The PGA Tour fall schedule continued this week as the Shriners Children's Open kicked off Thursday. However, high winds caused first-round play to be postponed. Play resumed early Friday morning, but the winds did not dissipate as expected.
Therefore, the PGA Tour decided to close the gates at TPC Summerlin in Las Vegas, NV. PGA Tour Communications then provided a statement explaining the decision.
“Second-round play at the Shriners Children's Open began at 10:55 am PT following a four-hour delay due to high winds. Out of an abundance of caution for spectator safety, gates to the Shriners Children's Open are closed to all spectators on Friday, October 18, until further notice,” the statement read.
“General admission and hospitality tickets for Friday will be honored for Saturday at TPC Summerlin.”
To give you an idea of the conditions, check out the flag stick during this putt Friday.
This is an understandable yet adverse development. This tournament, maybe more than any other on the PGA Tour, is for the fans.
Shriners Children's, an international pediatric healthcare system with 22 U.S. locations, is the sponsor and benefactor of the tournament. Many of the fans in attendance are patients with some being named ambassadors each year.
Last year, Lexi Thompson made the crossover and played on the PGA Tour at Shriners. Despite all of the headlines created by an LPGA pro crossing the aisle, as Thompson detailed, it was all about the children.
Despite the PGA Tour honoring Friday's tickets on Saturday, for many families, moving plans will not be that easy. That is not the only unfortunate development from Vegas either.
PGA Tour fan favorite, Joel Dahmen, withdrew from the tournament Friday morning. He was assessed a crushing four-stroke penalty for having an extra club in his bag during his opening round. With players going low, that likely snapped any chance he had at making it to the weekend.
Currently, Taylor Pendrith sits atop the leaderboard at 10-under par. He posted a career-low 61 Thursday (finished his final hole Friday due to wind). He is slated to tee off a 1:18 pm PT.