PGA Tour contender knocked out of event due to Covid-19

Everything was going great for Branden Grace at the Barracuda Championship through 36 holes. He’d made 10 birdies and an eagle, enough for a tie for second on the leaderboard. He was in prime position for a run at his first PGA Tour victory since 2016.

But after his second round, he complained of abnormal fatigue. He notified the PGA Tour and entered Covid-19 testing protocol. The results came back positive.

“I felt great all week,” Grace said in a statement from the Tour. “Last night, I was tired and thought it had to do with the altitude. … While it is unfortunate given my position on the leaderboard, the most important thing is our health.”

Now, Grace enters the Tour’s Covid-19 response plan as he will enter a 10-day period of self-isolation. Grace’s caddie tested negative for Covid-19, but he will also enter a quarantine period.

The positive result comes at a tough time for Grace, with the PGA Championship, the year’s first major, next week. Grace will be unable to compete in the event at TPC Harding Park because of his diagnosis.

Grace is the eighth player on Tour to test positive and the first since Grayson Murray revealed his positive diagnosis on July 20.

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Zephyr Melton

Golf.com Editor

Zephyr Melton is an assistant editor for GOLF.com where he spends his days blogging, producing and editing. Prior to joining the team at GOLF, he attended the University of Texas followed by stops with the Texas Golf Association, Team USA, the Green Bay Packers and the PGA Tour. He assists on all things instruction and covers amateur and women’s golf. He can be reached at zephyr_melton@golf.com.

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