R&A denies report that The Open will be canceled

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The R&A on Thursday denied a report that the 2020 Open Championship will be canceled.

"We are continuing to work through our options for The Open this year, including postponement," R&A CEO Martin Slumbers said in a statement.

"Due to a range of external factors, that process is taking some time to resolve. We are well aware of the importance of being able to give clear guidance to fans, players, and everyone involved and are working to resolve this as soon as we can."

The R&A's statement also called the report of a cancellation "media speculation."

On Wednesday, the All England Club canceled Wimbledon, which was scheduled to take place the week prior to The Open. It was first reported that the R&A had been awaiting Wimbledon's decision before making a call on golf's oldest major championship.

One reason for the false report that the Open Championship had been canceled - rather than postponed like the Masters and PGA Championship - related to insurance. The R&A's policy protects against a pandemic, and the tournament must be canceled by a certain date in order for the R&A to collect on its insurance premium.

For now, the Open Championship is scheduled to begin July 16 at Royal St. George's Golf Club.