Competitive golf in Georgia is ready to return.
After it was forced to postpone or cancel spring events because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Georgia PGA will resume its tournament schedule June 1, and the Georgia State Golf Association will commence its amateur events June 15.
“I think there’s definitely an appetite for professionals and amateurs to get out there and play some competitive golf,” said Mike Paull, executive director of the Georgia PGA.
The Georgia PGA will host the Milton Martin Honda Classic on June 1-2 at Chattahoochee Golf Club in Gainesville. The event is open to amateurs and professionals, and Paull expects to see elite high school players and collegiate golfers mixed into the 120-player field.
The GSGA will host its first of 12 qualifiers for the Georgia Amateur on June 15. Its first tournaments will be the Georgia Junior Championship and Georgia Girls’ Championship, both scheduled for June 22-24 in Savannah.
Much to the delight of the state’s top amateurs, the GSGA was able to keep the 99th Georgia Amateur Championship on the schedule. The much-anticipated event will be contested for the first time at the Atlanta Athletic Club’s Highlands Course, which has hosted three PGA Championships, one U.S. Open and one U.S. Amateur.
“I was nervous about it,” said David Noll of Dalton, a two-time winner of the Georgia Amateur and 2020 inductee into the Georgia Golf Hall of Fame. “The safety of the world is more important than a golf tournament, but in my world, I want to be able to compete in these events, especially the state am. That’s my favorite one.”
Although the Georgia Amateur will still be played, July 10-12, it will have a different look. The field will be reduced from 144 to 120 players, with the low 60 players making the cut, and the tournament will be shortened to 54 holes. Unlike typical GSGA competitions that allow players to ride in motorized carts, the Georgia Amateur will be a walking-only competition.
“It’s the premier event in Georgia as far as amateur golf goes,” Noll said. “I’ve been looking forward to it, and the fact that it’s at the Athletic Club is just icing on the cake. Not that it needs more of a championship feel, because it is the flagship event, but making it a walking-only competition adds a little more of a championship feel.”
Both organizations continue to review and develop tournament policies that put players, volunteers, staff and spectators in a safe environment. Both organizations are utilizing a policy of one player per cart, which likely will affect the maximum size of a field.
In an attempt to further embrace the social-distancing guidelines, the Georgia PGA is switching to an electronic scoring system that requires players to post their score from their phone or device after each hole is completed. Scorecards will be checked electronically at the end of the round and digitally signed.
“We’re doing whatever we can to follow CDC guidelines and keep everyone safe,” Paull said.
The GSGA was forced to cancel eight events, including the 102nd Georgia Match Play Championship, the Georgia Four-Ball Tournament and Top 60 Women’s Classic. The Billy Peters Cup, the biennial match between the GSGA and the Georgia PGA, was moved to 2021.
The GSGA rescheduled its Match Play Championships for men and women, the Georgia Four-Ball Championship and Georgia Mid-Amateur Championship. The Georgia PGA had to move only its Georgia Senior Open to the fall.
The Korn Ferry Tour, the developmental arm of the PGA Tour, announced that the Savannah Golf Classic has been rescheduled for Oct. 1-4 at The Landings Club.
About the Author
