Coronavirus: Scots golfer casts doubt over Masters taking place

Stephen Gallacher against idea of first major of season being played behind closed doors

Tiger Woods won last year's Masters.

Stephen Gallacher has cast doubt on the Masters taking place due to the coronavirus.

The Scots golfer believes the first major of the season may have to be postponed, along with WGC-Match Play in Texas.

Tiger Woods is due to defend his Masters title at Augusta, with the tournament scheduled for 9-12 April. The WGC-Match Play is due to begin on 25 March.

Donald Trump has announced that the US is temporarily suspending travel from most of Europe to the US in an effort to contain the spread of coronavirus.

Golf has already been affected by the virus, with five events on the European Tour called off, including the Indian Open, which Gallacher won last year.

"A pandemic is a serious thing and people are dying from it. There's always going to be an Indian Open next year, so it's just a case of getting everybody back to full health," Gallacher told BBC Radio Scotland.

"Then you can kick on with the sporting calendar again.

"Obviously you want to go back as defending champion but the bigger picture is more important than sport. We don't really know what's happening, to be honest.

"Our next event is in Spain at the end of April down at Valderrama, but I don't know if that's going to go ahead either."

Gallacher believes it is only a matter of time before golf in America is also affected.

"I don't see how the WGC-Match Play or the Masters can go ahead either," he said.

"The Masters is a global event and they come to it from all over the world. It's only a 90-100 man field, though.”

Suggestions that the Masters could be played behind closed doors have not been welcomed by Gallacher.

"It wouldn't look right playing it with no fans there either, because the fan participation is part of the sport and if the fans can't come in I think it should be cancelled until a different time," said the Bathgate man.

"We're going through major airports where you're getting people from everywhere," said Gallacher.

"We're on airplanes with recycled air and you come into contact with a lot of people, whether it be fans signing autographs or stuff like that, so I think there is a genuine concern with sporting events and big large gatherings.

"The biggest one for us is in hotels, airports and planes. That's what we can't avoid and where there's most chance of picking it up."

As well as the Indian Open being called off, European Tour events in China, Kenya, Malyasia and Czech Republic were all cancelled.

However, this week’s Players Championship at Sawgrass in Florida is set to go ahead.

In tennis, the prestigious BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells, widely considered the biggest tournament outside the four majors, was called off.