Golf at the Summer Olympics

A remarkable comeback for the great game, as golf is once again a feature of the Summer Olympics for the first time for over a century By Dave Shedloski. George S. Lyon is about to get some company after 112 years standing alone as golf’s only recognized Olympic gold medalist. When the Summer Games commence in August in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, golf will be included for the first time since 1904, when the aforementioned Lyon, a 46-year-old insurance salesman from Canada, upset H. Chandler Egan, the reigning U.S. Amateur champion, 3 and 2, at Glen Echo Golf Club in St. Louis. The new prize On a golf course specifically designed for the competition by architect Gil Hanse, 60 each of the game’s best men and women will compete in separate 72-hole stroke-play competitions in Rio. The men go first, August 11-14 while the women play August 17-20. While golf always has been about the major championships, this new prize will be a special one for the world’s top players. Like other Olympic sports, medals will be presented for the top three finishers in each competition. There is no prize money. The major championship schedule was altered this year to accommodate the Olympics, with the PGA Championship moving into August. Winning gold “More than anything, it would be nice bragging rights,” said Jordan Spieth, the No. 1 player in the Official World Golf Ranking and almost assured of being among the players representing the United States in Rio. “If I've got a gold medal and somebody that I get to see week-to-week on the PGA TOUR has got a silver or bronze. Medaling for your country is something special. Winning a gold would be, I believe, like winning a major championship.” The field will be determined by the International Golf Federation based on the world rankings on July 11. The top 15 players of each ranking—the OWGR for the men and the Rolex World Rankings for the women—will qualify, with a limit of four golfers per country. Beyond the top 15, berths are limited to two players from any one country. According to the IGF, which manages the Olympic golf tournaments, the host nation will be reserved one berth regardless of ranking as will each geographic region of the globe. Growing the game Spearheaded by Ty Votaw, the Executive Vice President of Communications and International Affairs and Vice President of the IGF, the impetus for golf’s inclusion in the Olympics was driven by the global popularity of the sport and the desire to further grow the game. Among those who went to bat in 2009 as the IOC was deciding golf’s bid was 18-time major winner Jack Nicklaus. Eventually, golf and rugby were the two sports that were included for the 2016 Games. Golf is guaranteed an Olympic spot for 2016 and 2020 and then will undergo re-evaluation. Tokyo is the site of the 2020 Games. The course Because a suitable golf course was not available in Brazil, a layout that could accommodate men and women players had to be designed. Philadelphia-based Hanse, GOLF magazine’s 2009 Architect of the Year, was selected among eight finalists. The golf course he carved out on sand of a portion of a nature preserve in western Rio, hard by the sea and mountains, measures 7,350 yards, a par 71. (It will play around 6,500 yards for the women) has been described as a links-like layout, wide open and without trees. Hanse, with two different tournaments in mind, built several options into most holes and some holes will be what Hanse has called “half-par” holes that might be reachable from the tee on a par-4 or par-3s that play long. The course also features two artificial lakes and strategic bunkering and mounding. The finishing stretch, says LPGA Hall of Fame golfer Amy Alcott, who served as a design consultant to Hanse, should provide for risk-reward birdie opportunities.  “It’s a very demanding course,” Paulo Pacheco, president of the Brazilian Golf Confederation, said when the golf course officially was unveiled in November. “It has plenty of undergrowth and is very open so the wind will present a real challenge to the golfers, who will also have lots of bunkers to deal with. This layout is narrow and will demand great precision from the players.” Tremendous success A test event staged in early March went off without a hitch. That dry run was helpful, as was the U.S. Golf Association’s experiment two years ago at Pinehurst No. 2 when the U.S. Open and the U.S. Women’s Open were held in back-to-back weeks. That fortnight was a tremendous success, with Martin Kaymer and Michelle Wie winning the respective national titles. Upon completion of the Olympic competition, the golf course will be turned over to the country’s residents, giving them their first public golf course. That is just one more gesture towards growing the game.