Golf is back in the Olympics for the third straight Games after a 112-year wait was ended at Rio 2016.
The Olympics is still a new thing for golfers, with an entire crop of modern pros being given a chance to win gold having grown up never believing they could. The Rio 2016 Games were sadly met with a number of high-profile withdrawals due to the Zika virus while Tokyo 2020 also missed out on some big names due to Covid-19.
However, this year’s Games in Paris – with the golf taking place at Le Golf National – sees a super strong field in both the men’s and women’s tournaments, giving hope that the gold medal is now a real prize in the sport that all of the world’s top players want to win.
Justin Rose, Inbee Park, Xander Schauffele and Nelly Korda have all won gold medals in the previous two Games, and they’ve seen their status bumped because of it – but perhaps not as much as they did from their Major wins.
So where does an Olympic gold medal rank vs the Majors? Our team discuss…
I think the general perception would be the Olympics sits well below the Majors in terms of importance, but I’m not so sure.
For the winners, it can be just as transformational as capturing a Major. For instance, imagine if Viktor Hovland wins gold. Would that or a PGA Championship win make him a bigger hero in Norway?
The Olympics feels like a lesser event for golf… Until it starts.
Nick Bonfield
I think a Gold Medal is edging closer to a Major title in terms of stature with every passing Olympics.
However, I don’t see it ever drawing level.
For a start, it can’t compete with the history and traditions of the Majors and interest will never be as high from golf fans.
Also, the field is far weaker than a Major. Some of the big name male golfers to miss the Olympics on qualifying for Paris are genuinely world-class: the likes of Bryson DeChambeau, Max Homa, Tyrrell Hatton and Justin Rose.
The Olympics needs to find a way to expand the field and include more top-class players.
Alison Root
I don’t think the Olympics currently ranks anywhere near the Majors, or even some of the other big championships.
It is slowly gaining traction, but it’s still a very new tournament.
Winning a Major is the pinnacle of any golfer’s career, and while I’m sure players…
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