Miami (AFP)
The 2020 Ryder Cup, slated for next September, has been officially postponed to 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic, organizers of the world's largest team golf competition, which pits bi-annual bids, announced on Wednesday. United States to Europe.
The 43rd edition of the competition, originally scheduled for September 25 to 27 at Whistling Straits in Wisconsin, will take place from September 24 to 26, 2021, said the PGA of America, Ryder Cup Europe and the US PGA Tour.
"It has become clear that today neither medical experts nor public authorities in Wisconsin are able to assure us of the possibility of conducting such an event in a responsible manner, bringing together thousands of spectators. It is this uncertainty which made us say that postponing the Ryder Cup was the right decision to make, "said US PGA boss Seth Waugh.
This decision was taken on the basis of recommendations from American centers for disease control and prevention as well as national and local authorities, health considerations being the top priority, while the coronavirus pandemic is experiencing an upsurge in the United States.
"Unlike most large-scale events taking place in existing stadiums, we had to make a decision now as to whether or not to build the infrastructure for this Ryder Cup at Whistling Straits," said Waugh.
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Europe, which had won the 2018 Ryder Cup disputed in France, will therefore keep its title for another year.
Another consequence of this decision: the 2021 edition of the Presidents Cup, contested every two years between an American team and an international non-European team, will be postponed until September 2022, and the 2022 edition of the Ryder Cup scheduled for Rome will also be postponed by a year, in 2023.
This postponement is the first for the Ryder Cup since 2001, when the terrorist attacks of September 11 on New York and Washington had led to shift the famous competition to 2002. The Ryder had also not been played from 1939 to 1945 because of World War II.
Several renowned golfers, including world number one, Northern Irishman Rory McIlroy, and four-time U.S. champion Brooks Koepka, had voiced their opposition to seeing the 2020 Ryder Cup held behind closed doors, noting that the cheers, the passionate songs and cries of the public create a unique atmosphere during the matches of the Cup.
"The spectators who support the American and European teams are part of what makes the Ryder Cup so unique, playing without them was not an option," Waugh agreed on Wednesday.
"It is certainly disappointing that the Ryder Cup cannot be contested this year, postponing was the right thing to do given the circumstances. Next year we will have the opportunity to compete in this competition as it should be "said Steve Stricker, captain of the United States team for the next edition of the Ryder Cup.
© 2020 AFP