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Scotland to host Ryder Cup in 2014
28/09/2001
Following today's announcement that the Ryder Cup will be played in Wales in 2010 and Scotland (Gleneagles) in 2014, First Minister Henry McLeish said:
"Scotland has won the right to host the Ryder Cup in 2014. I'm not sure that I really feel like a winner today but it is important to reflect on what has been achieved. I firmly believe that it was the strength of our bid and our refusal to bow to the seemingly inevitable that has led us to secure one of the world's biggest sporting events. Too many people said that we had lost or been ignored but we continued to press the undoubted quality of our bid.
"It was impossible for the Committee to ignore the merits of our bid. Scotland would not go quietly and because of that the Ryder Cup will come to Scotland.
"Let me be clear. We wanted 2009 or 2010. We are disappointed not to win that. I firmly believe our bid was the best bid for the Ryder Cup and for golf. But the decision was for the Ryder Cup Committee and it is for them to explain the factors that led to their conclusion.
"When all is said and done, the Ryder Cup is coming to Scotland. It is not coming when we wanted it, but it is coming. Forty-one years will have elapsed since the Ryder Cup was last played on a Scottish course. We will have to be patient but when the time comes Scotland will rise to the occasion. We will remind the world that "the home of golf" is more than a name tag. The 2014 Ryder Cup will be the best ever.
"I am very grateful to everyone involved in our Ryder Cup bid for their unstinting effort and commitment in support of Scotland."