Northeast Amateur cancelled for the first time in its history

The 2020 Northeast Amateur Invitational is the latest Major of Amateur Golf to be cancelled by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The 59th edition of the event was set to be played June 24-27 at Wannamoisett Country Club in Rumford, R.I. The Northeast U.S. has been hit particularly hard by COVID-19, and while summer golf events in many other parts of the country are still on the schedule, it is reasonable to expect golf to "reopen" a little later in the Northeast. "Our priority isto protect the health and safety of the invitees, officials, volunteers, staff and membership of WannamoisettCountry Club," said Tournament chairman Ben Tuthill. "We care deeply about amateur golf and hosting one of the top events of the year, and make this decision with a heavy heart. Many different considerations went into this decision and we must actresponsibly during this pandemic. We know how disappointing this news is for the players that were invitedand planned to participate in the tournament this year. The tournament committee will acknowledge allexemption criteria used for the 2020 field selection and will invite those players to participate in the eventnext summer." The Northeast Amateur Invitational has been conducted every year since 1962, and is the only 72 hole amateur event played in twosomes. It was once coined the "Mastersof Amateur Golf" by a noted senior golf writer. The field consists of top amateur players throughout the world and islimited to 92 players by invitation only. The 59th Northeast Amateur Invitational is scheduled to be played June 23-26, 2021.