You may not have to wear a mask while golfing in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. But officials would like it if you did

“They know that if they don’t go by the rules and they close us down again, they can’t play golf then."

• Ximena Conde/WHYY
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  Ximena Conde comes from Wisconsin Public Radio where she worked as a general assignment reporter covering southeastern Wisconsin as the station’s Second Century News Fellow. She previously worked as Rhode Island Public Radio’s Morning Edition producer.
  
  Conde grew up in Queens, NY and graduated from Rutgers University.

(Philadelphia) — For Mayfair resident Nicholas Monica, 24, Sunday’s warm weather and a relatively empty course made it an ideal day for his first round of golf since the COVID-19 shutdowns began in March.

Monica went to the Juniata Golf Club in Philadelphia with his brother and friend, all neighbors, three days after Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf reopened courses across the state  — much to his relief.

Without golf, Monica said, his recreational time was limited to drinking beer on his porch.

“I don’t think [the courses] ever should have got closed in the first place because … you could abide by the rules while golfing,” he said. “People are keeping their distance out here and you’re not really close to too many people.”

Still, Monica still wore his hand-sewn face mask to protect himself.

“Nobody really knows anything about [the virus] so… just want to stay safe,” he said, adding he was trying to stick closely to public health officials’ recommendations.

But Monica was in the minority at the Juniata course.

Of the dozens of golfers on the links at the city-run club Sunday, most opted to go without a mask or they would remove them when it was their turn to tee up.

At the city’s five open courses, and courses across the state, face masks are only required when speaking to golf course staff and recommended when close to other players.

Bob Wheeler, general manager and executive director of Juniata Golf Club, said most players adhered to the rules over the weekend — many of them just happy to be able to play again.

So much so, that the golf course had fully booked tee times Friday and Saturday, said Wheeler.

“We’re thrilled to death because, financially, I think all the golf courses, all the businesses are hurting right now,” he explained, adding another month would have been devastating to employees who have to work elsewhere when the golf course is closed during the winter.

Wheeler said those who came to play this weekend made sure to not share golf carts and to keep six feet apart.

“They know that if they don’t go by the rules and they close us down again, they can’t play golf then,” Wheeler said.

 

WHYY is the leading public media station serving the Philadelphia region, including Delaware, South Jersey and Pennsylvania. This story originally appeared on WHYY.org.