(March 12, 2020)
PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – The PGA Tour has reversed course and announced the cancellation of The Players as well as the next three events on the schedule because of the coronavirus outbreak.
The decision comes less than 12 hours after Tour commissioner Jay Monahan said that the circuit’s flagship event would continue for the next three rounds but without spectators.
Players were notified via text at about 9:50 p.m. ET Thursday that the tournament had been canceled because of the “rapidly changing situation” regarding COVID-19. In a follow-up text, the Tour said that the next three events were also canceled.
The next tournament on the schedule is the Masters, which is scheduled to begin April 9.
“We have pledged from the start to be responsible, thoughtful and transparent with our decision process,” the Tour said in a statement. “We did everything possible to create a safe environment for our players in order to continue the event through the weekend, and we were endeavoring to give our fans a much-needed respite from the current climate. But at this point – and as the situation continues to rapidly change – the right thing to do for our players and our fans is to pause.”
As recently as 6:45 p.m. Thursday, the Tour had released a detailed operations plan for the next three rounds, including player support services, broadcast notes, parking plans and media availability.
Read more at GolfChannel.com
