Early 2021 PGA Tour Events To Be (Largely) Played Without Galleries

While one more fall event is to be played this week in Mexico the West Coast Swing is not far away. And outside of a smattering fans in Maui and (gulp) a downscaled but still-amtitious Waste Management Open, fans will not be in attendance in early 2021. (The viability of the events remains in question as California has traveler quarantine rules in some counties and other lockdowns coming).

The Sony Open will not have fans.

And the first of three California tournaments announced Monday their plan to play the Farmers Insurance Open without fans. From Tod Leonard’s GolfDigest.com story:

The blow of no fans will be lessened, Gorsich said, because the County of San Diego did give its approval last week for pro-ams to take place on Monday and Wednesday of Farmers week. “To not have pro-ams would have been another big hit,” he said. “Getting pro-ams was a big win for us.”

The Tournament of Champions, Sony Open and American Express also will have pro-ams, and it figures that Riviera and Pebble will, too, if their local governments approve.

At the Farmers, pro-am participants pay about $8,000 to play on Wednesday and $4,000 on Monday. Of course, the experience will be very different this year, with only the golfers, the professional and his caddie allowed on the grounds, though Gorisch maintains that it can be a more enjoyable and “intimate” experience. There are no in-person draws parties, and at Torrey Pines the amateurs will warm up in indoor simulators at a nearby hotel.

What could go wrong with a bunch of nervous, huffing and loud pro-am participants gathering in an indoor simulator?

Also, in what should be a pressing matter for the Tour and upcoming non-CBS events: Golf Channel is not COVID testing its crews and is stonewalling. It’s surprising, even at this point, that the Tour’s testing apparatus is not incorporating these hard-working folks into their fold.