Despite multiple visitors testing positive for coronavirus, President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago Club will continue operating “without disruption.”
Four recent visitors to President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago have tested positive for coronavirus, but the club isn’t shutting down.
In a letter to Mar-a-Lago members, club director Bernd Lembcke said cleaning would increase, as would the number of bottles of hand sanitizer.
“We want to assure you of our proactive efforts so that the club remains your private escape from the outside world as your ‘home-away-from-home,’ ” Lembcke wrote. “We will continue to operate without disruption.”
After attending a birthday party for the girlfriend of President Trump’s oldest son on March 7, three top Brazilian officials later tested positive for COVID-19, according to statements they have released.
The fourth visitor to test positive was an unidentified donor, according to Republican Party officials, who was one of roughly 1,000 others at a recent luncheon at Mar-a-Lago hosted by Trump Victory.
After being exposed to two of the Brazilian officials who tested positive for coronavirus, President Trump said Saturday he had tested negative.
Miami Mayor Francis Suarez announced he had tested positive after meeting with one of the Brazilian officials. Others in attendance at the March 7 party, including Rep. Matthew Gaetz (R-Fla.), have voluntarily quarantined themselves.
Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has undergone several tests for the coronavirus, after being seated at a table with Trump at Mar-a-Lago.
Despite remaining open, the club has had one big event called off with plans to reschedule. An estimated 700 people were slated to attend the Wine, Women and Shoes luncheon on Thursday before organizers of one of Mar-a-Lago’s biggest daytime galas announced they were canceling. The event benefits the local Big Dog Ranch Rescue.
“The well being of our incredible supporters, vendors and staff is paramount with the new information prompting us to reschedule,” said Lauree Simmons, founder of the animal rescue group, noting the decision was made after the number of coronavirus cases in the state rose.
Christine Brennan writes men’s golf made the right decision to cancel the Masters in wake of coronavirus, finally accepting new reality.
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As leagues and sports quickly postponed, suspended or canceled events during the past few days due to concerns over the coronavirus outbreak, one high-profile sport became a significant holdout:
Men’s golf.
The Players, the PGA Tour’s so-called fifth major, went ahead with its first round Thursday – with spectators in attendance – while the Masters was sticking with its March 4 statement that its high-profile show would go on.
Reality, and sanity, hit late Thursday night and again Friday morning. The Players was canceled first. Then the Masters was postponed. Golf has finally joined the rest of the sports world in shutting itself down for the good of us all.
“Unfortunately, the ever-increasing risks associated with the widespread Coronavirus COVID-19 have led us to a decision that undoubtedly will be disappointing to many, although I am confident is appropriate under these unique circumstances,” Augusta National chairman Fred Ridley said in a statement Friday morning, postponing not only the Masters, set to begin April 9, but also the second annual Augusta National Women’s Amateur.
The significance of the Masters postponement is obvious. It’s one of the biggest sports events in the world, a cultural rite of spring. But even more important is the fact that it is not played in March, but rather in mid-April.
So far, almost every sporting event to shut down has been scheduled in March. The Masters postponement takes us well into April, as does the Boston Marathon decision to move to September.
It’s a sobering thought, but those two events just showed us the future. Events even a month away now are a no-go. What does that mean for MLB, the NBA and the NHL?
We received a hint of this with college sports canceling their spring schedules, but most of those had a foothold in March. The Masters is all April.
Men’s golf has now made the right call, just as the LPGA did earlier in the day Thursday. It’s sad that it has come to this, of course, but also entirely proper. It would be unconscionable to play any game, much less a sport still so linked with elite country clubs, during these trying times in the United States and around the world.
And yet, could there be a tiny sliver of joy to be salvaged by this decision? Consider this: Tiger Woods, whose comeback story leading to victory last year was one of the most compelling sports moments of 2019, gets to remain defending Masters champion a little bit longer.
Is it really over? For college seniors, it’s been a mind-blowing 24 hours amid the NCAA canceling competition due to the coronavirus.
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Houston’s Brooke McDougald had it all pictured. She’d walk off the 18th green and into the arms of her parents and teammates. In a dream world, that would happen in late May at the NCAA Championship at Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottdale, Arizona.
Instead, she was in the back of a minivan clutching the hand of fellow senior Amanda Elich. Both were bawling. The NCAA had canceled the rest of the spring season due to fears over COVID-19.
“You don’t imagine sitting in the back of the minivan in March saying this is it,” said McDougald.
Or is it?
The past 24 hours have been a wild ride for everyone. Something straight out of Hollywood.
Drake Hull had just gotten back from an econ mid-term when news broke that he might have played his last round as a UConn Husky. The fifth-year senior broke down with his coaches. Then, less than 24 hours later, while Hull was braving the local grocery store back home in Vermont, news broke that the NCAA might grant another season of competition for spring-sport athletes.
Now Hull doesn’t know what to think. He’d already started the job-search process with a degree coming in May. Would he pursue a master’s if he stayed? When exactly will the NCAA work out the details of such a colossal undertaking, and who’s going to pay for the extra scholarship money?
2019-20 UConn men’s golf team. (Photo: UConn men’s golf)
With freshmen coming in and money parceled out years in advance, not every school has the capability of fundraising for fifth-year seniors. The NCAA would need to pony up.
While Hull was at his mid-term, the rest of the UConn team was coming up the 18th fairway at practice when their phones started blowing up. The season was done.
“They hit their shots into 18,” said head coach Dave Pezzino, “but you could tell they were totally destroyed.”
Players get it. Safety first. They’re mostly concerned about their families. But if only the NCAA had given it a little more time. Maybe used the word “suspended” rather than “canceled.”
Athletes are used to their seasons ending abruptly, but usually it’s at the mercy of competition and not a global health crisis.
Pezzino brought his Golden Retriever to campus on Friday morning to help lift spirits. Cooper was toast by the time he finished playing catch with the track team.
“You don’t realize what you have until it’s gone,” he said.
Alabama’s Kenzie Wright was on her way home to Texas when the NCAA offered that glimmer of hope – another season of eligibility.
Wright was scheduled to compete in the Augusta National Women’s Amateur, another big goal on her senior list. On Thursday, Augusta announced that the event would be postponed. News kept flooding in like a tidal wave. Should she come back and pursue a master’s degree if the option presents itself? Stay amateur for a potential fall ANWA? Vie for an NCAA team title next spring?
“Another life decision,” said Wright from the airport. “The time-table is so quick.”
When asked what she has meant to the Alabama program, head coach Mic Potter said it’s hard to put into words.
The Pacific men’s coach John Cook took four seniors on the road to the GCU Invitational in Phoenix. The Tigers were on their second hole of a practice round when the tournament was canceled. The news only got worse from there.
Several of the seniors have designs on turning pro. Beau Forest, a computer science major who will complete his undergrad and master’s degree in four years, already has a job lined up with Hewlett-Packard.
Like many schools, Pacific was on spring break this week. The school extended the break for another week and then plans to complete the rest of the semester online.
“One day at a time kind of turned into one hour at a time,” said Cook.
Rollins senior Seher “Speedy” Atwal was talking on the phone about as fast she plays. She flies back to India on Sunday and was busy packing up her life in Winter Park, Florida.
“I graduate, but I don’t walk?” she asked.
So many special moments suddenly gone.
“It’s the cliché that you’ve got to play like it’s your last time,” said Hull. “That is probably what struck me the most. It can all come to an end really fast, and you’ve got to be grateful for every opportunity. It’s so easy to take it for granted.”
Brooke McDougald (left) and Courtney Dow (right) as kids. The two are now seniors in college at Houston and Texas A&M, respectively.
McDougald first met Texas A&M senior Courtney Dow at a U.S. Kids championship when they were 8 and 7 years old, respectively. They became fast friends. As it happens, the Texans were paired together for the first time in college golf last month in what might turn out to be their last round.
The ICON Invitational took place at McDougald’s home club, The Woodlands Country Club, in front of a slew of friends and family. The weather was perfect. Dow shot 68, McDougald posted a 72.
Walking off the final hole, McDougald was surprised to find her father crying when she went in for a hug.
“You know,” McDougald said, “I’m OK. If something happens and I never play golf again, I’m OK.”
Looking back, she has no idea what possessed her to say that so many weeks ago. But the words, and that round, hold even more meaning now.
For many seniors, cherished memories of college golf are all that’s left.
The women’s golf NCAA Championship was slated for May 22-27, with the men the following week May 29-June 3 at Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale, Arizona.
The news sent shockwaves through the college golf world, with many coaches and players questioning the move to cancel events months in advance when so much uncertainty remains.
Golfweek obtained a memo sent Friday morning from the NCAA to all member schools. The memo directed members of Divisions I, II and III to “enact modifications, changes, or waivers to legislation and rules where appropriate to provide necessary relief due to regulations and policies impacted by COVID-19.”
The Division I Council Coordination Committee put the following actions into place:
The committee adopted emergency legislation that established a temporary recruiting dead period, effective immediately until at least April 15, when the committee will re-evaluate the situation.
The committee “agreed that it will be appropriate to grant relief for the use of a season of competition for student-athletes who have participated in spring sports. The committee recognizes that several issues need to be addressed related to providing an additional season of competition, including financial aid implications. The committee will also discuss issues related to seasons of competition for winter sport student-athletes who were unable to participate in conference and NCAA championships.”
Lastly, the memo urged conferences and schools to use “institutional discretion” when it comes to providing support, benefits and expenses to their student-athletes at this time.
While the details for the extra year of eligibility have not been finalized yet, the committee realizes the weight of their decision and plans to act in “a timely manner.”
Long story short: all you seniors might have a few more rounds to play after all.
On Thursday, he woke up to disturbing videos that friends and family had sent him from his homeland of Austria, where concerns about the coronavirus had led to civil unrest.
“I’m getting videos from supermarkets being completely robbed basically from people panicking at home, and it’s not nice news you want to wake up to,” said Wiesberger, who shot 74 before the PGA Tour canceled The Players Championship. “It’s crazy news.”
When Wiesberger got word late Thursday night that the tournament had been canceled, his immediate thoughts were to get home as quickly as possible. Before he headed to TPC Sawgrass to clean out his locker on Friday, he secured a flight.
“I’m on the last flight back to Europe. The last Austrian Airlines flight back to Vienna departed this morning, it’s on the way, and the last is going back this afternoon,” he said. “I’d like to be on that one.”
Once home, golf will be secondary.
“It’s unprecedented times,” he said. “We all need to kind of stick together and do the right thing for everyone, for the elderly, to not have anyone affected that doesn’t need to be, and therefore I think it’s good we’re packing up today and going home to try and help out at home and help any elderly, my grandmother, my parents with any sort of grocery shopping so they don’t have to go out too much and just trying to get through this on our own or all together.
“It’s crazy times. I’m sure most of us probably haven’t experienced anything like that. Tough times, stick together, do the right things, stay healthy and just lay low for a while. But golf will return at some point, we don’t know when, but it’s not a priority right now.”
On Friday morning the Masters announced it will be postponing the 2020 tournament due to the coronavirus outbreak.
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After remaining silent for more than a week, Augusta National Golf Club announced on Friday morning that the Masters, which was scheduled to begin on April 9, will be postponed indefinitely due to coronavirus fears.
“Unfortunately, the ever-increasing risks associated with the widespread Coronavirus COVID-19 have led us to a decision that undoubtedly will be disappointing to many, although I am confident is appropriate under these unique circumstances,” Augusta National chairman Fred Ridley said in a statement released to the media. “Considering the latest information and expert analysis, we have decided at this time to postpone the Masters Tournament, the Augusta National Women’s Amateur and the Drive, Chip and Putt National Finals.
“We hope this postponement puts us in the best position to safely host the Masters Tournament and our amateur events at some later date.”
On March 4, Ridley released a statement reassuring fans that the Masters, along with the Augusta National Women’s Amateur and the Drive, Chip and Putt National Finals, would proceed as scheduled.
“The safety, health and well-being of everyone is our top priority at Augusta National Golf Club,” Ridley said in a statement at that time. “We will continue to review the available facts and information with the experts and authorities, establish precautions and take appropriate action to ensure the safety of all involved.”
But since that time, the World Health Organization classified the COVID-19 as a global pandemic on Wednesday. The NBA moved to postpone the rest of the season alongside the NHL, and MLB canceled spring training and postponed the start of the season for two weeks. The club’s decision to postpone golf’s first major of the season comes 12 hours after PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan canceled the Players Championship after one round and declared all Tour events canceled through the Valero Texas Open, which is the tournament that precedes the Masters.
“I think there’s bigger problems in the world right now than whether we play the Masters or not,” Jon Rahm said. “It’s as simple as that.”
“We recognize this decision will affect many people, including our loyal patrons,” Ridley said in his statement. “Your patience as we make every effort to communicate effectively and efficiently is appreciated, and we will share any additional information as soon as it becomes available. Updates also will be posted to our website, Masters.com.”
Coronavirus forced the LPGA to postpone its first major, the ANA Inspiration. It won’t be easy to reschedule, but it needs to be played.
These are not good days for sports in general in this country or even around the world. But you can make an argument that the LPGA is taking more than its share of the pounding from the coronavirus threat.
With news that the next three LPGA events including the ANA Inspiration in Rancho Mirage won’t be played, at least not on their original dates, the women’s golf tour has seen six consecutive events canceled or postponed. Three of those events were in Asia.
While players in the NBA and Major League Baseball won’t be struggling to pay their electric bills over the suspension of their operations, that’s not true for the LPGA players. The women’s tour doesn’t produce nearly as much money for its players as other organizations, and missing six paychecks can be a pretty big financial burden.
The tour needs to help its players
That’s one reason the LPGA was pushing hard to get the next three events in Phoenix, Carlsbad and Rancho Mirage played. Even if the events had been played without galleries, which was a growing possibility, there would still be chances for LPGA members to make some money.
And it’s a reason Mike Whan, the commissioner of the LPGA, is going to work hard to get these next three events played later in the year. No one is more aware of the burden on the players these days than Whan, and no one wanted to make an April ANA work more than Whan.
“This is a difficult situation and as we navigate these uncertain times, we appreciate the support of all those involved with the LPGA. I am fully committed to rescheduling these important events on our 2020 schedule, especially our first major, the ANA Inspiration,” Whan said in an LPGA statement.
Of course, there are other reasons to try to reschedule the ANA Inspiration. This was to be the event’s 49th year, making 2021 the 50th playing of the first major on the LPGA schedule. In addition, the ANA Inspiration is one of the few tournaments the LPGA hangs its hat on, with the tradition and history and the leap by the winner into Poppie’s Pond. It is truly the Masters of the LPGA in that regard, and losing that even for a year is something the LPGA will work hard to avoid.
But rescheduling is not as easy as it sounds. Without a shuffle of the tour schedule, there are few places the LPGA could fit the ANA Inspiration. It could be done, though.
With the Coachella and Stagecoach music festivals already moving to October from April, there is a precedent for moving an event. But the LPGA has events scheduled through November all over the world. Getting everyone together in Rancho Mirage could be difficult. And it would require the cooperation of Mission Hills Country Club, the only home the LPGA event has ever known.
Is September a possibility?
The most logical dates for a reschedule are the last two weeks of September, both open weeks for the LPGA. The first two tournaments in September are the CP Women’s Open in Vancouver on the West Coast of Canada followed by the Cambia Portland Classic in Oregon. It would be a simple hop, skip and jump down the coast to come to Rancho Mirage after that in a two-week window before the tour heads to Texas on Oct. 1.
If a reschedule can be accomplished — and that’s still not a certainty — then the tournament would look a lot different in its 49th playing that any other year. September can be hot in the desert, few people are around to watch any event and the golf course of Bermuda grass will be dry and firm and much different than the current overseeded rye turf.
But ask yourself how many people, in the middle of the current environment, might have gone to the tournament in three weeks anyway. And if the tournament was going to ban fans as a protection in April, then any fans that show up in September would be a bonus.
It is always possible that the LPGA might reshuffle its schedule because of the cancellations and postponements, and another date might pop up. The truth is no one knows anything for certain, other than the LPGA is committed to trying to get the ANA played. LPGA officials say ANA is completely committed to whatever plan the tour comes up with.
So there is a chance we will see the LPGA’s top players later in the year in a tournament that would look and feel different. But that would still be better than waiting a full year for the LPGA to return to the Coachella Valley.
Due to the coronavirus outbreak, the NCAA has cancelled all winter and spring championship events.
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The Duke women and Stanford men will have to wait another year to defend their 2019 NCAA golf titles.
On Thursday afternoon, in the wake of countless professional sports organizations and college conferences cancelling their respective tournaments and shutting down athletic competitions and practices due to the coronavirus outbreak, the NCAA followed suit.
The NCAA has announced the cancellation of not just March Madness – the Division I men’s and women’s basketball tournaments – but all winter and spring NCAA championship events.
The women’s golf NCAA Championship was slated for May 22-27, with the men the following week May 29-June 3 at Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale, Arizona.
Per the NCAA release:
Today, NCAA President Mark Emmert and the Board of Governors canceled the Division I men’s and women’s 2020 basketball tournaments, as well as all remaining winter and spring NCAA championships. This decision is based on the evolving COVID-19 public health threat, our ability to ensure the events do not contribute to spread of the pandemic, and the impracticality of hosting such events at any time during this academic year given ongoing decisions by other entities.
Keep up with all the golf tournaments being cancelled and postponed here
The PGA Tour decided shortly after midnight ET on Thursday to go ahead with the first round of the Players Championship.
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The PGA Tour decided shortly after midnight ET on Thursday to go ahead with the first round of the Players Championship, despite numerous sports leagues canceling or suspending play.
The first round of the Players Championship will go on as scheduled on Thursday and fans will be allowed on the Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida. The first groups are set to tee off at 7:40 a.m. ET.
In quick succession, the NBA announced it was suspending its season and shortly after that announcement it was revealed that Utah Jazz player Rudy Gobert has tested positive for the coronavirus.
Tyrrell Hatton, who won the Arnold Palmer Invitational last Sunday, signs autographs for fans during a practice round for the 2020 Players Championship. Photo by Cliff Hawkins/Getty Images
The Tour’s statement says it will “absolutely continue to review recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control, World Health Organization and local health administrations. This is obviously a very fluid situation that requires constant review, communication and transparency.”
The Tour also stated that it will have another update at noon ET on Thursday and said that fans who now don’t want to go can request a refund, with details on how to obtain a refund to be “announced shortly”.
The European Tour’s Magical Kenya Open scheduled for March 12-15 has been canceled due to the threat of coronavirus.
The European Tour announced Friday the Magical Kenya Open will not be played March 12-15 as scheduled in Nairobi, Kenya, due to the threat of coronavirus.
European Tour CEO Keith Pelley said in a statement there will be an attempt to reschedule the Karen Country Club event later this season, but there are currently no definite plans.
The Magical Kenya Open is not the first event the European Tour event has canceled this season due to coronavirus.
In mid-February, the European Tour announced the Maybank Championship, scheduled to for April 16-19 at Saujana Golf & Country Club in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and the Volvo China Open, scheduled for April 23-26 at Genzon Golf Club in Shenzhen, would be postponed.
The Government of Kenya advised Friday the postponement of all international meetings and conferences within the country while the coronavirus rages across the globe. The Kenyan government said the “suspension” which will be reviewed next month.
“We understand and totally respect the decision made by the Government of Kenya in these difficult times… I would like to take this opportunity to personally thank President Uhuru Kenyatta and the Kenyan Government for their unwavering support, alongside Kenya Open Golf Limited Chairman Peter Kanyago and Tournament Director Patrick Obath for their strenuous efforts and commitment,” Pelley said in a statement. “We look forward to returning to Kenya in due course.”
The European Tour is in Doha, Qatar, this week for the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters at Education City Golf Club. The schedule will resume March 19-22 at the Hero Indian Open at DLF Golf & Country Club in New Delhi, India.
