How the coronavirus pandemic is impacting the 2020-21 PGA Tour season

Much like the world, the 2019-20 PGA Tour season was upended when the coronavirus pandemic took hold early in the year. With the virus still impacting communities around the globe, the 2020-21 PGA Tour is now being affected.

Last weekend, we learned that the 2020 CJ Cup, originally scheduled to be played at Nine Bridges in South Korea, would be moved to Shadow Creek in Las Vegas, site of The Match between Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson, and will run Oct. 15-18.

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Then on Monday the Tour announced that the 2020 Zozo Championship (Oct. 22-25) would move from Japan to Sherwood Country Club in Thousand Oaks, Calif. The tournament launched just last year, and saw Woods capture his 82nd Tour victory. Despite the move, the Tour announced that the tournament will move back to Japan in 2021.

“Following last year’s successful launch, our players will no doubt be disappointed to miss traveling to Japan to play in the Zozo Championship this year, but we look forward to returning in 2021,” wrote Ty Votaw, PGA Tour Executive Vice President, International, in a press release. “Through the Zozo Championship at Sherwood, we are excited to showcase another strong field and deliver world-class golf to fans in the U.S., Japan and around the world.”

While it’s unfortunate those tournaments had to move locations this year, at least they will be played. The same cannot be said of the WGC-HSBC Champions. On Tuesday, the Tour announced the event would be canceled in light of Chinese government guidelines regarding the “staging of international sporting events in China.”

“We have worked extensively with all Tours, international officials, the China Golf Association and other local parties to find a solution to host the WGC-HSBC Champions,” Votaw wrote. “In line with Chinese government guidelines and being mindful of the logistical implications, we collectively made the difficult decision to cancel the 2020 event.”

The 2020-21 season officially begins next week with the Safeway Open at Silverado Resort and Spa.

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Kevin Cunningham

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As managing producer for GOLF.com, Cunningham edits, writes and publishes stories on GOLF.com, and manages the brand’s e-newsletters, which reach more than 1.4 million subscribers each month. A former two-time intern, he also helps keep GOLF.com humming outside the news-breaking stories and service content provided by our reporters and writers, and works with the tech team in the development of new products and innovative ways to deliver an engaging site to our audience.