Coronavirus: Cancellation of World Amateur Team Championships understandable, says Singapore Golf Association GM

SINGAPORE - The cancellation of the World Amateur Team Championships (WATC), which were to be held in Singapore for the first time, is disappointing but understandable given the coronavirus pandemic, said Singapore Golf Association (SGA) general manager Jerome Ng.

The International Golf Federation (IGF) announced the cancellation of the biennial amateur golf competition on Wednesday (May 6).

The tournament had previously been moved from Hong Kong to Singapore and was scheduled for October at the Tanah Merah Country Club and Sentosa Golf Club.

Ng told The Straits Times on Wednesday: "Disappointing as it is, (the decision) is understandable. I think everyone's going to be on the more conservative side and as of now, we have no clear indication of what the travel restrictions are going to be like for the rest of the year.

"Besides golf, the main situation is really (about) containing the virus."

Ng added that the SGA remains hopeful of the possibility that Singapore could still host the event after the next edition, which takes place in France in 2022.

IGF executive director Anthony Scanlon said in a statement: "This unprecedented decision was due to the global Covid-19 pandemic and the uncertainty that this has caused to ensuring that the 2020 WATC could be staged successfully.

"But most importantly, it was made to safeguard the health and safety of all athletes, officials and volunteers at the 2020 WATC, to which there was no certainty that this risk could be mitigated to an acceptable level."

He noted that moving the event to 2021 "would have created considerable scheduling and logistical issues that were insurmountable".

"Plus we still could not say with absolute certainty that we could hold it without risk next year," he added. "Therefore, it is preferred that the IGF look forward to focusing on and delivering a wonderful 2022 event in France."