Overview
- Eric Larson was denied entry to the United Kingdom, a decision confirmed Wednesday, and he will miss both the Scottish Open and The Open at Royal Birkdale.
- The Home Office’s Electronic Travel Authorisation, introduced in early 2025 for U.S. nationals, requires an ETA to enter the UK and allows refusal for convictions carrying custodial sentences of 12 months or more.
- Larson was convicted in the 1990s in a federal drug case and served about ten years in custody, but he has since rebuilt his life and worked as Harris English’s caddie for nine years.
- Larson and supporters sought remedies through lawyers, a London firm, a visa processor and vouching letters from the PGA Tour and The R&A, and the U.S. ambassador was contacted, yet those efforts did not overturn the refusals.
- English has named Gino Bonnalie to caddie at the Scottish Open and Ramon Bescansa for The Open, and the case highlights tensions between strict ETA enforcement and arguments for considering post‑conviction rehabilitation in sporting travel policy.