BMW Championship At Olympia Fields Rescheduled
CHICAGO (CBS) -- As the coronavirus pandemic spread across the country, pro golf, like most other spectator sports, indefinitely delayed its schedule. The governing bodies of the pro golf world -- Augusta National, PGA of America, PGA Tour and USGA among them -- have now announced dates for many of its biggest events. The new schedule is still a work in progress, but already appears to be significantly different from the original schedule. How could it not be?
One schedule change of particular local interest is the delay of the BMW Championship. The second round of the FedExCup Playoffs will still be played at Olympia Fields Country Club in Olympia Fields, Illinois, but now will be played one week later than originally scheduled. The new dates for the event are August 25-30.
"We appreciate the open and collaborative approach taken by BMW, the Western Golf Association and Olympia Fields Country Club to help get us to this solution," said Jay Monahan, commissioner of the PGA Tour. "It's a complex situation, and we want to balance the commitments to our various partners with playing opportunities for the world's best players -- while providing compelling competition to our fans -- but all of that must be done while safely navigating the unprecedented global crisis impacting every single one of us."
(Previously purchased tickets for the 2020 BMW Championship can be used for the days listed on the tickets but on the new dates.)
The other two FedExCup Playoff events have also moved back one week. The Northern Trust, the first round of the playoffs, has been rescheduled for August 17-23, still at TPC Boston in Norton, Massachusetts. The Tour Championship will take place August 31- September 7, still at East Lake Golf Club, in Atlanta, Georgia.
The changes allow for the rescheduling of the PGA Championship from May to August 3-9. What was supposed to be the season's second major becomes the season's first. It will still be played at TPC Harding Park in San Francisco, California.
The U.S. Open, which will be played September 14-20, the week after the Tour Championship, becomes the season's second major. Winged Foot Golf Club in Mamaroneck, New York remains the host. The Masters, at Augusta National, as always, moves to November 9-15. The Open Championship, pro golf's fourth major, has been cancelled for 2020.
Much of the remaining PGA Tour calendar remains up in the air, with dates and venues still being worked out.