Victoria’s major event calendar has been dealt another blow, with Adelaide locking in a long term deal to stage Australian Open golf, at the expense of Melbourne.

Just months after South Australia stole the MotoGP from Phillip Island, its government on Thursday trumpeted a long-term deal for the nation’s most prestigious golf tournament.

Golf Australia on Thursday announced the North Adelaide Golf Course would be the long term host of men’s and women’s Australian Opens, hosting events every year between 2028 and 2034.

The men’s Open will be held in Adelaide in 2028, for the first time since 1998.

Between 2028 and 2034, three men’s Australian Opens and three women’s Australian Opens will be played in Adelaide.

Announcements on other “future venues” would be made “in due course” as Golf Australia “works to secure certainty around Australian Open host venues for the next 20 years”.

Victoria could still bid to host the tournament in the years it’s not locked in at North Adelaide golf, but would be up against NSW and Queensland.

The host venue of the 2027 event is yet to be announced but it is believed the Victorian government is keen to make it three years in a row for Melbourne.

It is expected Victoria will mount bids for any years the Open is available, despite the new SA deal, with a desire to bring more action back to Melbourne’s famed sandbelt.

Huge crowds last year flocked to Royal Melbourne to watch superstar Rory McIlroy and some of the world’s best golfers tee off at a tournament the state government hoped to lock in permanently.

The state government also spent taxpayer money to bring McIlroy back to Melbourne for this year’s Australian Open at Kingston Heath.

Golf Australia chief executive James Sutherland last year told the Herald Sun Melbourne, which hijacked the event from Sydney in 2024, could become a permanent home for it.

“We’ll keep talking to our government and other partners about that,’’ he said in December.

“We would love that.’’

But on Thursday he said: “The Australian Open is one of the great championships in world golf, but in recent years we have not always had the certainty needed to plan and build the event to its full potential.’’

The door will not be closed on golf in Victoria, with the President’s Cup in Melbourne in 2028 and 2040.

Victoria will also be able to bid for more major events not already locked in.

“We are in constructive discussions with the Victorian government about other Australian Opens in this upcoming cycle,’’ Mr Sutherland said.

“The opportunity for South Australia to host in 2028 arises because the Presidents Cup will be in Melbourne that year and we are optimistic about continuing our partnership with Victoria and the famed Melbourne Sandbelt in years to come.”

Mr Sutherland on Thursday told reporters the SA deal did not mean the end of the Open in Melbourne.

He said “exact sequencing” of where the Open would be outside the SA deal were “still to be confirmed and obviously Victoria is a very important partner in those conversations.’’

“We will be certainly talking – there are rights and obligations which we have with the Victorian government, which I’m not going to go into right now,’’ he said.

“But we have conversations ongoing with them about their rights to host over the coming years.

“And we certainly hope that Victoria and the famed Melbourne sandbelt will continue to play an important role in the future of the Australian Open.’’

This year’s Open will be played at Kingston Heath from December 3-6.

South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas said: “For some time, we have been engaged with Golf Australia discussing the potential of bringing both the men’s and women’s Australian Opens to Adelaide.

“We are thrilled to make this a reality, at a high-quality public facility on the doorstep of our city.

“The Australian Open is a must stop event on the Australian sporting calendar, and we have the potential to grow it here in Adelaide.

“It has only ventured out of NSW or Victoria twice in half a century.’’

More than 113,000 people packed Royal Melbourne for last year’s event.

Former Victorian premier Jeff Kennett said: “the tide is running out in Victoria, in so many different aspects of our life.

“We’ve lost all focus here in Victoria on anything that matters.

“We have a weak economy which is in dire political trouble.

“We have a reputation as being the crime state of the nation and now we’re losing our major events.

“What does that equate to? The tide running out.”