Just hours after Brendan Steele won his second consecutive Safeway Open title in Napa, Calif., the host Silverado Resort and Spa was evacuated as rapidly moving wildfires threatened the resort.
Ultimately, the fire did reach the property setting buildings and tournament infrastructure ablaze while the host North Course and adjoining South Course suffered damage.
State of emergency declared as three fast-moving wildfires totaling 44,000 acres burn north of Napa, California https://t.co/OZZoeBrj5l pic.twitter.com/5XURlVTw6E
— CNN Breaking News (@cnnbrk) October 9, 2017
#Fire near Silverado Country Club #Napa dozens of homes already gone 😥🔥#KTVU pic.twitter.com/vzWuBlSQJg
— taramoriarty (@taramoriarty1) October 9, 2017
Gale-force winds led to an unexpectedly fast spread of the fire in Napa and Sonoma counties, with PGA Tour players sharing details on Twitter of their Sunday night evacuation from the resort.
Kyle Thompson, having played in the season opener, left without much warning and didn't grab belongings.
Yep. The whole ridge line above the course was on fire with winds pushing toward course. We got out of there without packing a single thing.
— Kyle Thompson (@KyleThompsonPGA) October 9, 2017
Patton Kizzire summed up the unique, devastating experience.
I've never run from a wild fire before #napafire
— Patton Kizzire (@pkizzire) October 9, 2017
So far, reports suggest more than 20,000 acres of land have been scorched by the fires. Silverado Resort tweeted they will be closed until further notice.
William Hill, which has a winery across from Silverado Resort and is a PGA Tour partner, shared an update on their property on Facebook. The winery buildings there remains intact, with the estate saying they only suffered "minor cosmetic and landscaping" damage. It appears understanding the full extent of the damage will take more time.
