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TOUR EFFECTS OF COVID-19
WHAT CAN WE EXPECT FROM TOURNAMENT GOLF
FOR BOTH PLAYERS AND FANS?
continued from page 05
spread of the virus is the main focus, they ignore can maintain social distancing of six feet or
the realities of human behavior. Expecting more apart from each other. Bleachers may
touring professionals to never leave the hotel exist, but sections or seats may be cordoned off
unless they are going to the golf course might so people aren’t sitting less than six feet apart.
work for a week or two, but undoubtedly But then again, we might not see any hospitality
most players will tire of this forced routine of tents or bleachers. We’ll just have to wait and
boredom. If their families are not allowed to be see what happens with the first few events
with them at the course, you can be sure that where fans are allowed.
many players will skip the post-round practice When will things return completely to
routines that are prevalent and head straight “normal”? Again, that’s anyone’s guess. Current
back to the hotel to be with their families. reports at the time of this writing say a vaccine
However, not being able to take the little ones is at least 18 months away (which would be
to a park, playground, etc., might weigh on the late 2021), and maybe much longer than that.
minds of the players and their spouses, and we With the current emphasis having shifted from
could see some players deciding to stay home “flattening the curve” so hospitals didn’t get
until things return more to normal. overrun to “let’s keep the number of cases
Expecting players and caddies to sanitize as low as possible for as long as possible” until
their hands and anything on the course they a vaccine is developed, it’s possible nothing
might touch seems a bit unreasonable, too. resembling normalcy might not happen for
Golf is being played all across the country, and years.
currently there are no reports of players falling ill That would be most unfortunate, but given
from being at the course. Epidemiologists who the vagaries of human behavior, combined
have weighed in have said that golf is one of with the fact that forcing people into artificial
the safest possible activities to engage in, and behaviors for an extended period of time are
that’s even with our former way of doing things. not likely to work, we could well see a sea of
And it’s seriously doubtful that any player will be change in the way both ordinary citizens and
playing with any sort of mask or face covering, our authority figures want to handle this. Also,
although it’s possible that you might see some with research from the Stanford University
of the more physically compromised caddies School of Medicine, the University of Southern
doing so. However, various health experts have California/Los Angeles County Department of
said that contracting the environment in an Public Health, the University of Bonn in Germany
outdoor setting is extremely unlikely, so it will and Oxford University in England, among others,
be interesting to see how many people on our showing the infection fatality rate of the virus
television screens will be wearing them. isn’t nearly as severe as first thought, there are
What will happen when fans are eventually some encouraging signs that not only golf, but
allowed to return? That’s anyone’s guess. If life in general, may return to normal sooner than
we see corporate hospitality tents, they almost we may think possible at present. w
certainly will be of limited capacity so the guests
06
SUMMER 2020 Golf Teaching Pro ®
