Three Players Test COVID-19 Positive After The Players

Three players are out of the Honda Classic after positive COVID-19 tests. This follows two weeks of Florida tour with the most significant galleries since the February’s Waste Management Open.

The players were Gary Woodland, Scott Piercy and Doc Redman.

Woodland Tweeted this:

Unfortunately, I had to withdraw from @TheHondaClassic after testing positive for Covid-19. I’m grateful to be feeling good and disappointed to not be in the field this week. I’m working with the TOUR in regards to safely returning to competition and hope to be back soon.

— Gary Woodland (@GaryWoodland) March 15, 2021

From AP’s Doug Ferguson:

Three players also tested positive before tournaments at the RSM Classic at Sea Island in November, and the Rocket Mortgage Classic in Detroit in early July.

The positive tests follow two weeks of the Florida events on the PGA Tour allowing limited fans, with roughly 8,000 in attendance at Bay Hill and The Players Championship.

Besides the obvious hope that all three players are some of the lucky ones to experience minor symptoms, matching the most positive tests in a week should prompt a major contact tracing effort.

It could be a coincidence that all three players tested positive, but given the timing there is some chance they contracted the virus during Players week. Piercy made the weekend. Woodland and Redman did not.

The outcome of such tracing, besides potentially help alert others who may need to be tested, will have ramifications for protocols and fans at upcoming events.