Masters suspended after just 25 minutes

He shot 61 on Saturday. He enters the final round of the Waste Management Phoenix Open tied for the lead, giving him his best chance for his first win in nearly four years.

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Monday qualifier Chase Koepka will get to play in the Travelers Championship after all. He’ll just be playing in 2021. Tournament Director Nathan Grube confirmed Thursday that Koepka – who Monday qualified for this year’s Travelers only to later withdraw for precautionary reasons related to the coronavirus – has a standing invitation to play in next year’s tournament. “It is 100% confirmed,” Grube said. “I called Chase this morning and I said, ‘Listen, I don’t know if you’ll even need it next year, but if you need a spot, we have you covered. We were so excited for you, so looking forward to see you play, and we know you’re disappointed. But you’re here (next year). You’ve got a spot.’” Reached at home as he watched the first round of the Travelers, Koepka, 26, said, “I was ecstatic when I got the call this morning. I obviously didn’t know something like that would happen.” Koepka shot 67 and survived a five-for-two playoff in the Travelers qualifier at Ellington Ridge Country Club on Monday. His older brother Brooks, the former world No. 1, watched him come up the 18th hole and in the playoff, and they celebrated afterward. It seemed like a nice story. Then everything got flipped. Chase’s plans for this week changed after the caddies for brother Brooks and Graeme McDowell tested positive for the virus. Koepka and McDowell, although they tested negative, withdrew out of an abundance of caution. Chase also tested negative but also withdrew as a precautionary measure, having played a practice round with Brooks and McDowell (and their caddies) early in the week. “I feel as if this is the best decision to keep all other players, caddies and volunteers safe,” Chase Koepka said. Brooks and others praised his selflessness; from the outside, it looked like a tough blow for a guy trying to establish a foothold in the professional game. Chase played on Europe’s Challenge Tour last season, and has status on the Korn Ferry Tour in 2020. He had been looking forward to making his third PGA TOUR start this season at the Travelers – his best career result is a fifth-place finish with Brooks at the 2017 Zurich Classic of New Orleans – and trying to make the most of his hard-earned start. Now he’ll get that start after all. “It makes me feel so great that they saw what I did,” he said. “Hopefully I don’t need the start and can find a way to earn my PGA TOUR card for next year.”

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Prairie View A&M University has announced a $40,000 donation from the Cameron Champ Foundation and Chevron Corporation to establish two scholarship funds for student-athletes on its men's and women's golf teams. The donation follows Augusta National's announcement that it is honoring Lee Elder, the first African American to compete in the tournament, with a scholarship in his name and by making him an honorary starter for the 2021 Masters. "When Lee Elder walked on the Augusta grounds," said Champ, a two-time PGA TOUR winner, "it sent a message: ‘We belong.'" Inspired by Elder and Augusta National's actions, the scholarship fund, established by the Cameron Champ Foundation and Chevron, will be named in memory of Cameron Champ's grandfather, Mack "Pops" Champ. Mack Champ, an African American, taught Cameron Champ how to play golf and, like Elder, inspired his grandson and other minority golfers to pursue competitive golf. "My grandfather had such an incredible influence on my life and always inspired me in many ways," Cameron Champ said. "I'm so grateful for Pops introducing me to the game of golf, but also for teaching me that there's so much more to life than golf. He always stressed the importance of giving back and paying it forward. Last week, Augusta National Golf Club Chairman Fred Ridley addressed how access and opportunities are still barriers to the game, and he hit the nail on the head when he said that the time to do more is now. That really sparked this idea, and I thought, what better way to honor PaPa Champ than to take up the challenge to do more, right now." The Cameron Champ Foundation's investment in PVAMU is a part of the foundation's work to improve education and access to golf in underserved and underrepresented communities. "Mack Champ was born in Columbus, Texas, in a segregated neighborhood with limited resources. His determination to fight against systemic racism and discrimination fuels our work," said Cameron Champ Foundation Board Chair, Glenn Weckerlin. "We recognize that the pandemic has disproportionately impacted communities of color and has placed a heavy burden on the university and its already stretched funding. We are thankful that we can collaborate with such a historic institution to provide deserving student-athletes from diverse backgrounds opportunities that they might not otherwise have. We are delighted to contribute to student dreams and hope our actions will inspire others to follow suit—the time is now."

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