Men's Olympic Golf

[Tom_Doak]

while we would enjoy Match play, it would take too long and further dilute the field.


And Tom, "telling players what to do" isn't what I'm suggesting, but rather offering an incentive in his contract, a win win for both parties.


"Hey DJ, instead of multiple vapid sponsor's appearances, we're prepared to rewrite your multi million $$ contract under the condition that if you are qualified, you play in the Olympics, or use best efforts to do so."
Worldwide exposure is worth something for Taylormade..

Match play could have easily been done for the Olympics if that's what the Powers That Be wanted, since pretty much all Olympic coverage is pre-packaged and they are cutting back and forth to other events and updates anyway.  It's just not what the PTB want.


The whole part about sponsors might be more complicated than you realize.  The Olympics are so controlling of their brand etc. that I don't think TaylorMade could say anything about the Olympics or use the rings in their ad, unless they are paying the USOC to be an official sponsor.  I could not even put the word "Olympic" on my proposed plan for the golf course in Rio. 


Surely DJ's agent has tried to figure out a way to make it worth his while, so one must assume they can't. 


The whole conversation about bribing the players to play via sponsors is so far removed from the paragon of amateur sports that the Olympics were supposed to represent, that I don't really know what to say other than *ick*.  And yes I know that was all a sham. 


I do think the event ought to be reserved for players who actually want to go -- I liked Peter's idea for a qualifier but as explained the IGF's setup does not allow for that.  Indeed part of the whole mess is that the IGF is trying to justify its own existence and get their hands on allocating some of that sweet sweet sport development cash, and the players can see that as easily as I do.

[Phil Burr]

The Olympics can only be important once it is the pinnacle of achievement in any given sport.

Ally said what I have maintained for years, and therefore golf & tennis have no place in the Olympics.  Basketball and ice hockey are trickier because those games are played worldwide but there are no leagues whose championships approach the status of an NBA title or a Stanley Cup, so an Olympic gold medal would represent the pinnacle of achievement for any country other than the U.S.

[Wayne_Kozun]

One thing that many here are missing is that in many countries sports federations get no, or a lot less, government funding if you are not an Olympic sport.  Golf being in the Olympics helps to grow the game in many countries.  It matters from that perspective.


I would think an Irish Man or Woman winning the gold would be a big deal in Ireland. Ireland has one gold medal over the last five Olympic games. Folks in the US or UK get spoiled by the fact that they win dozens of medals at each game.  That only happens for a few countries.


One of the highlights of the Rio Olympics was the Fijian 7s rugby team winning the gold.  Rugby is not a traditional olympic sport but this victory resulted in a national holiday in Fiji to celebrate the event. 

[Jeff Schley]

I don't think anything is broken with the Olympics, it has evolved with professional athletes and has done well with that. They have only had 1 crack at the golf in our lifetimes, let's give it some time. I really enjoyed Rose and Fowler battling it out and think we will see it again this time. It doesn't have to be the best golf event of any 4 year period to be a success and millions enjoy watching around the world.

[Paul Stephenson]

What if the tour threw some Fedex Cup points at them?  Add in some Race to Dubai points too.

[Pat Burke]

I always thought the USOC could have had a major fundraiser tournament for an Olympic golf qualifier (men and women)
(I am assuming tv and sponsors available for a huge purse)

Hold local and sectional qualifiers all over the country (like the US open)
Charge an entry fee.  All entrants receive swag as an entrant to the US Olympic Qualifying Championship


Exempt the top (X) in the world rankings
Have a four round championship where the top 2 qualify for the US Olympic team (plus alternates)
The purse would need to be high, and likely a silly season time frame to not compete with a tour event (men or women)


I believe a decent number of top players play but most likely only with a large purse

[Wayne_Kozun]

@Pat - in doing that you are potentially giving up two spots in the Olympics.  Currently the US gets up to four golfers of each gender if they are in the OWGR top 15.  Under your method they would lose the third and fourth spots unless all four qualifiers were in the top 15.

[Sean_A]

The Olympics biggest flaw has always been it doesn't include all the best for any particular sport, even all the worst douchebags. 

However as it concerns golf, I think Tom D pretty much summed it up.  None of todays pros grew up aspiring to play in the Olympics, unlike many other sports.  But if golf remains in the Olympics, hopefully 20-30 years from now there will be a fresh crop of pros who may be interested...

Exactly. Keep some skin in the game and let the future sort itself out. None of us know what the future might hold.

Ciao

[Tom_Doak]

I don't think anything is broken with the Olympics, it has evolved with professional athletes and has done well with that. They have only had 1 crack at the golf in our lifetimes, let's give it some time. I really enjoyed Rose and Fowler battling it out and think we will see it again this time.

This quote is a pretty good indication of the true level of interest in Olympic golf.  Fowler tied for 37th place in 2016.     
Henrik Stenson won the silver medal, Matt Kuchar the bronze. 

[Kurt Everett]

This quote is a pretty good indication of the true level of interest in Olympic golf.  Fowler tied for 37th place in 2016.     
Henrik Stenson won the silver medal, Matt Kuchar the bronze.



So true.  I'm quick to judge DJ for not competing in the Olympics, but at the same time I don't recall watching it in 2016...

[Kalen Braley]

So true.  I'm quick to judge DJ for not competing in the Olympics, but at the same time I don't recall watching it in 2016...

I don't think that's a bad thing per se, its expected.  For the sports that already have top notch professional leagues, the Olympics is sadly a watered down event with per country participation restrictions (Hockey being the exception).  I certainly don't bother with Olympic Basketball, Baseball, or Futbol when we have the NBA, MLB, and the EPL.  I watched in 2016, but only to get glimpses of the course, the tournament itself was about as interesting as a Korn Ferry event...