As golf in the Olympics begins for the third time since its century-long absence ended in 2016, it has outgrown the curiosity stage and is settling into an increasingly familiar and meaningful part of the golf calendar, even if it happens only every four years.
Justin Rose and Xander Schauffele have gold medals on the men’s side while Inbee Park and Nelly Korda won gold on the women’s side, hardware that is unique in a sport that rewards professional trophies almost every week.
If there was a sense of uncertainty surrounding golf’s return to the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, where the Zika virus kept some stars away and a less-than-complete experience in Tokyo in 2021 where the pandemic kept potential spectators away, the Paris experience this year at Le Golf National figures to be the most complete Olympics yet for golf.
It’s being played at the site of Europe’s rousing Ryder Cup victory in 2018. None of the four U.S. Olympians – Scottie Scheffler, Schauffele, Collin Morikawa and Wyndham Clark – was on the losing American team, but five Europeans – Tommy Fleetwood, Jon Rahm, Rory McIlroy, Thorbjørn Olesen and Alex Noren – were at Le Golf National six years ago and again this week.
Determining where an Olympic medal ranks in the game’s hierarchy of achievements remains an evolving concept as does the format of competition, which is likely to include a 36-hole mixed event for the men and women when the games come to Los Angeles in four years.
Schauffele grew up in a family where the Olympics were celebrated. His father, Stefan, dreamed of being an Olympic decathlete until an auto accident ended his hopes. Schauffele’s backstory added a more personal element to his victory in Tokyo, and it was the defining achievement in his career until he won the PGA Championship and the Open Championship this year.
Even now, Schauffele is figuring out what the gold medal means compared to major-championship trophies.
“The majors are sort of what I grew up watching,” he said. “They are two very different things to me. I think the gold medal, it’s been marinating nicely. Maybe in 30, 40 years, it’s something that’s really going to be special as it gets more traction and it kind of gets back into the eyes or into the normalcy of being in the Olympics. It’s still so young coming off of, I don’t know, what was it, like 1903 was the last time it was in the Olympics?”
It was 1904 in St. Louis.
For Matthieu Pavon, representing France in the Paris Olympics wasn’t anything he imagined as a youngster. But when golf returned to the games and the chance to be at Le Golf National became reality, Pavon’s priorities evolved.
“I always felt like major for golf is more important because we have not really grown up with the Olympics,” said Pavon, who won at Torrey Pines in January after claiming his first DP World Tour victory, at the Spanish Open, in October. “Golf came back in the Olympics in 2016 in Rio. So that was a different feeling first I had.
“And after a few days in the Olympic Village, the opening ceremony in Paris with all this crowd in front of the Eiffel Tower and all the great moments we spent the last few days, it really feels like a gold medal would now be ranked higher than a major for me.”
With seven of the top 10 players in world rankings participating this week, the argument can be made that the Olympics are getting the best of the best. The counterargument points to recent U.S. Open winner Bryson DeChambeau, who did not qualify for the American team because as a LIV Golf member, he has limited access to accrue the necessary ranking points.
McIlroy said it’s no different than being the fifth-best sprinter from a country who narrowly failed to make the Olympic cut-off.
“I think it’s just the way that the qualification works in the Olympic Games, and that’s not just in golf. That’s in other disciplines, as well,” McIlroy said.
“If you want to qualify for the Olympics, you knew what you had to do. Just like if you wanted to qualify for the Ryder Cup, you knew what you had to do. They [LIV players] were very aware of the decision they made when they did.”
Rahm, one of those LIV players, would prefer to see the selection process in golf left up to the individual countries rather than an arbitrary ranking.
“I think you can always do it, like with other sports, and allow the countries to pick themselves. There needs to be some guidelines, but like Team USA Basketball has freedom to choose whoever they want,” Rahm said.
“I understand it’s a different circumstance, but I think you need to let each country choose who they want to play, and in the future, I would also like to see some team aspect in the Olympics, as well. I mean, we are here representing Spain.”
Adding a mixed event between the men’s and women’s golf in four years – a proposal that is expected to pass – would heighten the team concept.
The current 72-hole stroke-play format is an individual competition. Although the medals count toward a nation’s overall count, it hardly feels like a team event.
Adding a mixed event between the men’s and women’s golf in four years – a proposal that is expected to pass – would heighten the team concept.
“I would love to actually, as a partner or somehow, whether as a combined sport or us playing together, to be able to represent Spain,” Rahm said. “That would be extremely nice to share the stage with another player, to do something different, to maybe what we do every other day.”
McIlroy threw his support beyond the concept.
“I think some people were surprised that it was only individual stroke play, and they didn’t try to mix it up with some different formats,” McIlroy said.
“If that came to fruition in L.A. where there was a mixed-team event, or even – and another team event that was not mixed and Shane [Lowry] and I could play in it if we qualify, yeah, I’d love that. I think that would be a great format to bring to this competition.”