Brooks Koepka and Webb Simpson are not going to take part in one of the top golf tournaments of the year. Both golfers have withdrawn from the Travelers Championship in Cromwell, Connecticut, out of caution due to being in contact with someone who tested positive for the coronavirus. Koepka, the No. 4 player in the world, withdrew after his caddie, Ricky Elliott, tested positive for COVID-19. Simpson, the No. 5 player in the world, came in close contact with a family member who has the disease.
Other golfers to withdraw from the Travelers Championship are Cameron Champ who tested positive for COVID-19, Graeme McDowell, and Koepka’s brother Chase. In a statement, Koepka said he doesn’t have the coronavirus but doesn’t want to put himself or anyone else in danger of getting the disease.
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“I haven’t tested positive for COVID-19, but as I’ve said all along, I’m taking this very seriously. I don’t want to do anything that might jeopardize the health of any player in the field or his ability to compete,” Koepka said in a statement via CBS Sports. He went on to say he wants to “get home, support Ricky and feel confident that I’m doing what I can do protecting my fellow Tour members, my PGA Tour friends, and everyone associated with the Travelers Championship this week.”
“In the last 24 hours, I had a family member test positive for COVID-19,” Webb said in a statement. He revealed he tested negative for the virus but “I feel like it is my responsibility to take care of my family and protect my peers in the field by withdrawing from the Travelers Championship. He then stated he will return home “and quarantine under CDC guidelines, and I look forward to returning to competition after that time period.”
During a press conference on Wednesday, PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan there will be more testing done as well as stricter monitoring protocols moving forward. He mentioned there have been 2,757 tests with seven of them being positive.
“As we look at where we are now, I think we all need to remind ourselves that we’re learning to live with this virus and we all need to learn to live with this virus — as individuals, as family members and certainly within our businesses, Monahan said via ESPN. “It’s pretty clear that this virus isn’t going anywhere.”
