Players will be allowed to wear shorts for the first time on the European Tour this week.
European Tour Allows Shorts In Competition For First Time
For the first time in European Tour history, golfers will be allowed to wear shorts during tournament play this week at the Alfred Dunhill Championship held in South Africa.
Temperatures are believed to be hitting the 40 degree mark at Leopard Creek Country Club which pushed the Tour to make the decision. Roughly four hours east of Johannesburg, the Gary Player designed course is expected to be at its hottest on Saturday this week.
Related: Alfred Dunhill Championship Betting Tips
Previously players were only allowed to wear shorts on practice days and during pro-ams, they had to wear trousers during tournament play regardless of the weather. The European Tour introduced this shorts rule in 2016 and the PGA Tour followed suit this year.
However the intense heat the players will feel this week led to a change in thinking and it is a decision that appears to have gone down well with many players on Tour. Some of the tweets are below;
All prep done and ready for the challenge @DunhillChamps @EuropeanTour.Think it's going to be a tad warm with 40° forecast 🥵. Course is a great test,very different from 5 yrs ago. Mr Rupert and his team 👌🏻.Great move from both tours to allow shorts 👏🏻 #noshortsleft 😤
— Ross Fisher (@RossFisher) November 27, 2019
Great being back at @dunhillchamps at Leopard Creek. Gonna be a hot one 40 C next few days 🔥 but shorts allowed 🎉 🙏 Thanks @europeantour pic.twitter.com/0Dz0Vm45h9
— Oliver Wilson (@Oliver_Wilson) November 27, 2019
40+ degrees this week in South Africa.@Sunshine_Tour and @EuropeanTour have collectively decided we can wear shorts all week…
It’ll be a first for me!
Great decision 👏☀️🏌️♂️— Thomas Bjorn (@thomasbjorngolf) November 27, 2019
Great news from @cutmaker and @EuropeanTour @Sunshine_Tour We can wear shorts this week. #heatwave for my European friends 🤣 @LeopardCreekCC
— Ernie Els (@TheBig_Easy) November 27, 2019
As mentioned above the PGA Tour introduced shorts to their golf and it went down a storm with players like Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy.
Woods said; “We play in some of the hottest climates on the planet. We usually travel with the sun, and a lot of our events are played in the summer.”
“It makes the guys a lot more comfortable,” Rory McIlroy said. “… I don’t think there’s anything wrong with professional golfers showing the lower half of their leg.”
Related: Alfred Dunhill Championship Betting Tips
The Alfred Dunhill Championship kicks off the new European Tour season just a few days after Jon Rahm secured the DP World Tour Championship and Race to Dubai titles.
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