"Much more challenging," said Mark Hollis, the former Michigan State athletic director who's now vice president of business development at Rock Ventures, and a key point man for this tournament.Īnd that, mind you, is coming from a man who brought basketball to an aircraft carrier and outdoor hockey to football stadiums. "It's one more symbol of what a phenomenally strong city this is, for us to get it done." "Detroit is such a resilient city, and what a great message to send to be able to have a sporting event in Detroit with all the COVID issues, all the impact COVID has had on the city," Emerson said. The PGA Tour eventually canceled 10 tournaments in all, but it wanted to see the Rocket Mortgage Classic play out - being a second-year event, tour officials were worried about how a cancellation could stunt momentum gained in Year 1 - but it left the decision up to tournament officials and the title sponsor. COVID-19 shut down the entire sports world in mid-March, eventually costing Detroit sports fans 11 Red Wings games, 16 Pistons games, 102 Tigers games and the Ind圜ar races on Belle Isle. 'Resilient city'īut there was another big theme to the 2020 Rocket Mortgage Classic: Professional sports returned to Michigan for the first time in more than 100 days. Golfers' significant others weren't allowed, nor were their children, nor the closest of close friends, absolutely no exceptions. Quicken Loans founder Dan Gilbert, who had the vision to bring the PGA Tour to Detroit, wasn't here for a second year in a row - he still is recovering from a stroke last year - though he kept tabs on this year's event, watching on TV. Neither, apparently, was Detroit Golf Club president Mark Douglas. This year, on the 18th green Sunday, just before 6 p.m., when DeChambeau tapped in for birdie and the three-shot victory, he received maybe three or four polite claps from a surrounding crowd of maybe 50, mostly media, volunteers and tournament staff.īill Emerson, vice chairman for Quicken Loans, wasn't considered essential enough to attend. Last year, Lashley hoisted the champion's trophy for hundreds of adoring fans and tournament reps. You might find Wolff's reasoning a big, heaping pile of Moose Tracks, but then again, you weren't there, were you? And truth is, he went 7-under par the rest of the way to take a three-shot lead into Sunday's final round, where DeChambeau got hot, fired the round of the day, a 65, and turned that into his own three-shot win. On Saturday, Wolff said he fed off the sound of the ice cream truck, saying it helped calm him down and eventually get his round going. Golfers feed off the crowds, for better or worse.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |