The PGA Tour has informed players in a recent memo a "plan to expand fields" when play resumes to "help alleviate those lost starts" due to the 11 events either canceled or postponed this season, according to Rex Hoggard of GOLFCHANNEL.com. Next month's Charles Schwab Challenge is "earmarked as the earliest play can restart," and the fields for both it and the Memorial -- scheduled to take place two weeks later -- will be "expanded from 120 players to 144 players." The Tour also is "considering expanding field sizes in other events." Sources said that the Tour "plans to play as many opposite-field tournaments as possible" (GOLFCHANNEL.com, 3/31).
HELPING HAND: GOLFWEEK's Forecaddie noted LPGA Commissioner Mike Whan on March 24 "sent out a video message to players that included information on a cash advancement program on future earnings for anyone who needs help." Whan "encouraged players to reach out, but he also created a call list for his staff" so that in the coming days, every player on the LPGA will "receive a check-up call from a staff member." There also will "need to be playing opportunities for all, which means that full-field events must be a priority for Whan and his staff." In addition to "combining title sponsors," one possibility on the table is "moving the UL International Crown to the U.S. and making it a full-field event." The Crown traditionally is a "biennial event that pits the top eight countries against each other" (GOLFWEEK.com, 3/31).
SWING AWAY? GOLF DIGEST's Joel Beall noted Toronto Mayor John Tory has "canceled all public gatherings through June 30 in response to the coronavirus pandemic, putting the PGA Tour's RBC Canadian Open in doubt." But Tory's Exec Dir of Communications & Strategic Issues Management Don Peat clarified that the cancellation "applies to events that get city permits like parades and festivals and does not include sporting events." Still, Beall noted Tory's edict "could mean trouble for the RBC Canadian Open," scheduled to begin on June 11 at St. George's Golf and Country Club (GOLFDIGEST.com, 3/31).
