{"id":3128,"date":"2020-08-27T10:01:26","date_gmt":"2020-08-27T10:01:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/?p=3128"},"modified":"2020-08-27T19:15:23","modified_gmt":"2020-08-27T19:15:23","slug":"playing-in-a-lpga-pro-am-during-the-pandemic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/golf\/personalities\/3128\/playing-in-a-lpga-pro-am-during-the-pandemic","title":{"rendered":"Playing in a LPGA Pro-Am during the pandemic"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"attachment_3134\" style=\"width: 910px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"http:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2020\/08\/9EC163BF-A4A9-44A1-A485-8A7ED9F1CEA4.jpeg\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-3134\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-3134\" class=\"size-full wp-image-3134\" src=\"http:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2020\/08\/9EC163BF-A4A9-44A1-A485-8A7ED9F1CEA4.jpeg\" alt=\"This was NOT the scene for this year's Marathon LPGA Classic\" width=\"900\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2020\/08\/9EC163BF-A4A9-44A1-A485-8A7ED9F1CEA4.jpeg 900w, https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2020\/08\/9EC163BF-A4A9-44A1-A485-8A7ED9F1CEA4-300x200.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2020\/08\/9EC163BF-A4A9-44A1-A485-8A7ED9F1CEA4-768x512.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2020\/08\/9EC163BF-A4A9-44A1-A485-8A7ED9F1CEA4-90x60.jpeg 90w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 900px) 100vw, 900px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-3134\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">This was NOT the scene for this year&#8217;s Marathon LPGA Classic<\/p><\/div>\n<p><b>\u00a0<\/b>(Grand Rapids, MI) Blame my charming seven-year-old granddaughter. During her recent stay, she simply provided too many pleasant distractions for me to share this golf story sooner.<\/p>\n<p>One of my golf cronies\u2014Brian, a business owner in Toledo, OH\u2014played in the Marathon LPGA Classic Pro-Am. (Sorry, first name only to avoid pesky sales calls.) In a nutshell, he summed up the experience, which he enjoyed, as \u201cextremely different.\u201d And it started well before he stepped on Sylvania\u2019s Highland Meadows GC on Aug. 5.<\/p>\n<p>First, the LPGA announced it would resume its tour after the months\u2019 long pandemic pause with back-to-back stops in Toledo, OH, with the LPGA Drive On Championship and the Marathon LPGA Classic and with no spectators.<\/p>\n<p>Second, as a registered participant and a safeguard for LPGA players and caddies, Brian was notified weeks before by tournament officials that all amateur players in the pro-am would need be tested for Covid-19. Brian shared with me how it was done:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Via email, he received instructions from the designated testing company where he self-administered the \u201cnoninvasive test\u201d remotely by using Zoom while under the \u201clive\u201d guidance of a nurse practitioner.<\/li>\n<li><\/li>\n<li>After receiving a kit in the mail, he then sent his sample back via a prepaid expedited shipping label to an assigned laboratory.<\/li>\n<li><\/li>\n<li>Within 48 hours of the lab receiving his sample, Brian was informed he tested negative and was approved to play in the pro-am.<\/li>\n<li><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div id=\"attachment_3129\" style=\"width: 160px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"http:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2020\/08\/57BD231A-EBFA-4CB7-A34B-3AAA1E7358A2_4_5005_c.jpeg\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-3129\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-3129\" class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-3129\" src=\"http:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2020\/08\/57BD231A-EBFA-4CB7-A34B-3AAA1E7358A2_4_5005_c-150x150.jpeg\" alt=\"Sarah Kemp\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" srcset=\"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2020\/08\/57BD231A-EBFA-4CB7-A34B-3AAA1E7358A2_4_5005_c-150x150.jpeg 150w, https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2020\/08\/57BD231A-EBFA-4CB7-A34B-3AAA1E7358A2_4_5005_c-100x100.jpeg 100w, https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2020\/08\/57BD231A-EBFA-4CB7-A34B-3AAA1E7358A2_4_5005_c-125x125.jpeg 125w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-3129\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sarah Kemp<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Actually playing in the event was also unique. \u201cWe played with two very nice and gracious pros, Sarah Kemp and Alana Uriell,\u201d said Brian. \u201cBut due to health safeguards, we had to maintain a safe distance from them during the round.\u201d In fact, Brian explained their caddies served as a \u201cgo between\u201d for the players and pro-am participants. \u201cThe caddies actually got more involved with us and interacted with us.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Unlike in previous years, Brian and his playing partners had to use golf carts which were restricted to remain behind the ropes (aka cart path only). \u201cThis was necessary due to no caddies for the amateurs and making sure carts didn\u2019t disturb the fairways,\u201d said Brian who usually likes to walk when playing.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cI\u2019m not complaining given the circumstances, but it meant extra time going from outside the ropes to one\u2019s ball.\u201d In his post-event survey, he suggested that it would\u2019ve been better if he could\u2019ve used his push cart. \u201cI would\u2019ve gone straight to my ball, saving some time.\u201d<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_3130\" style=\"width: 160px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"http:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2020\/08\/7A769AA9-4C28-4C05-A8DB-6A9D27B8A6B0.jpeg\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-3130\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-3130\" class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-3130\" src=\"http:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2020\/08\/7A769AA9-4C28-4C05-A8DB-6A9D27B8A6B0-150x150.jpeg\" alt=\"Alana Uriell\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" srcset=\"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2020\/08\/7A769AA9-4C28-4C05-A8DB-6A9D27B8A6B0-150x150.jpeg 150w, https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2020\/08\/7A769AA9-4C28-4C05-A8DB-6A9D27B8A6B0-100x100.jpeg 100w, https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2020\/08\/7A769AA9-4C28-4C05-A8DB-6A9D27B8A6B0-125x125.jpeg 125w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-3130\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Alana Uriell<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Prior to play, restrictions included no use of the club\u2019s practice area and the putting green, again to avoid a group gathering around the LPGA players. \u201cHowever, the tournament did provide four hitting bays which allowed us to warm up and hit some shots,\u201d said Brian who was competing in his fourth Marathon pro-am.<\/p>\n<p>Even with the restrictions and safety protocols in place, he relished the time with the LPGA players,<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 <\/span>playing nine holes with each of them in a scramble and best-ball format.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Kemp, 34, has won over $700,000 on the LPGA since 2008, her rookie season. An Australian, she played in 16 events in 2019, making eight cuts and earning $158, 379 with a career best T-2 finish.<\/p>\n<p>Uriell, 24, was a University of Arkansas college player whose rookie season was last year when she won $62,031 in 16 events, including one top-ten finish.<\/p>\n<p>On Sunday, Kemp finished T-28 earning $6,862 while on Friday Uriell missed the cut.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>As it turned out, Brian\u2019s sponsor group\u2014The McDonald\u2019s Owner\/Operator Group of NW Ohio\u2014didn\u2019t field its second team due to a participant testing positive beforehand. But true to its corporate mission to support the local community, McDonald\u2019s didn\u2019t ask for any money back from the tournament.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSupporting the LPGA in Toledo for over 34 years, our group didn\u2019t want to pull back any of our funds,\u201d said Brian. \u201cEveryone has to do what they have to do at this time.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The pandemic may have turned the world upside down\u2014including pro-ams\u2014 but \u2018giving back\u2019 is firmly in place in Toledo.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><i>The founding editor of <\/i>Michigan Golfer<i> and a member of the Michigan Golf Hall of Fame, Terry Moore can be contacted at terry50moore@gmail.com<\/i><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Images courtesy of VisitToledo and the LPGA.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u00a0(Grand Rapids, MI) Blame my charming seven-year-old granddaughter. During her recent stay, she simply provided too many pleasant distractions for&#8230;  <a class=\"excerpt-read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/golf\/personalities\/3128\/playing-in-a-lpga-pro-am-during-the-pandemic\" title=\"ReadPlaying in a LPGA Pro-Am during the pandemic\">Read more &raquo;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":47,"featured_media":3134,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9,17,7],"tags":[1028418,1068,1028420,1028421,1028422,1028423,1028424,1028425,1028426,1418,1028427,975981],"class_list":["post-3128","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-golf","category-courses-and-travel","category-personalities","tag-lpga-marathon-classic","tag-pro-am","tag-toledo","tag-covid-19-pro-am-restrictions","tag-sarah-kemp","tag-alana-uriell","tag-mcdonalds","tag-mcdonalds-of-nw-ohio","tag-highland-meadows-gc","tag-lpga","tag-sylvania-oh","tag-terry-moore-and-golf"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2020\/08\/9EC163BF-A4A9-44A1-A485-8A7ED9F1CEA4.jpeg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3128","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/47"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3128"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3128\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3137,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3128\/revisions\/3137"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3134"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3128"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3128"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3128"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}