2016 Olympics – The Women Have the Tee!

I’ve been waiting a long time for the first round of the women’s Olympic golf tournament.  Interesting and exciting as it’s been, the men’s competition has only served to whet my appetite.  I want to see how the women will handle Gil Hanse’s Olympic Golf Course, with it’s wide open fairways and wily bunkers and howling winds.

There’s a field of 60 women representing 34 different countries carrying their nations’ hope and dreams as well as their own to the Olympic golf course this week.  Come Saturday afternoon one will be wearing Olympic gold.

The world no. 1 is here! Welcome to #OlympicGolf⛳️@LydiaKo, we can't wait to see the women compete on Weds! #Rio2016 pic.twitter.com/Lrm6KsfKT9

— Olympic Golf (@OlympicGolf) August 14, 2016

What I have learned from watching the men work their way around the Olympic Golf Course is that the long hitters will have an initial advantage but without a well-honed short game just getting to the putting surface first isn’t going to be enough to tame the course.

Who looks good for the gold?

 
The oddsmakers would have us hanging the gold medal around Lydia Ko’s neck before the first tee shot is hit, but I think that’s both overly optimistic and premature.  Ko’s long game is going to be seriously challenged in Rio.  If they’re in form, Ariya Jutanugarn, Brooke Henderson, Gerina Piller, and Lexi Thompson will play ahead of Ko from tee to green. 

Thompson’s short game can get deficient and Piller still hasn’t managed to survive final round jitters and close the deal, but look for Jutanugarn and Henderson to challenge the Kiwi.  It’s going to be tight at the top of the board but as I did at Woburn, I’m giving Ariya Jutanugarn the edge in the battle for gold.  I don’t think the games newest major champion is quite finished with her romp through the 2016 season!

Beware! Ariya Jutanugarn isn’t going to take control of the top of the board without a battle.  The top of the Rio field has enormous depth.  I’m seeing at least 15 players in this rich international field likely to seriously challenge Jutanugarn.

And what about the silver and bronze?

 
In addition to Ko, Henderson and Thompson, Charley Hull is also a good candidate to watch at the Olympics, as is Catriona Matthew.

The English pair are bringing very different games to Rio – Hull’s rip it and grip it style contrasts sharply with Matthew’s solid, consistent, smooth as silk approach to the game – but both are very comfortable on traditional links courses.  While Matthew doesn’t have Hull’s length or power she brings deep course management skills to the game that could be critically important as she makes her way around the Olympic Golf Course.  I wouldn’t be at all surprised to see the veteran Scot standing on the podium Saturday afternoon.

In theory, Korea is sending the strongest and largest team to the Olympics, but I’m not looking for a standout performance from Inbee Park.  I think this may be an exhibition for Park, who’s been out of competition nursing a hand injury.  In Gee Chun, Sei Young Kim, and Amy Yang, however, are all capable to playing to the top of the board and they’re all highly motivated to capture Olympic gold.

 
Look for Anna Nordqvist and Stacy Lewis to also be in the mix.  As we’ve seen in the men’s competition, for whatever reason Olympic competition can take some interesting twists and turns.  The stakes are different.  It’s more than a purse and a trophy the players are pursuing – it’s bragging rights that transcend money and hardware.  Nordqvist and Lewis have both proved their staying power.  Make no mistake they’ll be coming to the tee with their eyes on the Olympic podium and the games to get them there.

The Aussies, while not as highly favored by the oddsmakers as some others, also merit watching.  Minjee Lee and Su Oh both learned to play golf on Australian sandhills courses and both earned their first pro victories on tracks that included many aspects of the environment they’ll be encountering this week at Barra da Tijuca.  Lee has proved that she’s capable of getting into contention and staying there and LPGA rookie Su Oh is well on her way to stardom as well.

I’ll keep an eye on the weather and, as we get closer to first round tee times, to the pairings.  Rain is in the forecast for Thursday and Friday, so course conditions are going to change after the first round and the ability to manage inclement weather could figure heavily into 2nd round scoring, particularly for the afternoon wave.  By the final round on Saturday the weather will have cleared and the golf course will be in fine condition to let this amazing drama for which we’ve all waited so long play out in dramatic fashion.

Cover Image Via Twitter