With Proper COVID-19 Protocols In Place, Alberta Golf Staging Provincial Championships
- Details
- Category: Inside Golf
- Published: 2020-07-08
By GORD MONTGOMERY, Inside Golf
CALGARY, Alberta — Some nasty weather aside, it’s been a case of so far, so good, for Alberta Golf’s major championships this summer.
The provincial amateur golf body decided to host their 2020 provincial championships after careful consideration and after deciding to enact several restrictions due to the ongoing novel coronavirus pandemic, said Kevin Smith, their Director of Communications.
“We went through very thorough surveys because we have concerns. We don’t want to run championships if no one else in Canada is running championships from a perception standpoint. We wanted to make sure this was what everyone wants. We were surprised that when we surveyed the courses and players almost 100 percent, everyone wanted to play.”
Given that desire to continue as normally as possible with the season, Alberta Golf put together a list of tournament protocols whick each event must adhere to. “We don’t think it’s bad at all. It made sense. We’re doing well here in Alberta and golf is a sport where you can social distance.”
Those protocols worked to perfection at both the Men’s Mid Am and the Ladies Amateur with both having strong, and large, fields. including some players from outside of Alberta. That’s largely due, Smith said, to Alberta being the first province to host their amateur championships.
“The Mid Am was our first time running a championship under the COVID-19 protocols and it went really well,” he noted. Players only had time for a “quick warm-up,” their round, and then were asked to leave the host premises, the Coyote Creek G&RV Resort in Sundre after a quick, socially-distanced bite to eat. There were no caddies or spectators allowed.
As well, players could lift and place their ball in a bunker if it ended up in a footprint. They couldn’t touch the flagstick, and the lift method of removing the ball from the hole was used.
“We thought the protocols worked really well and we got some good feedback,” said Smith.
Things changed slightly at the Ladies Am, as the lifter was discarded after the first round and pool noodles replaced those for the second, and what turned out to be the final round due to inclement weather.
As for players from outside Alberta competing, Smith said there were no issues with that from either organizers or competitors.
“We haven’t heard any feedback that people felt uncomfortable. There were a few national team members from Ontario who don’t have any tournaments presently to play in Ontario, so they came out to Alberta. We were the first province to start provincial championships. There was no feedback that anyone felt uncomfortable with those players coming to play,” said Smith.
In closing, Smith noted, “We’ve run two championships and two McLennan Ross junior events and so far the protocols have worked well. The feedback from the surveys was ‘Let’s play!’ That’s what we’re doing and it’s going really well.”