With no plans to alter the existing 2024 PGA schedule, the opening event at Kapalua in Maui is “absolutely” still on the PGA Tour calendar.
“We’re in constant contact. I’m in contact with the governor. We hope to be a source of inspiration for the great people of Maui and Lahaina by the time that we get to Maui in January,” commissioner Jay Monahan said Tuesday at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta.
Officials in Hawaii continue to calculate the toll from wildfires this month responsible for more than 100 deaths and billions of dollars in property losses and damage. The Sentry at Kapalua’s Plantation Course is the first event of the 2024 calendar for the PGA Tour starting Jan. 4. The nearby village of Lahaina was destroyed.
“I think at this point there’s so many unknowns, and we want to be respectful of the challenges,” Monahan said. “We want to help be a part of the revitalization. There are a lot of considerations. We’re committed, you know, if we’re allowed to, if we’re invited, if we’re embraced. Given all that needs to be accomplished, we will be there 100 percent.”
Monahan credited Sentry tournament director Max Novena and Kapalua employees, who’ve aided fire victims and displaced Lahaina residents by preparing meals and offering shelter. Kapalua, a resort community on Maui, is surrounded by a nature preserve and beaches.
A second tournament on the islands at Waialae Country Club in Honolulu is scheduled for Jan. 11-14.
“All of our attention is to try and get back to Kapalua and to try and be as close to what we’ve been in the past,” Monahan said.
–Field Level Media