Bahrain dropped from European Tour's 2012 schedule after civil unrest

The European Tour will not be returning to Bahrain next year.

The second edition of the Volvo Golf Champions will not take place at Bahrain’s Royal Golf Club following political unrest in the Gulf kingdom, tour officials announced on Monday.

At least 32 people died in Bahrain this year in protests for greater freedoms and rights.

“With work still ongoing to resolve issues in Bahrain and the need to confirm the venue by the end of July 2011, the difficult decision to postpone the event for 2012 was taken,” the European Tour said in a statement.

Tournament sponsor Volvo and tournament organizer International Management Group will rotate future events between a handful of locations, including the Bahrain Royal Golf Club course designed by former European Ryder Cup Captain Colin Montgomerie.

“Bahrain will remain on the roster of venues for future tournaments,” the European Tour said, adding that the tour’s return to the country had been “delayed” rather than canceled.

International human rights group Human Rights Watch said last month that hundreds of protesters, activists and more than 70 medical professionals have been detained in a four-month crackdown following the unrest.

“We respect that a decision needed to be made now regarding the venue for next year’s event,” said Sheik Mohammed bin Essa Al Khalifa, chief executive of the Bahrain Economic Development Board. “We have heeded corporate advice in making this decision. We do not feel Bahrain can host a tournament of this magnitude while the international perception of Bahrain is as it is.”

The inaugural Volvo Golf Champions was staged in January with a star-studded field that included British Open champion Darren Clarke, Colin Montgomerie, Ian Poulter, Padraig Harrington and eventual winner Paul Casey.

Shortly afterward, there were a number of deaths as the authorities reacted to demonstrations. Now, after waiting five months to see how the situation developed, the decision has been taken not to return yet, following on from the decision to scrap the Formula 1 Grand Prix due to be staged there this season.

"While this is an unfortunate announcement to have to make after such an impressive first edition of the Volvo Golf Champions, we know that Bahrain is working hard to address the issues it has faced in recent months as well as to reach out to the international community,” said European Tour Chief Executive George O'Grady. "We, together with the European Tour players, look forward to returning and building on that first, very successful, event in the future."