Royal and Ancient Golf Club of Saint Andrews Votes to Admit Women Members
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Salvatore Conte/iStockphoto/Thinkstock(EDINBURGH, Scotland) — One of the oldest and most prestigious golf clubs in the world voted on Thursday to allow female members for the first time in its more than 200 year history.
The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews, which hosts professional golf’s The Open Championship — also known as the British Open — annually. For 260 years, the club has allowed women to play at the club, but only men were permitted to be members.
Peter Dawson, secretary of the Royal and Ancient Golf Club, said in a statement on Thursday that more than 75 percent of the club’s membership voted and the proposal to allow women to become members had support from a “decisive” 85 percent of voters.
Dawson said that the vote will allow women to become members immediately, and a select number of women will be fast-tracked to membership in the coming months.
“This is a very important and positive day in the history of the Royal and Ancient Golf Club,” Dawson said. “The R&A has served the sport of gold well for 260 years and I am confident that the club will continue to do so in the future with the support of all its members, both women and men.”
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