Majors reset: Masters in November
PGA in August, US Open in September
LOS ANGELES: A Masters among the fall leaves, the US Open and Ryder Cup on back-to-back weeks and the PGA Championship in its former spot are on tap in golf ’s 2020 coronavirus rescheduling plan.
Moments after the 149th Open Championship was postponed until 2021 on Monday, golf’s major tournament organisers and tours issued a joint statement announcing a revamped lineup of dates as a result of postponements due to the global Covid-19 pandemic.
The PGA Championship, which had been postponed from May, was rescheduled for Aug 6-9 to remain at Harding Park in San Francisco.
The US Open was rescheduled from June to Sept 17-20 with the Ryder Cup to be contested one week later at Whistling Straits as scheduled.
The Masters, which was to have been played this week among the blooming spring flowers at Augusta National, has been rescheduled for Nov 12-15. It was postponed on March 13.
“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,” Augusta National chairman Fred Ridley said.
Tiger Woods won the 2019 Masters title for his 15th major crown.
Organisers emphasised that the new dates depend upon safe conditions for players and spectators in the wake of the deadly virus outbreak.
The PGA Tour rebooked its regularseason finale, the Wyndham Championship, for Aug 13-16 with the seasonending play-offs to follow over the next three weeks, concluding with the Tour Championship in Atlanta on Sept 4-7.