British Open organisers have not ruled out the possibility of teenage prodigy Michelle Wie competing in the future, even though women golfers are currently barred from playing in the tournament.
"As matters stand, Open championship rules require that entries for the tournament can only be accepted from male professional and amateur golfers," Royal and Ancient secretary Peter Dawson said.
"But you can never say never and we would be very unwise not to review our entry criteria over the years ahead."
Honolulu schoolgirl Wie, at just 14, stunned the sporting world when she narrowly failed to become the first female to make the cut in a men's PGA Tour event at last week's Hawaiian Open, missing out by a shot after firing a second-round 68.
A prodigious striker of the ball, she birdied two of the last three holes and completed the tournament's first two rounds in the top two-thirds of the field for driving distance.
The 2004 British Open will be played at Royal Troon, Scotland from July 15-18, when American Ben Curtis will be defending the title he won last year at Royal St George's.
Filed by James Boylan
