Bitter, twisting wrangle settled in right Manor

It should have been The Belfry on Friday, the first day of the 34th Ryder Cup. Instead, with the match postponed for a year by the terrorist attacks on America, it was the ballroom in Wentworth's clubhouse for the announcement of the venue of the 2010 match. And, it turned out, the 2014 match.

Under the old joint venture agreement for the Ryder Cup between the European Tour and the Professional Golfers' Association, it was meant to be the PGA's choice of venue. The Belfry was still the obvious place to announce the result, being home to the PGA.

That Wales, in the form of Celtic Manor, got their good news – and Scotland's Gleneagles the consolation of not missing out after all, but hosting the match in 2014 – at the headquarters of the European Tour says everything about the ongoing nature of the Ryder Cup's running.

What started as the 2009 campaign, over 15 months ago, became even more tortuous than the crampon- requiring closing stretch of holes at Celtic Manor which are to be relocated in the flatter planes of the Usk Valley. It was a good old celtic tussle – Scotland the "home of golf" against the new pretenders from Wales – but the real contest was for control of the biggest event in golf.

Ken Schofield, the executive director of the European Tour, dramatically seized the initiative in May by announcing that he supported the Welsh bid. From Schofield's point of view, Celtic Manor's owner, the telecommunications billionaire Terry Matthews, is the sort of financial supporter the Tour needs – the Wales Open is safe for more than a decade. The Welsh bid, under the stewardship of former England cricket captain Tony Lewis, also delivered on all the technical requirements, while ensuring development of the game in the Principality with the help of European Union Objective One funding.

But then the point of Schofield's outburst was to send a message to his constituents – the players of the European Tour – that he and they were in control. For the previous eight months, the Tour executive had been under siege following demands by the "gang of four" – Nick Faldo, Seve Ballesteros, Jose Maria Olazabal and Bernhard Langer – that the Tour's accounts be privately audited.

Their attempt failed but the Tour submitted themselves to an independent audit prepared by Andersen. The news was generally good but suggested the Tour could make more of its joint ventures in the areas of television, course design and the Ryder Cup. The old 50-50 agreement with the PGA was finished.

The threat of a player boycott may not have been used by Schofield in discussions with his opposite number at the PGA, Sandy Jones, but remained the ultimate sanction. Jones talked of "putting the Ryder Cup in a museum" if necessary but pragmatism won out. On Friday, Schofield and Jones were once more sharing a podium presenting a united front. "I am not one who thinks that you can do away with the history of the Ryder Cup and just start a new match," Schofield said.

A new European Ryder Cup Board will be implemented after next year's match. The European Tour will be the "managing partner", the PGA the "founding partner", while the PGA of Europe, a body founded and nurtured by the PGA, will be officially recognised for the first time.

Jones said: "The Ryder Cup has always evolved and if it had not we would not be here talking about it today. The original deeds, which I have in my office, talk about only British players and eight-man teams. The PGA has agreed to reduce our shareholding but we remain the custodians of the Ryder Cup as laid down by Sam Ryder. We now have 12 months to finalise the details with our advisers."

If the PGA have a role in the future, it must be to continue the groundbreaking development work started by this bidding process in Wales, Scotland and the North East of England, whose Slaley Hall went unrewarded. That will be vital when the match rotates around the continent from 2018, with Sweden, Germany and France all potential hosts.

Jones added: "After Brookline, I came home wondering if the Ryder Cup had a future at all and decided it must be used to work for the good of the game, not just for a few days every two years, but every day. There has been significant progress in the development of the game in Wales and Scotland and although the North-east went unrewarded, there are huge activities there which were not happening 12 months ago.

"It is fair to say that the legacy of a Ryder Cup at Valderrama is not what we would have hoped in terms of a boost for golf in Spain. We must not let that happen when the match goes to the continent again. Countries like Sweden have admitted that they are not ready to host a Ryder Cup yet but we have to help prepare them to make the most of it when they do."