The coronavirus (Covid-19) has become a pandemic, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). People are becoming ill and dying, stocks on Wall Street are crashing, schools & universities are closing down, movie productions are being delayed, and sports are shutting down for the foreseeable future. The Players Championship has just been canceled after disallowing patrons to watch the tournament in person and playing the first round to start the tournament. Instead of competing for a winner, at the risk of infecting other players, the PGA Tour announced Thursday night that it would cancel the tournament and that the $7.5 million purse would be divided equally between 144 players, amounting to $52,083 each. This morning, "A Tradition Unlike Any Other" became the same as the rest.
The 2020 Masters has been postponed, as of this Friday morning. Augusta National Golf Club chairman Fred Ridley said in a statement. “Ultimately, the health and well-being of everyone associated with these events and the citizens of the Augusta community led us to this decision. We hope this postponement puts us in the best position to safely host the Masters Tournament and our amateur events at some later date.” The tournament was scheduled for April 9th-12th, with Tiger Woods being the defending champion. Per ESPN, The Masters has never been held outside March or April in its 86-year history, That seems likely to change this year.
The coronavirus can be/is a dangerous respiratory illness that we, unfortunately, do not have enough information on to be able to create a vaccine for. Researchers are still learning about the virus and its evolving problems. The coronavirus has been around for a long time, but this strand (Covid-19) has mutated and is wreaking havoc on the world. This virus has been found to have originated in Wuhan, China, though we don't know exactly from what. Different conspiracy stories are that it was created by the Chinese government and was released in the fish market. Other theories are that it came from bats or fish from the fish market. We don't know exactly what started this virus and the Chinese government aren't allowing international agencies to test in that region, which only leads to more conspiracy theories. Most agencies believe that it originated from an animal and is now spreading from human to human, much like the bird flu (H1N1) in 2009.
Now, I could throw out statistics for you about how many people have been infected, but to be truly honest, we don't know the exact number of people affected by this virus. It takes a couple of weeks (sometimes) for the symptoms to come into effect. As I'm writing this article, the "confirmed cases" individuals infected with Covid-19 is at 139,630 people. From this number, 5,120 people have died after being infected. 70,733 people have "recovered" from this virus. That puts the percentage of death rate at 2.7%. Most of the death rates from the coronavirus appear to be in ages 60 years and above. Younger people tend to be less susceptible because their lungs are stronger. Also, of note, older individuals that smoke are at even higher risk of fatality because of their lungs
According to the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), "the virus is thought to spread mainly between people who are in close contact with one another (within about 6 feet) through respiratory droplets produced when an infected person coughs or sneezes. It also may be possible that a person can get COVID-19 by touching a surface or object that has the virus on it and then touching their own mouth, nose, or possibly their eyes, but this is not thought to be the main way the virus spreads." Symptoms of this virus include fevers, coughing, and shortness of breath. While there is no cure for this virus, if you are experiencing these symptoms you CAN seek medical care to help relieve symptoms. Most people infected are advised to stay home while sick. Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash and to clean/disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces to prevent the virus from hanging around.
While there is no cure for this virus, there are ways to protect yourself from this respiratory illness with everyday preventive actions, such as: Avoid close contact with people who are sick. • Avoid large crowds • Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands. • Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. • Use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol if soap and water are not available. This information came from the CDC..
I do not think that this is the end of the world kind of plague that many have come to say it is. I believe that we can & will endure this virus and become stronger, as a result. I am not downplaying the severity of this illness and my heart goes out to those that are infected or have loved ones that have been affected, I'm just not going to sell my golf clubs to buy toilet paper and hand-sanitizers........ just yet. Stay hopeful, stay safe, use preventative measures, and pray a vaccine will be created soon!
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