Celtic Manor in Newport to stage 2021 Welsh Open

Shaun Murphy won the 2020 Welsh Open with victory over Kyren Wilson in the final at Cardiff's Motorpoint Arena

Newport's Celtic Manor will host the Welsh Open for the first time in February.

The event has been moved from Cardiff due to Covid-19 regulations and will be staged behind closed doors.

The Welsh Open will be the second tournament since June not to have been held at the Marshall Arena in Milton Keynes, where strict Covid-19 regulations can be followed.

Celtic Manor was the venue for the 2010 Ryder Cup

The resort staged two events on golf's European Tour - the Celtic Classic and Wales Open tournaments - behind closed doors with Covid-secure protocols in August 2020.

"In order to stage events of this magnitude we need to ensure that the venue has the right facilities and is big enough to welcome 128 players plus everyone who works on the event while observing social distancing, hygiene, isolation and all of the other Covid-19 regulations which are essential on our events," World Snooker Tour chairman Barry Hearn said.

"We have no doubt that Celtic Manor ticks all of these boxes, it is a fantastic venue and the players will love it."