Rocket Mortgage Classic Set To Go Ahead Despite Storms In Detroit

Gale force winds rolled through Detroit on Sunday, causing damage to the host course

A picture of the Rocket Mortgage Classic trophy and the damage of some storms
(Image credit: Twitter: @PGATOUR)
Ed Carruthers
By Ed Carruthers
published

The Rocket Mortgage Classic will go ahead 'as planned' this week, despite wild storms sweeping through Michigan at the weekend, causing some damage to Detroit Golf Club. 

Winds of between 70 and 80mph were reported in Detroit on Sunday, leaving more than 71,000 people in the city without power, according to local outlet Detroit News. 

It cast much uncertainty over whether the Rocket Mortgage Classic would go ahead, with several videos and images emerging online of trees being torn up, showing just how ferocious the gales were. 

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Standing water can also be seen on several parts of the course but, after much tireless work from ground staff, Executive Director Jason Langwell, on Monday, confirmed that the course would be ready to play. 

"We’ll be ready to go at 10am (Tuesday), as planned, opening the gates for our community days, our youth clinic, and our celebrity scramble plans. It’s been a great day and we’re in great shape to get things going tomorrow," he told the PGA Tour's website.

“We’ve been really fortunate. There’s no damage to any of our structures, no damage to the golf course whatsoever. Certainly, some branches down, sticks around, a few trees down, but a handful of companies have come out to help us. It’s just been a yeoman’s effort to get everything cleaned up, but we’ve got a great golf course ready for play.”

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The Executive also confirmed that no one was injured, whilst PGA Tour Senior Tournament Director, Stephen Cox, admitted that they were fortunate that no serious damage was caused. 

“We got incredibly lucky,” Cox said. “The trees fell in the right direction. One fell on a car at the entrance to the club, and another fell in close proximity to the practice putting green and did some minor damage, but if it had fallen 4 or 5 feet to the right it would have been much worse.”

Several big names will be teeing it up this weekend in Detroit, including Max Homa, Justin Thomas, Collin Morikawa and defending champion, Tony Finau. Despite the storms, some have reportedly been out on the back nine playing practice rounds.  

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Tony Finau
Ed Carruthers
Ed Carruthers
Writer

Ed has been playing golf for as long as he can remember and is obsessive about the sport. He is regularly sought after by family members and friends for advice on what equipment to buy and uses his background, having written extensively on golf in the past, to produce equipment orientated content for Golf Monthly.  

Having obtained a Masters in Law with Medicine from the University of Liverpool, Ed has recently changed paths into journalism and just last year achieved his NCTJ Sports Journalism Diploma with the Press Association. 

He has written for a variety of media outlets over the years and has interviewed some big names in sport, including Premier League managers, All Blacks Coaches and Grand Slam tennis superstars. He has also worked on some huge sporting events, including the 2021 Australian Open and the 2022 FIFA World Cup. And when he's not writing for Golf Monthly, you'll find him producing news and feature articles for the MailOnline's sports desk, where he covers everything from football to rugby union. 

During his weekends off, you'll likely find Ed heading out for a round at one of his local golf clubs with his friends, and was, up until recently, a member at the Leatherhead Golf Club in Surrey. Ed also plays the saxophone, can tell you some pretty terrible dad jokes and can knock up a very tasty carbonara!   

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