Collin Morikawa praises European Tour's "amazing" Covid bubble system

Morikawa shot a 11-under par round in Dubai on Thursday after praising the European Tour for how well they implemented Covid measures.

Jack Seddon's picture
Thu, 28 Jan 2021
Collin Morikawa praises European Tour's "amazing" Covid bubble system

Collin Morikawa said there were "no second thoughts" about travelling to Dubai for the Desert Classic this week and the world No.4 has praised the European Tour for how well they have dealt with the coronavirus pandemic.

Since the European Tour returned from the Covid shutdown, strict health protocols have been put in place to ensure the health and safety of both the players and those working at each event.

Players and staff are required to travel solely between the course and hotel during tournament week as a part of the European Tour's "bubble" system, which multiple players have been impressed with.

Four players from the top 20 in the world take to the stage at Emirates Golf Club this week, with Tyrrell Hatton, Matthew Fitzpatrick and Tommy Fleetwood joining Morikawa in a star-studded line-up in Dubai.

Morikawa, who was part of Thursday's morning group, shot a 1-under par score of 71 to get the tournament underway and speaking to the media prior to his opening round, Morikawa said he thinks the European Tour has done an "amazing job" at implementing the bubble system.

"This has been an event I knew I was going to come out and play, there were no second thoughts," Morikawa said. "Obviously with what's going on with Covid and regulations and bans to travel in and out of countries, you just have to be aware and stay up-to-date with what's coming at us.

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"You never know and now we have to test coming back in (to the USA), but for my sake, the people around me, my team, all we're trying to do is be as safe as possible.

"I think the European Tour has done an amazing job with this bubble. It's very different; I said it last time I was out here, it's very different than what we have in the US, but they are doing it right.

"Guys aren't testing positive and even though we're stuck in our hotel rooms and out on the golf course, at the end of the day, we can come out here and play some golf, which is everything we could ask for."

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