Star golfers say they encountered PGA Tour player before his positive coronavirus test
Two of the world’s best golfers say they encountered PGA Tour player Nick Watney on Friday at the RBC Heritage before a test revealed Watney has coronavirus.
Rory McIlroy, the No. 1-ranked player in the world, said he had talked to Watney on the putting green Friday morning. McIlory said the players had talked at a distance, but he received a text message from Watney later in the day after the positive test.
“He was just saying, ‘Look, I hope I didn’t get too close to you,’” McIlroy said. “He feels badly that he was here today at the golf course. I said, look, it’s fine. You never know. So I said to him, ‘If I was in your position, I probably would have been here too.’”
Watney played in Thursday’s round in Hilton Head before testing positive and withdrawing from the tournament Friday morning.
Four-time major champion Brooks Koepka said he had been right next to Watney in the parking lot Friday morning.
“It’s unfortunate Nick got it, but at the same time, hopefully, it stays with just him and doesn’t spread,” Koepka said. “Because I think we’ll have a big issue on our hands if it keeps going as the weeks continue.”
Watney is the first PGA Tour golfer to test positive for COVID-19. The RBC Heritage Presented by Boeing is the second event on the new schedule.
The PGA Tour issued this statement Saturday regarding follow-up testing: “With Friday’s confirmed COVID-19 case of a competitor in the RBC Heritage field, the PGA Tour implemented its response plan in consultation with medical experts including working with those who may have had close contact with Nick Watney. As a result, 11 tests were conducted on Friday with all 11 tests being negative.”
Multiple players said a positive case on tour was inevitable. McIlroy referenced a statistic on the rising number of cases expected in the United States by the end of the year.
“So to think that us on the PGA Tour, none of us were going to get it — I don’t think anyone thought that,” McIlroy said. “I think the consensus was someone is going to get it at some point, and Nick’s the one that’s got it. And he’s self-isolating and doing what he has to do.”
How TV reacted
Here’s what was said Friday during the Golf Channel broadcast of the Heritage second round.
Reporter Lisa Cornwell broke the news to PGA Tour golfer and South Carolina product Matt NeSmith during an interview following his round on Friday.
Lisa Cornwell to Matt NeSmith: I don’t know if you’ve heard the news about Nick Watney testing positive for COVID-19, it just happened. It was released. They’re starting to do contact tracing. Just your reaction? And I know that it’s initial, because of the news, just the process that you all have been going through and the safety protocols hearing this news.
Matt NeSmith: “I mean, well the tour’s done a great job. I don’t really know anything about Watney. I mean I haven’t really seen him this week. I haven’t done anything. This is the first I’m kind of hearing about it. So I mean the tour’s done a great job. There’s nothing else you can really say.”
Golf Channel broadcaster: “We had hoped this wouldn’t happen, but it cannot be considered surprising under current circumstances that it did. Now the tour’s protocols will be put into place.”
Analyst Nick Faldo: “The most important thing — we hope Nick Watney’s all right. I mean, that’s the very important part of it.”
Golf Channel analyst: “I was watching him play a practice round on Wednesday and he looked lethargic. You could see the swing just wasn’t there. I just thought he was battling with the game. Strange that this news would come out.”
Golf Channel broadcaster: “I guess it’s inevitable. We might think at times that the PGA Tour is in a bubble but it’s not. So good for the testing. Hopefully they continue to do that. We wish everybody well involved.”
This story was originally published June 19, 2020 at 5:17 PM with the headline "Star golfers say they encountered PGA Tour player before his positive coronavirus test."
