Legendary golfer Jack Nicklaus revealed Sunday afternoon that he and his wife, Barbara, contracted COVID-19 in March.
Speaking during a weather delay at the Memorial Tournament in Muirfield Village, a course he designed in Dublin, Ohio, Nicklaus said Barbara was asymptomatic. She had minor symptoms, although the two have since recovered.
“It didn’t last long. We were very, very lucky. We were very lucky, ”Nicklaus said on CBS. “Barbara and I are the same age, we are both 80 years old, that is a risky age. Our hearts go out to the people who lost their lives and to the families. We were just a couple of the lucky ones. “
Nicklaus said he tested positive four times for the coronavirus, and Barbara tested positive three times. The two were isolated in their home for about a month until they finally recovered in mid-April.
Nicklaus won 73 times in his career on the PGA Tour, 18 of which were in major championships. He was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1974 and in the United States with six Ryder Cup victories, one of which was the team captain. He also served as team captain for the Presidents Cup four times, securing three victories.
Jack Nicklaus remotely joins the CBS TV broadcast during the third round of the Memorial Tournament at Muirfield Village Golf Club in Dublin, Ohio on July 18, 2020. (Stan Badz / PGA TOUR / Getty Images)
There were more than 3.7 million confirmed cases of coronavirus in the United States as of Sunday afternoon, according to The New York Times, with more than 140,000 deaths attributed to it. The country set a record for a single day on Thursday, registering more than 75,000 new cases, and has averaged more than 66,000 new cases per day in the past week.
He is the last in the world of golf to reveal that he has tested positive for the coronavirus, joining six golfers and several caddies since the game resumed in June.
“The fact that they got over it and that they are safe and here and healthy is good news for all of us who are a part of golf and who admire Jack and have been close to Barbara all these years,” said Tiger Woods. , who loaded a 4-over 76 on Sunday to finish week 6-over, through the Associated Press.
