THE Open is set to return to Wirral in less than a decade after a hugely successful competition at Hoylake.
The tournament's organisers, the R&A, praised the organisation which had allowed the event at the Royal Liverpool Golf Club to pass off with few hiccups over the last week.
Yesterday, the chief executive of the R&A Peter Dawson confirmed the course was back on the championship calendar.
Mr Dawson said: "If they will have us back - absolutely."
The four-day event, preceded by four practice days, had seen record crowds for an Open in England and the second highest ever.
It had been praised by all the players, including the eventual victor Tiger Woods, who described it as "one of the greatest Championships ever held".
Mr Dawson said it had been "one of the most wonderful Opens".
He said: "We are announcing about five years ahead, but we have been impressed by the course, and not least by Wirral Council and Merseyside Police who have been fantastic.
"Some of the things which I thought might be problems, such as the car parks being so far away, turned out not to be."
He said the preparations had worked well, and added: "We will do a detailed review of the event, but it will be details if we changed anything."
However, he denied any contract had been signed for a specific date, although sources have suggested it could be less than 10 years.
Opens have been announced for Carnoustie next year, back on Merseyside for Royal Birkdale in 2008, Turnberry in 2009 and back to St Andrews in 2010. It is expected to return to the third North West course at Royal Lytham and St Annes and another Scottish course before returning to Wirral, making the earliest likely return date for Hoylake 2013.
