Augusta National Golf Club announced Wednesday that no patrons will be allowed on site for the 2020 Masters when it’s held in November.
The news comes two weeks after the USGA announced that the U.S. Open, scheduled to begin Sept. 17 at Winged Foot in Mamaroneck, N.Y., would be played without spectators, and a week after the mayor of Augusta said he was expecting crowds to be barred from club property.
When the club originally announced the tournament’s postponement from its traditional April date to Nov. 12-15, Augusta National chairmen Fred Ridley said he would welcome “all existing ticket holders to enjoy the excitement of Masters week,” contingent on favorable counsel and direction from health officials. Unfortunately, the United States has been unable to curb the COVID-19 outbreak, and the tournament’s home state of Georgia continues to be a hotspot with only Florida and California having more active coronavirus cases.
The PGA Tour has yet to allow fans since the tour’s restart, a move that will continue through its 2019-’20 season finale at the Tour Championship. (Last week’s PGA Championship, run by the PGA of America, was also held without galleries.) The tour has not announced a fan policy for its 2020 fall season that begins in September, with commissioner Jay Monahan stating in July he hoped fans could return before the end of 2020.
The club’s Augusta National Women’s Amateur and the Drive, Chip and Putt National Finals have already been canceled. As for the 2020 Masters, its field has been set, with club officials confirming to Golf Digest that winners from the tour’s restart will be invited to its 2021 tournament.