The Masters Will Be Postponed Amid Coronavirus Outbreak

(Bloomberg) -- The Masters tournament, the most important event on the golf calendar, will be postponed because of the coronavirus outbreak.

The tournament, which takes place in annually at Augusta National Golf Club in Georgia, was scheduled for April 9-12. It will be postponed to a later date, according to Fred Ridley, chairman of Augusta National.

“We recognize this decision will affect many people, including our loyal patrons,” Ridley said. “Your patience as we make every effort to communicate effectively and efficiently is appreciated, and we will share any additional information as soon as it becomes available.”

As the U.S. sports world ground to a halt over Wednesday and Thursday, golf appeared to be resisting cancellations or postponements. That changed late Thursday night, when the the PGA Tour announced that the Players Championship, which was planning to continue without fans, would be canceled. The PGA also canceled all events in the coming weeks.

The Masters news will have particular impact on the event’s long-time TV partner, ViacomCBS Inc.’s CBS, which has also lost its coverage of the lucrative March Madness college basketball championship tournament.

It will also affect the tournament’s small sponsor list, which last year was just Daimler AG’s Mercedes-Benz, International Business Machines Corp. and AT&T Inc.

To contact the reporter on this story: Eben Novy-Williams in New York at enovywilliam@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Nick Turner at nturner7@bloomberg.net, John J. Edwards III, Rob Golum

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