The Masters has become the latest major sporting event to fall victim to the coronavirus outbreak.
Shortly after the PGA Tour shut down tournaments through April 5 due to the global pandemic, officials at Augusta National Golf Club made the decision to postpone the Masters Tournament, the Augusta National Women’s Amateur and the Drive, Chip and Putt National Finals.
The Masters was scheduled for April 9-12. Traditionally, it is the first men’s golf major championship of the year and has never been held outside of March or April since its inception in 1934.
“Ultimately, the health and well-being of everyone associated with these events and the citizens of the Augusta community led us to this decision,” Fred Ridley, chairman of Augusta National Golf Club, said in a statement. “We hope this postponement puts us in the best position to safely host the Masters Tournament and our amateur events at some later date.”
The next major is scheduled to be the PGA Championship in San Francisco on May 14-17.
Elsewhere, the Boston Marathon – which was scheduled for April 20 – has been put back until September 14. It has never been cancelled outright since its first running in 1897.
Meanwhile, Nascar has decided to postpone the race events at Atlanta Motor Speedway this weekend and Homestead-Miami Speedway next weekend. The events were due to take place without spectators.
“We believe this decision is in the best interest of the safety and well-being of our fans, competitors, officials and everyone associated with our sport,” Nascar said in a statement.
The IndyCar Series has cancelled its opening four events of the season, starting with this weekend’s scheduled Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg.
