The American Express PGA Golf Tournament, a big event in the Palm Desert for more than half a century, will go on as scheduled, despite COVID-19’s impact.

“The biggest change this year is the fact that spectators won’t be able to attend the event due to the pandemic,” Frank Marzano, chairman of The Phil & Amy Mickelson Foundation, which is hosting the tournament, told Desert Magazine. “COVID-19 obviously poses some challenges in that respect, and that’s true for any organization that is trying to organize a sporting event in these conditions.”

Safety is a high priority for the tournament, and the event will observe state laws about social gatherings, Marzano said.

“There will also be testing on-site for all participants in the tournament,” he said. “Testing and safety protocols are being coordinated with our management team, the PGA Tour, California, and La Quinta health officials.”

With those safety protocols in place, the tournament will move forward with its scheduled Jan. 21-24 play at PGA West and La Quinta Country Club in La Quinta, California. It will be broadcasted globally. 

Phil Mickelson, 44-time PGA TOUR winner and World Golf Hall of Famer, will headline the tournament and compete against approximately 155 of the world’s best golfers, including defending champion, Andrew Landry.

This year has been quite a challenge for most everyone globally, but the on-going pandemic wasn’t much on anyone’s radar this past January when Landry won the last American Express golf tournament, which has been part of the PGA Tour’s West Coast swing under various names since 1960.

“There is a lot of demand for the PGA Tour,” tour Commissioner Jay Monahan said during an interview with The Desert Sun at the time. “We have a commitment to the valley, and we have a history that dates back to 1960 that becomes part of the fabric of who you are. So, we are always going to do everything we can, and we have, in this case, to build a long-term sustainable recipe for success here.”

The Phil & Amy Mickelson Foundation is a key ingredient to that recipe.

“The Mickelson Foundation was created for the purpose of running The American Express tournament — historically known as the Desert Classic — and using the proceeds from the event to provide support to charities in the Coachella Valley area,” Marzano told Desert Magazine. “This tournament is really the focal point of the foundation’s work. It’s very important to Phil and Amy (Mickelson) that the charitable giving that comes out of the tournament benefits organizations in the local community, and the foundation’s board members share in that mission.”

The tournament’s still-fairly-new sponsor certainly gins up quite a bit of attention.

“Last year, in the foundation’s first year running the tournament, American Express became our title sponsor, which was a major milestone that we were able to achieve in a short amount of time,” Marzano told Desert Magazine. “American Express has been a great partner, and they are very committed to the foundation’s mission as well.”

It’s a tournament, it’s about golf, but the higher goal is always on everyone’s minds.

“Our overarching goal is to build on the contributions of those who have come before us — including Bob Hope, President Dwight D. Eisenhower, and other notable individuals and predecessor organizations that have been involved with the Desert Classic in the past,” Marzano said. “They have left behind a tremendous legacy, with the tournament having raised more than $58 million for charities over the years. We’re inspired by those results, and we’re honored to be in a position that allows us to continue this important work.”

The Phil & Amy Mickelson Foundation generated $1 million from its inaugural year as the tournament host. That money has already been distributed to charities, including the Eisenhower Medical Center Foundation, The Alzheimer’s Association of Coachella Valley, Boys and Girls Clubs of Coachella Valley, Coachella Valley Boxing Club, Coachella Valley Rescue Mission, Desert Arc, Family YMCA of the Desert, First Tee of Coachella Valley, Martha’s Village & Kitchen, Ophelia Project/JFK Memorial Foundation, Pegasus Riding Academy, Read With Me Volunteer Programs, The Well in the Desert, Volunteers in Medicine and Desert Classic Charities.

The event also is significant to La Quinta and the Valley, Marzano said.

“It’s exciting to be involved with a tournament that has so much history and to use the game of golf as a platform to make a difference in the Coachella Valley community,” Marzano said.

In addition to being what Marzano called “one of the most unique events in the sport,” the American Express golf tournament provides sponsorship and other fundraising opportunities to benefit Coachella Valley organizations that help children, the food insecure, the homeless,~and the abused.

“There are only three events in the world where amateurs can play alongside the professionals as they’re competing,” Marzano said. “There’s the Dunhill Links in Scotland, the AT&T Pro-Am at Pebble Beach, and this one. And, of course, La Quinta in January has the best weather in the world.”

Despite the severe worldwide blow dealt by COVID-19, that the next American Express golf tournament would play in January was never in doubt. How the tournament would adapt to the situation far out of its control had to be decided.

In October, event organizers said that the tournament would play without ticketed spectators “due to local health and safety regulations that restrict group gatherings during the COVID-19 pandemic.”

“The health and safety of the La Quinta and Coachella Valley communities, as well as our players, volunteers and all other partners, has remained of (the) utmost importance throughout the pandemic,” tournament Executive Director and Sportfive Golf Events President Jeff Sanders said in a news release. “While we are disappointed to announce that we will not be able to host our amazing fans at this year’s event, we will continue to work closely with the PGA TOUR as well as local, state and federal agencies to ensure the well-being of all who are allowed onsite during tournament week.”

The traditional three-day pro-am format also will happen in January with the PGA Tour’s COVID-19 testing policies.

Naturally, the tournament’s charity fundraising efforts also will go on.

Event organizers also are looking beyond the January event and beyond the pandemic itself.

“We are completely dedicated to putting on the best tournament that we possibly can and raising as much money for local charities as we possibly can this year,” Marzano said. “Then, we will immediately shift our focus to planning for 2022 and maintaining the momentum that we’ve been able to create.”