No fans, now no players: PGA Tour shuts down for a month
Brooks Koepka hits from the ninth hole, during the first round of The Players Championship golf tournament Thursday, March 12, 2020 in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. [Lynne Sladky/Associated Press]
The PGA Tour decided Thursday night to scrap the rest of The Players Championship and shut down its other tournaments for the next three weeks.
Commissioner Jay Monahan had said earlier Thursday there would be no fans at the TPC Sawgrass for the final three rounds, or at the next three tournaments on the PGA Tour schedule.
Disruptions due to COVID-19 outbreak
The tour changed its mind late Thursday.
“We did everything possible to create a safe environment for our players in order to continue the event through the weekend,” the tour said in a statement. “But at his point — and as the situation continues to rapidly change — the right thing to do for our players and our fans is to pause.”
There was no immediately word whether The Players Championship would be rescheduled.
The Players Championship is the premier tournament run by the PGA Tour, offering a $15 million purse, the richest in golf history. It was to be followed by the Valspar Championship in the Tampa Bay area, the Dell Match Play in Austin, Texas, and the Valero Texas Open in San Antonio.