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Gleneagles golf course

GLENEAGLES - The 2014 Ryder Cup at Gleneagles will take place from Sept. 26-28, with officials saying that Scotland's unpredictable weather could cause a repeat of the problems that afflicted last year's competition.

Wind and rain at Celtic Manor in Wales last October forced the biennial contest between Europe and the United States into a fourth day for the first time. But European Ryder Cup director Richard Hills says the 2014 tournament is in its traditional slot in the calendar and that Britain's weather can disrupt events at any time.

Hills says "you have instances where tournaments in July have had to go into Mondays, so it's not an unusual occurrence."

The dates for the 2014 event mirror the last time Scotland hosted the event back in 1973 at Muirfield on the outskirts of Edinburgh. Back then, players from Continental Europe were not yet part of the Ryder Cup.

Last year's 14 1/2-13 1/2 win was Europe's fourth in five tournaments.

Organizers said several changes will be made to the Gleneagles course ahead of the Ryder Cup. Working with Jack Nicklaus, the course in Perthshire will see the size of the pond on the par-5 9th hole increased; the tee boxes on the par-3 10th will be relocated to bring into play a bunker on the left hand side of the hole; and the landing area on the par-5 18th will be leveled to remove a rise to the hole.

Work is also continuing to reduce water on the greens and the Dormy Clubhouse is set to re-open in the spring after a US$4-million renovation.

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