the European Tour moved their headquarters to Dubai - which is in itself a strange paradox - there is the sense that England has been forgotten.
There is the argument that England does not have the courses suitable to host a substantial tournament.
However, that perspective is instantly dismissed by the fact the Open will be held this year at Royal St George's in Kent. It was also successfully staged at Royal Liverpool Golf Club in 2006 and will again return there in 2014.
A few years ago, there was also a WGC event at The Grove in Hertfordshire, so there is the proof England does have the courses.
All things considered, it seems a shame that England is not getting another regular tournament on the European Tour's schedule, although Paul Casey goes a step further and labels it "embarrassing".
He told The Daily Mail: "It upsets me, annoys me, it's embarrassing. One European Tour event in England at a time when we've got so many world-class players? It's rubbish.
"You can watch as many events as you like on television but there's no substitute for actually attending an event and that's what concerns me.
"If I hadn't been able to go to Wentworth twice a year or Walton Heath for the European Open, I'm not sure I'd have wanted to become a pro.
"Young people get inspired by watching the game close-up. If we don't get these events back given the great players we currently possess, when will we?"
Casey makes a fair point and one the European Tour need to take into consideration, for while they might be patting themselves on the back for securing lucrative sponsorship and expanding television deals, there is nothing like watching the action live.
By limiting the amount of exposure English golf fans get to the live events, could in turn harm the state of domestic game.
If that does happen, then this could be the last time we see three Englishman inside the top seven in the world rankings.

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