An amendment to a bill which would have provided €97 million (£83 million/$103 million) of funding for one of golf’s most famous events was blocked by Italian Senate President Pietro Grasso earlier this week.

It raised concerns over whether Italy would be able to host the competition as planned as the money is considered crucial to the country organising the event, due to be held at the Marco Simone Golf and Country Club, located just outside of Rome.

"President Grasso's decision is a technical one, it is not about the content of the amendment," Culture and Sport Committee President Andrea Marcucci said. 

"I hope the Government can quickly find a solution that meets the requirements of the organisers.

"I want to remind everyone that this international competition brings with it considerable economic benefits and television rights.

"The amendment in question didn't call for further public spending."

Sports Minister Luca Lotti told Italian news agency ANSA that they should not be denied the right to host the Ryder Cup for the first time "just to chase facile populism".

Italian National Olympic Committee (CONI) President Giovanni Malagò had earlier dismissed concerns, claiming the nation had "already acquired" the event and therefore should not lose the hosting rights.

"I'm not giving up on this project because I won it," Federgolf President Franco Chimenti said.

"It's an honest and serious project and there will be no waste."

The amendment was greeted with fierce opposition in the Senate, with opposition parties dismissing it as a waste of money which should be used on other causes.

Similar criticism was levelled at Rome’s bid for the 2024 Olympic Games before it was withdrawn.

"We are in regular communication with the Italian Golf Federation as we have been since December 14, 2015, the day Italy was awarded the honour of hosting the 2022 Ryder Cup, and we continue to be so," a Ryder Cup Europe statement read.

In October, Rome's bid for the 2024 Games was "suspended" after the capital's newly-elected Mayor Virginia Raggi refused to support it.

It was then officially declared dead earlier this month.

Italy was awarded the 2022 Ryder Cup in December 2015.

The country beat off competition from Austria, Germany and Spain to land the matchplay event, which pits the United States against a team from Europe.

Dubbed as "golf's greatest team event", Europe has only hosted the Ryder Cup outside of the British Isles once, at the Club de Golf Valderrama in Spain in 1997.

However, France will stage the tournament at Le Golf National in 2018, a course near to capital Paris, which is bidding for the 2024 Olympics and Paralympics along with Los Angeles and Budapest.