HITTING THE LINKS: Gary Player playing at Aronimink in 1962.
Photo courtesy of James Drake via Getty Images
Each year, the Professional Golfers’ Association of America (PGA) Tour brings together the world’s top golfers to compete in a series of high-stakes tournaments across the country. Running from January through August, the PGA Tour serves as the primary stage for professional golf. Beyond hosting seasonal tournaments, the PGA operates on a large scale, with events held at some of the most well-known golf courses in the United States. The tournaments shape world rankings, offer prize money, and create career opportunities for golfers, thus playing a major role in influencing the sport’s overall popularity.
Though it has incredible benefits for the golfers, hosting a PGA tournament can have a noticeable impact on local communities. On average, tournaments draw between 30,000 and 100,000 spectators around the course, leading to traffic issues, road closures, and broader logistical concerns. Managing crowds while ensuring emergency services becomes a key priority, and the disruption can extend beyond the course itself. Nearby schools, for example, are compelled to adjust schedules or close for a day to account for the large disruption such an event could cause, while other districts may reconsider transportation logistics or switch to online learning. Events of this scale can also cause noise and interrupt daily routines for nearby residents.
These disruptions have become especially relevant at EA, which will close for one week in mid-May because of the PGA Championship at Aronimink Golf Club in Newtown Square. Concerns among the student body arose, as the timing of the closure is scheduled for the week before finals, making it more difficult for students to coordinate time to meet with teachers or ask for help. Michael Letts, Head of the Upper School, explains the complicated schedule: “We felt like we need to get you guys back into a regular rhythm which is why we still have reading days and [normal] class days before we move into exams.”
Due to the Championship, final exam schedules had to be significantly altered to make studying and preparation for finals as straightforward as possible. The original exam schedule for the World Languages Department was altered as a way of avoiding conflict with other finals after the conclusion of the PGA tournament. Erin Bilbao, Head of the Department of World Languages, shares, “We did decide the department would change the dates of our final and take ourselves out of the normal final exam rotation.” Bilbao elaborates, “Mrs. Edwards, the academic dean, offered an alternative assessment or to give our exams in a different way. And we decided that to avoid conflict with AP exams and other final exams, we would make space and give ours earlier.” As a result, world language exams will be taken in the final week of April instead of May.
Student response to this change has been mixed, with some saying the earlier language exams feel inconvenient and give them less time to prepare, further complicated by the scheduling of AP exams. Charlotte Franklin ’26 comments, “I have APs that would have been during that period, but now they’re pushed back, which I do find kind of annoying, because it’s nice to have them more spread out. I would say [the change] is a little disruptive.” However, some students understand the issue of traffic around Aronimink during the PGA. Callen Park ’29 states, “I think that there’s really no other option, as traffic should be really bad.” On the other hand, Park also concedes, “I will say it’s pretty inconvenient as this is right next to our core exams.” No matter how schedules are adjusted, the weight of responsibility still lies on the students to hold themselves accountable for the preparation necessary for their final examinations. The issues of procrastination or laziness persist, regardless of the amount of time given.
Still, there are many positive aspects of EA’s closure. Students have more time to go outside and enjoy the weather while also having plenty of time to study for finals. Dr. Thomas Goebeler, Upper School math teacher, shares his opinions: “For the students who are going to execute and use that as study time, then, yeah, obviously that’s going to be a good thing. It’s a very human thing to procrastinate or to find that the nice weather makes you want to enjoy it and be outdoors.” He also shares, “It could actually be a break-even situation…you get this week, and you feel like you have some fun for four days. Get it out of your system, and maybe you buckle down for the last three.” As the PGA break creeps closer, it remains more important than ever to maintain a stable balance between productivity and respite.
Although the tournament can bring excitement to fans, for communities like EA, it has sown uncertainty and obliged administrators, teachers, staff, students, and families to adapt to an altered exam schedule. This week off brings time for both relaxation and productivity and pushes students, faculty, and families to be flexible.