Welcome to The Pin Sheet, a quick guide for your day in golf that pairs beautifully with our Clubhouse Newsletter.
Between this daily aggregation and the Newsletter, you’ll find everything you need to know that’s going on in the world of golf to be the most well-informed player in your foursome.
Without further ado, now on the tee…
Today’s Clubhouse Newsletter
Augusta National Golf Club Closes Amid Coronavirus Concerns
Augusta National is closing down the course amid coronavirus concerns: https://t.co/PA4cXPMRmX pic.twitter.com/fNkMMmWo7I
— Golf Digest (@GolfDigest) March 16, 2020
Just three days after announcing the postponement of the 2020 Masters Tournament, Augusta National Golf Club chairman Fred Ridley sent a letter to members alerting them to the fact that the club would be closing its doors for the foreseeable future.
“We are now in the midst of a national emergency. The Coronavirus is increasingly impacting lives everywhere, and we have rigorously evaluated how this will affect the Club and its operations. Our focus moving forward must be the health and safety of our exceptional staff, which is the heartbeat of Augusta National,” Ridley said a letter to the membership obtained by GolfDigest.com.
“Beginning today, we are taking the necessary steps to curtail our operations so, by the end of this week, the Club will be closed until further notice. We intend to maintain our properties with limited personnel on site, and we will support our many other functions by working remotely where possible. But this is about much more than business continuity. This is about our employees, and the foundation of this decision is built-in upon keeping everyone safe while preserving the financial stability of those we care about most.
“We will continuously review this situation and send timely information in order to give clarity and comfort during these unsettling times. While we do not know what the weeks ahead will bring for our world, I know our Club will emerge successfully and stronger than ever because of the support of our members and staff. Please continue to take every precaution to stay healthy, and thank you for your patience and trust as we plan for the realities of this pandemic.”
The club typically closes shortly after the completion of the Masters Tournament from late May until October to avoid the summer heat.
Horschel Donates Players Payout To Charity
Let’s help out the charities and organizations that are effected by the cancellation of the upcoming tournaments! Thank you! @THEPLAYERSChamp @ValsparChamp @DellMatchPlay @valerotxopen @CoralesChamp pic.twitter.com/8e3hU5BNts
— Billy Horschel (@BillyHo_Golf) March 13, 2020
Among the doom and gloom of the ongoing pandemic and subsequent cancellations and postponements, Billy Horschel helped to provide a silver lining to the dark cloud surrounding the sports world.
During PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan’s Friday morning press conference, he pledged the food that was to be available for sale to the 200,000 fans expected at TPC Sawgrass would be donated to Feeding Northeast Florida, an organization that provides supplies to “local children and families, seniors and active and retired military members who struggle to put food on the table.”
“Billy is an ambassador for Feeding Northeast Florida, and obviously we’ve prepared to have over 200,000 people here on property and won’t,” Monahan said. “So, one of the things that we’re quickly going to get to work on is how do you take all the food supplies that we have here and put them to good use for our community.
“That’s something that we’re going to do immediately.”
Horschel pledged to donate his entire $52,000 payout from his Players Championship participation to charitable causes that would not receive the assistance they normally generate due to canceled PGA Tour events over the next few weeks and he encouraged his fellow pros to do the same.
NCAA Granting Extra Year Of Eligibility To College Golfers
The NCAA’s Council Coordination Committee has agreed to grant relief for the use of a season of competition for student-athletes who have participated in spring sports.
Committee will also discuss issues for winter sport student-athletes.
— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanHoops) March 13, 2020
The day after the NCAA announced that it would be canceling the remainder of its winter and spring championships, the collegiate governing body announced a provision that will give spring athletes another year of eligibility.
“Council leadership agreed that eligibility relief is appropriate for all Division I student-athletes who participated in spring sports,” the NCAA’s Division I coordination committee said in a statement Friday. “Details of eligibility relief will be finalized at a later time. Additional issues with NCAA rules must be addressed, and appropriate governance bodies will work through those in the coming days and weeks.”
The NCAA Division I men’s and women’s golf championships were schedule to be played May 22-June 3 at Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale, Arizona. Regionals were slated for early May.
“Details of eligibility relief will be finalized at a later time,” the NCAA added. “Additional issues with the NCAA rules must be addressed, and appropriate governance bodies will work through those in the coming days and weeks.”
Rickie Waxes JT In Sunday Match
While the sports world was on hiatus, two of the PGA Tour’s biggest stars were out duking it out in a match on Sunday that saw Justin Thomas shoot a 65… and lose by five strokes to Rickie Fowler.
“Nice playing with @rickiefowler today, really a lot of fun,” Thomas captioned a photo of the pair’s scorecard. “I shoot 65 (humblebrag, I know), and get smoked. Midseason offseason is going well.”
Thomas didn’t make a 5 the entire round and still got waxed. Pretty strong round from Rickie.
