Now there’s a COVID-19 executive order, can I still golf? Yes, but with precautions

Reporter: Veronica Marshall
Published: Updated:
Golfer is ready to tee up. (Credit: CBS News)
Golfer is ready to tee up. (Credit: CBS News)

With the new Executive Order 20-91, limiting your movement doesn’t mean you have to give up exercising outdoors.

WINK News has received a lot of emails from golfers asking what the new order means for them. Well, their game can go on.

Larry Hertel moved to Florida so he could play golf every day of the year. He says he’s been playing golf for 45 years and he’s glad to hear he can keep playing — for now.

“It’s a good thing, when you’re isolated like this, to be able to go somewhere and get out of the house,” Hertel explained.

And health experts agree.

Dr. Neha B. Vyas with the Cleveland Clinic, says, “Self-isolating does not mean giving up outdoor sports. Any sport that doesn’t require close physical contact can be continued.”

Hertel says his golf course is taking precautions to keep players and staff safe, and other clubs are doing so as well. “Our club has instituted a policy where a single rider can ride the regular motorized carts so they don’t have to be associated with anybody else. They disinfect it after every use, so that it’s as clean as a grocery cart,” he says.

Brian Barnes, A board of governors member at the Whiskey Creek Country Club lays out the steps they’re taking. “We put swimming noodles in the cup on the flagsticks – so you put the ball, you hit the noodle, so there’s no reason to reach into the cup or even touch the pin.”

He says his club has also removed all of the rakes from the sand traps and has new rules for the clubhouse.

“We have tape inside our clubhouse that keeps the people six feet apart,” Barnes explained. “No more than ten ever allowed in there.”

As for players who aren’t following social distancing rules on the green, Hertel says, “The golf course is no different than anyplace else. You follow the rules to keep yourself safe and everybody else safe.”

Any sport involving contact like volleyball, basketball, soccer should be avoided. Experts also say playing doubles in tennis or pickleball should be out as well.

LINK: What counts as an “essential” business or “critical infrastructure workforce?”

Copyright ©2024 Fort Myers Broadcasting. All rights reserved.

This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without prior written consent.