May 15th, 2020
The Honorable Mike DeWine
Governor, State of Ohio
77 S. High Street, 30th Floor
Columbus, Ohio 43215

Dear Governor DeWine:
Thank you for leading the State of Ohio during these unprecedented times. Your commitment to protect
all Ohioans by implementing comprehensive protocols early on has proven to deliver strong results and
undoubtedly saved a countless number of lives. As an optimistic, yet cautious, plan begins to loosen the
shelter restrictions we applaud your focus on establishing the strategies to begin opening the State for
business throughout all sectors. We understand and respect the process will take time and will be
executed in a methodical manner.
As representatives of the four professional golf tournaments which are proudly hosted in Columbus,
Toledo and Akron we offer this letter to inform you of the collective commitment to operate our events
in a manner that is consistent with all regulations and safety protocols in place at the time of each
event. Through this letter we endeavor to communicate the unique attributes professional golf
presents relative to the outdoor environment and considerable open space golf courses provide. In
addition, this letter seeks to communicate the detailed steps being taken by each tournament and its
respective governing Tour to change the way we have traditionally operated in order to ensure the
competitions are planned with the proper protocols and practices in place. We also wish to
communicate that while each of our events has a different business model, we all rely on sponsors and
fans as critical elements to our success. The positive impact the tournaments deliver to the State, our
host communities and the many charities which benefit is a direct result of the support we receive from
hosting sponsors and fans at our events. Ultimately, we are appealing to you and your administration’s
willingness to approve these events as publically attended, understanding the opportunity for each
tournament to be recognized as a sign that events can be attended by spectators with the approved
protocols in place. There exists a significant opportunity for each tournament and their media /
broadcast partners to provide a platform for the State of Ohio to tell its story across the region, the
country and in some cases, internationally. Through partnership between the four tournament
organizers, their respective governing bodies and the State we are confident plans can be developed
and activated to ensure effectively managed, successful events can be hosted in Ohio this summer.

 Please find below the outline we offer to support a proposal to permit all four events to host attending
fans. We ask that you, Lt. Governor John Husted, Dr. Amy Acton and your respective teams and agencies
consider our recommendation.
Ohio’s Professional Golf Tournaments (Ohio Golf 2020)
 The Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide (July 13th – 19th, Muirfield Village G.C,
Dublin Ohio) (PGA TOUR)
 Marathon LPGA Classic presented by Dana (July 20th – 26th, Highland Meadows G.C., Sylvania,
Ohio) (LPGA Tour)
 Bridgestone Senior Players Championship (August 10th – 16th, Firestone C.C., Akron, Ohio) (PGA
TOUR Champions)
 Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship (August 17th – 23rd, Ohio State University G.C. –
Scarlet Course, Upper Arlington, Ohio) (Korn Ferry Tour)
Collaboration Commitment
Each tournament organizer and its governing body is committed to conduct their respective event in a
manner that implements and abides by protocols and processes which are reviewed and approved by
the DeWine Administration as well as state and local health organizations.
Ohio Golf 2020 is represented by Dan Sullivan, Executive Director of the Memorial Tournament and
Managing Partner of HNS Sports Group (operator of the Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship)
through the Governor’s Large Gathering Task Force as well as the Ohio Development Services Director’s
Travel & Tourism Advisory Group.
Each tournament organizer will work with a local Task Force comprised of medical professionals, public
health officials and business leaders to assist in advising and guiding the tournament staff through the
development and execution of an effective plan.
Protective Protocols
Each tournament will implement a series of protocols recommended by their respective Task Forces and
state and local health officials to ensure every aspect of the tournament activation is executed
effectively. Each tournament will submit their protocol plan separately yet will be guided by consistent
principles that have been approved by the assigned state and local health officials. Once the protocols
have been approved each tournament will ensure all who attend are aware through:
 Pre-event public communication (press releases, social media posts, emails, placed stories and
telecommunication)
 During event communication (entrance signage, social posts, electronic messaging, verbal
prompts
A detailed list of the protective equipment (non-surgical PPE) and protocols being implemented by each
tournament will be prepared and delivered for review through the individual tournament Task Forces.

 Modification Plan
Each tournament is committed to alter its tournament presentation to ensure safety for all who attend
and are on the grounds at any time. Recognizing the Memorial Tournament attracts the largest
attendance of all Ohio tournaments the organizers are committed to reduce attendance with the focus
on ensuring a safe environment is presented within approved guidelines. In addition all tournaments are
committed to ensure the following:
 Conduct the event with the commitment to ensure social distancing is an absolute priority and
will be enforced
 Issue protective equipment (masks, sanitizers, disinfectant, gloves, screening) and measures
(temperature taking, social distance queuing at all f &b, restrooms, entrance locations, one way
ingress / egress, reduction of printed material exchange (cash, pairing sheets, etc.)
 All hospitality (on-site restaurants) venues will be managed to reduced capacity at all times in
accordance with the State’s restaurant and meeting place guidelines
 Elimination of all special events which have traditionally attracted large groups in confined areas
 Implementation of food and beverage guidelines to ensure preparation, service and
presentation meet all State requirements
 Ensure protocols are in place to process a guest who measures a high temperature and / or
shows symptoms
 Assurance that all groups represented within the tournament competition environment (i.e.
players, caddies, staff, media, rules officials etc.) are managed through the same set of protocol
guidelines and overseen by the competition governing body
Communication Platform
Each event provides a level of local, regional, national and in some cases international exposure that will
be beneficial in telling the State’s story. The Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide in
particular is distributed to over 220 countries and territories around the world reaching millions of
households and fans. In addition, the remaining three events provide individual levels of distribution and
exposure that will bring the State of Ohio to millions of households. Each tournament is poised to
contribute in telling the story of Ohio in a positive, progressive manner and each is committed to
working with the State to deliver a strong message.
Economic Impact
The collective work of these tournaments provide measurable impact for the communities in which they
are staged and the charities that benefit from tournament proceeds. In total the four tournaments
annually distribute over $5 million in charitable giving that, now more than ever, is needed by all the
charitable organizations which benefit. Equally important is the economic impact realized by the host
communities. Led by the Memorial Tournament, the four tournaments positively impact local
communities in the amount of over $50 million annually, the vast majority of which is driven by sponsor
and fan attendance.

 Governor, simply said the tournaments achieve their respective success by hosting sponsors and fans.
Without fans these tournaments will not be successful or viable. We are hopeful you recognize the
unique attributes professional golf tournaments offer relative to hosting fans in an expansive outdoor
environment. Beyond the open spaces, our event venues will be designed to protect all who attend
through extensive safety protocols, not the least of which is allowing for social separation while enjoying
the tournament. If given the approval, these tournaments will deliver a much needed positive impact for
their communities and the State while signaling a strong message from Ohio to the rest of the country
and the world. In recognition of the information provided in this letter as well as the detailed plans to be
submitted by each tournament outlining their respective safety protocols, we appeal to you to permit
the four Ohio professional tournaments to host fans this coming July and August.
We are available for follow up dialogue and look forward to further discussion, information sharing and
collaboration with you and your administration.
Sincerely,

Daniel P. Sullivan
the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide

Don Padgett III
Bridgestone Senior Players Championship

Judd Silverman
Marathon Classic presented by Dana

Kip Eriksen
Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship

CC: Lt. Governor Jon Husted
Jay Monahan, PGA TOUR Commissioner
Mike Whan, LPGA Commissioner