The Australian Open and PGA Championship were postponed until 2022

Logistical concerns over the COVID-19 pandemic have forced the Australian Open and Australian PGA Championships to be postponed.

This is the second year in a row that both tournaments will not be played after the cancellation of last year’s events. For the first time, both have not appeared on the Australian golf calendar since World War II.

A joint statement from The ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia and Golf Australia confirmed that the Open, which will be held at the Australian Golf Club in Sydney on 25-28. November, will be played on a date not yet announced at the end of January or February 2022.

Meanwhile, the Australian PGA Championship, which was scheduled to take place in Royal Queensland from 2 to 5 December, will be played from 13 to 16 January.

With several foreign players traveling to Down Under tournaments each year, Golf Australia CEO James Sutherland said quarantine and public health and safety issues were behind the postponement decision.

Unfortunately, it is not a simple matter of coordinating international actors, he said.

It was not just about international actors; Most of Australia’s best players will also settle abroad during the year.

The uncertainty of quarantine requirements for operators from outside the state borders had to be taken into account. But public health considerations, including uncertainty about closures and housing restrictions, certainly make planning an event difficult.

Given all the current uncertainty, we want to ensure the safest and best possible experience for players and fans, and this will give us some time to create it.

Australian PGA CEO Gavin Kirkman said both bodies were confident the country’s accelerated vaccination program would help ensure that both tournaments are played in early 2022.

These decisions are not made lightly when we talk about our ticket tournaments that provide opportunities for our members, Kirkman said.

But as much as the number of Covid-19 cases is a major concern, its quarantine requirements also make it difficult to organize golf tournaments. Not all countries require international visitors to quarantine America, for example, which puts Australia at a disadvantage in international sports.

Australian PGA stars such as Cameron Smith, Adam Scott and Marc Leishman have returned home in the past to the country’s flagship events, but recent developments have made their involvement unclear.

Last month, Scott, a six-time PGA Tour of Australasia winner, admitted he is unlikely to return home during the summer he had struggled with this season.

It is very frustrating when you live in one place with a policy and also act in another place according to a different policy. This made this year very difficult, honest Scott said at an August press conference.

The United States and the United Kingdom seemingly are learning to live with the virus now and seem to be making some progress. There are probably still ups and downs ahead, but it really seems to be moving forward. I find it frustrating that Australia may be lagging behind at the moment and has very strict measures on the virus.

Basically, that means I won’t go home right away. I’m more worried that I get to see my parents and they get to see their grandchildren that they haven’t seen in a long time and some they’ve never met. “