Shriners Open remains as scheduled on PGA Tour’s revised slate

By Brian Hurlburt Special to the Review-Journal

5 years ago

Kevin Na, center, holds up his trophy after winning the tournament at the final round of Shrine ... — Kevin Na, center, holds up his trophy after winning the tournament at the final round of Shriners Hospitals for Children Open golf tournament at TPC Summerlin on Sunday, Oct. 6, 2019 in Las Vegas. (L.E. Baskow/Las Vegas Review-Journal) @Left_Eye_Images

Kevin Na is shocked at a near miss to win while putting on the green at hole 18 during the final round of Shriners Hospitals for Children Open golf tournament at TPC Summerlin on Sunday, Oct. 6, 2019 in Las Vegas. (L.E. Baskow/Las Vegas Review-Journal) @Left_Eye_Images

Kevin Na hits onto the green at hole 18 during the final round of Shriners Hospitals for Children Open golf tournament at TPC Summerlin on Sunday, Oct. 6, 2019 in Las Vegas. (L.E. Baskow/Las Vegas Review-Journal) @Left_Eye_Images

The Shriners Hospitals for Children Open keeps its original dates on the revised tournament schedule announced Thursday by the PGA Tour. The TPC Summerlin event is set for Oct. 8-11.

The coronavirus pandemic has caused many PGA Tour tournaments to be canceled or postponed.

“We were excited to see the PGA Tour release the full updated schedule and … we still believe our dates are favorable to attrack the world’s best professional golfers and host them in our incredible city,” said Patrick Lindsey, Shriners Open executive director.

The tour is scheduled to return with no fans June 11-14 at the Charles Schwab Challenge at Colonial Country Club in Texas, an event originally scheduled for May 21-24. The tour first postponed all scheduled tournaments following the first round of the Players Championship in Florida on March 12.

“The health and safety of all associated with the PGA Tour and our global community continues to be our No. 1 priority, and our hope is to play a role — responsibly — in the world’s return to enjoying the things we love,” PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan said in a statement.

Tour officials also announced the general public will not be allowed to attend the first four events of the new schedule, but they are monitoring the situation after that. If the Shriners Open is played as planned, it will mark the 17th straight week of PGA Tour golf, between the conclusion of the 2019-20 season and the beginning of the 2020-21 season. Las Vegas resident Kevin Na is the Shriners Open reigning champion.

“We are hopeful that by October our state and local leaders will believe it will be safe to gather and attend events again,” Lindsay said. “The safety and well-being of the event’s spectators, partners, sponsors, volunteers, vendors, tournament staff and PGA Tour professionals has and will always be our number one priority. We hope to know more in the coming weeks.”

Tour officials had previously announced a new schedule for golf’s major championships, which included the cancellation of the British Open in July. The PGA Championship at TPC Harding Park in San Francisco was moved from May 14-17 to Aug. 6-9, prior to the Tour Championship, the 2020 season’s final tournament. That event is scheduled for Sept. 3-7 — a week later than the original date — at Eastlake Golf Club in Atlanta.

Both the U.S. Open at Winged Foot in New York (moved from June 18-21 to Sept. 17-20) and the Masters (moved from April 9-12 to Nov. 12-15) are now scheduled for after the beginning of the 2020-21 season. Tour officials didn’t announce how the changes in scheduling would affect points for the FedEx Cup playoffs for either the 2019-20 or 2020-21 seasons. The Ryder Cup remains scheduled for Sept. 25-27 at Whistling Straits in Wisconsin.

“There’s going to be a bunch of hungry golfers that are going to be ready to play, that’s for sure,” said Charley Hoffman, a former UNLV All-American and chairman of the PGA Tour’s Player Advisory Council.

In 2019, the Shriners Open field included five-time major champion Phil Mickelson, world No. 1 Brooks Koepka and 19 of the top 50 golfers in the world. It was the best Shriners field since 2003. Attendance was 72,842, up from 55,000 in 2018.