After a 13-year break, professional golf’s long-awaited return to Colorado surely didn’t disappoint when Nelson Ledesma seized a dramatic victory in the 2019 TPC Colorado Championship at Heron Lakes.
Though last year’s hefty cash prize winner won’t travel to Berthoud to defend his title in 2020, the week local golf fanatics have been waiting for has finally arrived as the annual stop on the Korn Ferry Tour commences on Wednesday morning.
Following initial tee-offs, the second round begins on Thursday before the top 65 performers from the 156-player field compete in both Friday’s third round and the event’s conclusive portion on early Saturday morning.
With an elite combination of PGA experienced golfers, highly ranked amateurs and collegiate All-Americans filling out the field, tournament director Drew Blass believes the festivities will again create an exciting buzz in the Loveland area.
However, those who witnessed the contest’s thrilling progression in 2019 will have to track the developments from home this time around as the TPC Championship won’t allow fans to attend.
“This community is so important to us, and they’re amazing,” Blass said. “We had such a great inaugural year last year, and it’s tough to not have our fans out here because of what a great first year we had last year with this community. But we are going to do our best to tell that story to the community from afar via social media, via the Korn Ferry Tour’s website and our website.”
Beyond unfolding in front of empty stands, tournament directors implemented several COVID-19-related precautions to help assure the health of each participant.
While devising a plan alongside the Larimer County Health Department, Blass and company’s safety procedures entail a required COVID-19 test for each golfer, caddy and essential staff member.
Everyone physically involved with the event will also receive a daily screening and questionnaire upon arriving at the course.
“We don’t have the results yet because some players are still arriving,” Blass said. “But we truly appreciate Stanford Health and Drug Free Sport being able to provide the service of testing over 400 people with the PGA tour support right on site. It really just provides a little bit safer of an environment off the bat. We’ll also have hand sanitizer on every tee and disinfectant wipes that every player and caddy carry with them.”
Assuming all qualifiers pass the mandatory examinations, 2020’s field includes a number of prominent golfers, many of which grew up in Colorado en route to prospering professionally –– such as Colorado School of Mines graduate Jim Knous and Air Force alumnus Tom Whitney.
The tournament also provides an opportunity for Louisville native George Cunnigham, 2020 Duke graduate Chandler Eaton and other young stars to establish themselves on a prime stage after recently finishing college.
Though fans can’t attend TPC to witness the jam-packed week of golf, it’s safe to assume the highlights posted online will be worth watching considering the “world-class” talent on hand in Berthoud.
“Just to be at this level, you had to be in the top five on the PGA Latin America Tour, or the top five on the Canadian PGA Tour, or the top five from the PGA Tour China. Or do really well at (qualifying) school,” Blass said. “So the quality of golf is amazing and it’s really tough to get in this field. We had over 260 people try for eight qualifying spots today at Highland Meadows and Riverdale Dunes, and the quality of golf at Monday’s qualifier was even pretty amazing alone.”
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June 30, 2020 at 08:09AM
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TPC Colorado Championship returns to Berthoud this week following exciting results in 2019 - Journal Advocate
"exciting" - Google News
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