Despite Doubters Olympic Golf Turned Out to be a Huge Success

By all accounts golf in the 2016 Olympics was a success despite marquee players electing not to participate and some dire predictions in the weeks and months leading up to the start of the games.  The final round featuring Justin Rose and Henrik Stenson was great golf and the USA fans got to watch Matt Kuchar shoot a final round 63 to pick up the Bronze Medal.

Watching how proud Kuchar was of his Olympic Medal puts winning Olympic Gold in a little different perspective.

Tour player’s careers are built around winning majors and that is not going to change.  It is the same in other professional sports.  Basketball fans know that Michael Jordan won six NBA titles and probably have no idea how many Olympic Golds he won (the answer is 2).

Winning the gold in the Olympics does have a few things going for it that put a little different light on it.  The Olympic Gold is actually the most difficult to win.  This is not a debate about the major’s vs the Olympics because they are just simply different and have their own unique qualities.  It is simply the fact that the Olympics are only held every four years.

For tour players they generally have around a twenty year career.  Some have stretched it longer, but for the most part it is twenty years.  In that time span they have the opportunity to win eighty majors.  Alternatively, they only have five shots at Olympic Gold.  As Justin Rose commented, his reign will last through sixteen majors.  This also makes it the hardest to defend.  When the Tokyo Olympics roll around Rose will be forty and with all the young players out there it will be hard for him to even make the team much less defend.  It will be even tougher for Inbee Park.  Making that Olympic team has got to be the most difficult of any country.

Hopefully at some point in the future players will covet it as much or more than a major but for the time being let’s just hope that it continues as an Olympic sport.

Cover Photo via Instagram