Three golf majors announce new dates, while one is canceled because of COVID-19
It may just be a target date, but there is a plan for at least one sport to begin play despite the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to Reid Fowler, a contributor to the PGA website, the tour plans to return with the Memorial in front of no fans in June.
Other notable tournaments that are on the schedule:
PGA Championship: Aug. 6-9
Ryder Cup: Sept. 25-27
U.S. Open: Sept. 17-20
Masters: Nov. 12-15
The PGA Tour Communications released a revised schedule that calls for possible PGA Tour events to take place June 15-21, July 13-19 and July 27-Aug. 2. All three are “to be confirmed.”
But the PGA did confirm the season-ending FedEx Playoffs:
Aug. 10-16: Wyndham Championship in Greensboro, North Carolina
Aug. 17-23: The Northern Trust in Boston
Aug. 24-30: BMW Championship in Olympia Fields, Illinois
Aug. 31-Sept. 7: Tour Championship in Atlanta
The PGA Tour, European Tour, LPGA, USGA, R&A, PGA and Masters released a statement that said: “In recent weeks, the global golf community has come together to collectively put forward a calendar of events that will, we hope, serve to entertain and inspire golf fans around the world. We are grateful to our respective partners, sponsors and players, who have allowed us to make decisions — some of them, very tough decisions — in order to move the game and the industry forward.”
The Masters had been set to start Thursday but will now be played during the heart of football season. Ditto for the U.S. Open and Ryder Cup.
“In collaboration with the leading organizations in golf, Augusta National Golf Club has identified November 9-15 as the intended dates to host the 2020 Masters,” Fred Ridley, Chairman of Augusta National Golf Club, said on The Masters’ website. “While more details will be shared in the weeks and months to come, we, like all of you, will continue to focus on all mandated precautions and guidelines to fight against the Coronavirus. Along the way, we hope the anticipation of staging the Masters Tournament in the fall brings a moment of joy to the Augusta community and all those who love the sport.
“We want to emphasize that our future plans are incumbent upon favorable counsel and direction from health officials. Provided that occurs and we can conduct the 2020 Masters, we intend to invite those professionals and amateurs who would have qualified for our original April date and welcome all existing ticket holders to enjoy the excitement of Masters week.”
The original dates for the U.S. Open had been June 18-21 at Winged Foot in Mamaroneck, New York.
“We are hopeful that postponing the championship will offer us the opportunity to mitigate health and safety issues while still providing us with the best opportunity to conduct the U.S. Open this year,” Mike Davis, CEO of the USGA, said on the U.S. Open website. “We are incredibly thankful to the membership and staff at Winged Foot for their flexibility and support. We are also grateful for the wonderful collaboration among the professional tours and other majors in working through a complicated schedule.”
The PGA Championship was to be played May 14-17 in San Francisco. The Ryder Cup dates remain in place.
“Sports, and particularly the game of golf, are important vehicles for healing and hope,” PGA of America CEO Seth Waugh said on the PGA Championship website. “With the help of the City and County of San Francisco, our friends at the PGA TOUR, and our partners CBS Sports and ESPN, we are holding August 3-9 as dates for a rescheduled 2020 PGA Championship at TPC Harding Park.
“We will continue to follow the guidance of public health officials, but are hopeful that it will be safe and responsible to conduct the PGA Championship in August and the Ryder Cup as planned from September 22-27 at Whistling Straits in Kohler, Wisconsin with our NBC Sports partners. With our country going through extremely difficult times, it will be an honor for all of us at the PGA of America to hopefully help turn a page in August with the PGA Championship and September with the Ryder Cup.”
Although three majors in the U.S. were rescheduled, The British Open was canceled altogether Monday because of the coronavirus.
This story was originally published April 6, 2020 at 9:35 AM.
