Golf’s leading organizations have established a “Back2Golf” plan for the industry’s 16,000 facilities with nationally established operational protocols to open play during the pandemic. The effort, led by the PGA of America, was released after a review by the CDC and adopts a three-phase plan to reopen play with prolonged social distancing and increased sanitation practices. Each organization has distributed “Back2Golf Guidelines” and an “Operational Playbook” to its members. “The importance of social distancing and responsible behavior during this pandemic has become a part of everyone’s daily life,” PGA CEO Seth Waugh said in a statement. “Reopening golf responsibly under strict social distancing practices is something we can all unify behind. While we recognize there is no perfect solution and various areas of the country will progress in these phases at a different pace, it is imperative that we reopen golf in a way that prioritizes the health and well-being of the entire golf community.” Back2Golf was developed by a division of the World Golf Foundation. Organizations include the PGA of America, USGA, PGA Tour, LPGA, Golf Course Superintendents Association of America, National Golf Course Owners Association and Club Management Association of America (John Lombardo, THE DAILY).
ALMOST OPEN ACROSS THE COUNTRY: GOLFWEEK's Jason Lusk reported the National Golf Foundation found that only three states -- Maryland, Massachusetts and Vermont -- "remained closed to golf with no announced plans of when courses might reopen in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic." Washington state’s courses were set to reopen today and New Hampshire on May 11, while Alaska is "closed because of seasonality." The rest of the 50 states are open, "albeit a few with some restrictions still in place at the city or county level" (GOLFWEEK.com, 5/4).
