With social distancing being the order of the day sports events are a no go at the moment.
So many people involved in various sports believe that it could be months before we will be able to see any of our heroes doing what they do best.
There is one sport, however, that is hoping to be back sooner than that.
Golf is a sport that does not need players to get close to each other.
This is one of the reasons the governing body of the sport (Golf RSA) believes that clubs should reopen.
Golf RSA has made a proposal to the Minister of Sports Arts and Culture, Nathi Mthethwa, to have the clubs open.
“We’ve consulted with experts in the field, people responsible for advising the health ministry around Covid-19,” said GolfRSA CEO Grant Hepburn.
Many people in the sport are worried about the maintenance of golf courses and jobs that could be lost as a result of the lockdown.
“The loss of jobs is concerning. We are looking at about 40 000 jobs,” said the manager of Royal Oak Country Club, Kenneth Dube.
“We have lost lots of income during the lockdown.”
Read: How the housing market will perform post-lockdown
While the big clubs around the country were in a strong position before the lockdown, the smaller ones such as Royal Oak already had problems.
“With the economy not doing well the smaller clubs were already struggling before the lockdown,” said Dube.
Opening the clubs will allow places like Royal Oak to generate an income for its staff.
“It’s about getting people working again,” said Hepburn.
There will always be questions around the wisdom of opening the clubs, given that the world is in the middle of a pandemic.
“I think the biggest fear is the spread of the virus. The government is responsibly not going to take the risk to do that,” said Hepburg.
“No matter what sports you are, you are going to have to jump through the hoops and tick the boxes to make sure that everything is going to be safe and as much as possible we have to minimise the risk.
“We discussed with the minister the steps we would put in place and we have referred the experts we have talked to.”
While many people may view golf as a luxury during lockdown, the workers at clubs such as Royal Oak and State Mines will want to get back to work as they look to face a tough economic climate.
GolfRSA believes that their sport can be played while practicing social distancing to a certain degree, which makes the risk of spreading the coronavirus less than in other sport.
Many lovers of the sport will be hoping that the government reaches a favourable conclusion.
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