Entry is open for the inaugural event, which will see teams of one PGA Professional and three amateurs descend upon two of the finest golf courses in the Middle East region for 54-holes of competition, with a €30,000* prize fund available for the professionals.

Having hosted the Challenge Tour Grand Final from 2016 to 2018, the Championship Course at Al Hamra Golf Club will provide the perfect stage for the event alongside the widely acclaimed Al Zorah Golf Club, culminating in a world-class golfing experience for competitors throughout the week.

Kevin Hesbois, Golf Masters Events Partner and PGA of Belgium Professional, said: “As Golf Masters begins its journey of hosting world-class events and travel experiences, we are very proud to be working with the CPG on the inaugural Golf Masters Pro-Am this year. We look forward to welcoming PGA Professionals and teams to the event and providing them with an extra special experience on and off the golf course.”

CPG Chief Executive, Ian Randell, commented: “The inaugural Golf Masters Pro-Am is a great addition to our 2021 schedule, at a time when international playing opportunities for PGA Professionals and their teams of amateur golfers has been limited due to the ongoing pandemic.

“Kevin has competed, and been successful, in other CPG events and it is great to see him use the experiences he has gained as a player to provide a further opportunity for others. We look forward to working with him and the team at Golf Masters when staging this fantastic event.”

There is no Pro-Am package fee for each participating professional bringing a team of three amateurs, and amateur packages start at €3,499, and include:

• 5 nights in Hilton DoubleTree by Hilton Marjan Island Resort & Spa or Waldorf Astoria Ras Al Khaimah
• Use of Spa facilities
• Welcome goodie bag
• 1 practice round at Al Hamra Golf Club
• 2 competition rounds at Al Hamra Golf Club
• 1 competition round at Al Zorah Golf Club
• All transfers included (airport – hotel – golf courses – evening events)
• Golf carts during the practice round and all competition rounds
• Exclusive players lounge for all participants at Al Hamra Golf Club
• Refreshments during play
• 4 lunches and 3 dinners, plus drinks

For more information visit the Tournament Hub Page https://cp.golf/2021GMProAm. For more information on the CPG visit cpg.golf, or find the CPG on Twitter (@cpg_golf), Facebook (@cpg.golf), LinkedIn, Instagram (@cpg_golf) and Anchor.fm.

Visit Al Hamra Golf Club (alhamragolf.com) and Al Zorah Golf Club (alzorahgolfclub.ae).

VISIT TOURNAMENT HUB PAGE

REGISTER INTEREST & ENTER HERE

PING Europe is a CPG Business Partner and member of the Business Club by CPG – Find out more here

Employing a patent-pending technology known as AlumiCore, PING today introduced the i59 iron, a forged blade that delivers the look, feel and trajectory control preferred by better players with forgiveness unprecedented in blade-style designs.

The custom-built i59 irons are now available for custom fittings at authorised PING retailers around the world.

“There’s been a lot of anticipation for the i59 iron since we took them out on tour a few months ago, so we’re very excited to bring them to golfers around the world,” said John K. Solheim, PING’s president. “It’s a true forged blade on the outside, but inside it’s like nothing ever engineered in golf equipment. Our team took on the challenge of disrupting an iron category that traditionally has lacked a lot of performance innovation and developed an iron unlike any other. The combination of the look, feel and forgiveness ‘when you need it’ sets it apart from anything else in the industry. Once golfers hit it, they’ll be pleasantly surprised by its versatility. The i59 will clearly appeal to better golfers but the combination of forgiveness and clean appearance will attract golfers of all skill levels.”

“It’s been very well received on tour and was in the bag of Viktor Hovland when he became the first Norwegian to win on the European Tour earlier this summer. Johannes Veerman just won with a full set of the i59s on Sunday at the Czech Masters. The players really like the distance control and the ability to consistently flight the ball to the precise yardages required to succeed at the professional levels.”

AlumiCore Technology Increases MOI

An aerospace-grade aluminium insert allows approximately 30 grams of material from the centre of the club to be redistributed to the perimeter, some in the form of toe and shaft tip weights, elevating the MOI to match that of the larger PING i210 iron. Each iron in the set requires a different size aluminium core, adding to the precision and complexity of the manufacturing process to ensure quality and performance in every iron. The result is a forgiving, forged iron with a crisp, solid feel at impact that delivers lower launch and trajectory control with the precision expected from a blade design.

“We know this type of player may not put forgiveness at the top of their list when considering their iron choice, so we engineered it in a way that increased the MOI in a clean and impactful way,” said Solheim. “At address, it’s perfectly sized and shaped with a thin top line and the right amount of offset. It has a narrow sole to move smoothly through the turf and ensure a pleasing impact experience. Inside, the AlumiCore technology allows us to increase the MOI by moving the weight to the perimeter using toe and shaft tip weights. Our player testing shows tighter dispersion throughout the set and very high marks for feel.”

Friction Face with MicroMax Milled Grooves

The precision-machined face has new MicroMax grooves for tighter spacing and a geometry that results in an average of four extra grooves on each club to reduce fliers in the short irons and preserve spin in the long irons for greater control and consistency.

“We love the challenge of improving groove performance,” Solheim said. “When golfers address the i59 iron, they’ll notice more grooves. We were able to accomplish this through our continuous research and experiments with different configurations to deliver the spin performance required for consistency and predictability from all conditions.”

100% Inspected Manufacturing Steps

During the development of the iron, PING’s innovation and engineering teams spent significant time perfecting the manufacturing process which includes 100% inspection of numerous steps, including sole shaping, head polishing, face machining and head forging. Joining the 1025 carbon steel forged body, aluminium insert and laser cut 17-4 stainless steel face employs a forging process known as swaging, which applies pressure to the three parts, creating a unibody-style part that is then plasma-welded to seal the seams.

“The i59 project pulled in our expertise from multiple disciplines within our engineering and innovation groups,” said Solheim. “Once we had the idea to join the three parts together, we were challenged with scaling the complicated process within the manufacturing process. In collaboration with our suppliers, we developed highly-precise procedures that makes the i59 the most technologically advanced iron we’ve ever manufactured.”

RECEIVE FUTURE CPG NEWS

VISIT PING

For PGA Professionals and other individuals working in the industry, #CompCamp provides useful tips and advice on delivering successful golf tournaments and events.

Click the image below to watch the third episode.

In episode 3, the focus is on event set-up. By asking some simple questions of who, what, where, when, how, you can plan and deliver an effective golf event.

WATCH ON YOUTUBE

VISIT GOLF GENIUS

This demand has been heightened even more recently with a string of major sporting events such as the European Football Championships and the Olympics in Tokyo. The BBC recorded a record-breaking 104-million online viewing requests to watch the Olympics, up from 74.4 million in 2016. It highlights an increase in viewership but also demonstrates the evolving nature of viewing behaviour and the online types of media now being consumed by fans.

The conclusion? Major sporting events have the power to attract significant swathes of the population to watch their favourite athletes and teams. Sports viewership has also inevitably become one of the few benefactors of the COVID-19 pandemic.

With two of the biggest events in golf taking place over the next few weeks in the Ryder Cup and the Solheim Cup, golf has one of its biggest opportunities to continue this trend – something that both events have historically been exceptional at. The Solheim Cup in 2019 and the Ryder Cup in 2018 attracted attendances of over 90,000 and 270,000 respectively. The Ryder Cup generated 22 billion social media impressions and 11.1 million minutes of coverage; US broadcaster NBC reported an average of 2.7 million viewers during the final round alone. With these sorts of numbers there is no wonder team golf in the women’s and men’s games continues to punch above the rest when trying to engage wider, harder-to-reach audiences.

A possible explanation for this is in the very nature of team sports. The likes of football, baseball, cricket, rugby and hockey satisfy people’s craving for affiliation and belonging. In other words, they provide that platform for people to connect and interact with others through their support of a particular outfit. For some, a team has such an influence on their identity and behaviour that it actually becomes a part of who they are. The result from all of this is an unrivalled and unmatched level of engagement and fan loyalty.

For most weeks of the year, golf’s individualistic nature as a sport creates less opportunity for people to truly connect to one athlete, and they often opt to support and wager on a number of players instead. Whilst viewership remains popular week-in week-out during these events, they don’t have the same effect that Ryder Cup and Solheim Cup have.

Team golf also elevates the athletes to levels of stardom they do not usually attain. The matches give them the chance to become a hero. Some inevitably do – you only have to look at the likes of Suzanne Pettersen, Ian Poulter and Seve Ballesteros to recognise that fact. For golfers of all ages and abilities, watching them create history for a team they are backing stirs the senses and elevates their emotions to levels unmatched by regular strokeplay tournaments (with the exception of the majors and the Olympics).

So, when you mix increased viewing figures with the spine-tingling, hair-raising and enthralling moments that unfold during these two events, team golf inevitably creates a cocktail of opportunities for the game’s lasting sustainability and prosperity. They provide a chance to capture the imagination of millions of young people; to showcase the sport in a different light; to create genuine enthusiasm to learn and play the game. For golfers and fans alike, there will always be a huge appetite for team competition in golf.

As golf prepares to stage two of its biggest occasions in its calendar over the space of just a few weeks, one can only imagine the levels of excitement, passion and nervous energy that will be on show for all to witness and experience. It begs the question: should team golf become a more permanent fixture?

What is The Solheim Cup?

The Solheim Cup combines the game’s traditions with passion for one’s country and continent. This biennial, transatlantic team match-play competition features the 12 best European players from the Ladies European Tour (LET) and the 12 best US players from the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) Tour. Since 1990, both teams have come together over three days of competition to provide audiences with a mix of fierce rivalry, shot-making skills and significant exposure for the women’s game.

Through its relationship with the event, it is perhaps one of PING’s most significant contributions to the women’s game – it was named in honour of Karsten and Louise Solheim, the founders of Karsten Manufacturing Corporation, which makes PING equipment. Off the back of the success of The Solheim Cup, the PING Junior Solheim Cup was also formed, an event that sees twelve of the best European amateurs go up against their American counterparts.

RECEIVE FUTURE CPG NEWS

Old Tom Gin 1821 is a CPG Business Partner and member of the Business Club by CPG – Find out more here

A luxury gin brand named as an official Supplier and Licensee of the 44^th Ryder Cup has onboarded Scottish professional golfer Carly Booth to its growing team of dedicated ‘Brand Champions’ and advisors.

Confirmed as a supplier of all gin and gin-based cocktails at the iconic sporting event taking place in 2023, Old Tom Gin 1821 plans to utilise both Carly’s personal network and specialised knowledge and experience within the industry to help increase brand awareness leading up to the Ryder Cup and beyond.

Carly’s impressive career in golf began at age 11 when she became the youngest Ladies Club Champion in Britain, closely followed by her appearance in the Women’s Scottish Open at just 14 years old. From there she went on to win the European Junior Masters in 2007, as well as the Daily Telegraph Finals during the same year.

One of Carly’s greatest achievements to date was at the end of 2009 when she became the youngest ever Scot to qualify for the Ladies European Tour, aged just 17.

As the second ‘Brand Champion’ to join the team, Carly will use her increasing presence on social media in assisting Old Tom Gin 1821 to drive credibility and availability across the UK and Ireland.

Founder of Old Tom Gin 1821, Giorgio Cozzolino, explained: “Created in St. Andrews and distilled using the finest Sicilian ingredients, Old Tom Gin 1821 represents a harmonious marriage between my Italian roots and my love for the Scottish town, where I have lived for the last six years.

“Although our upcoming involvement with the Ryder Cup in 2023 has meant Old Tom Gin 1821 has gained credibility within the high-end drinks market, we are keen to work alongside a number of influential individuals to help drive awareness and accessibility of the brand on an ongoing basis.”

“Carly is an extremely talented young golfer who is full of ambition, energy and charisma. Her extensive experience and multiple accomplishments throughout her ongoing golfing career make her the ideal ‘Brand Champion’ for Old Tom Gin 1821, whilst her Scottish roots mean she boasts a unique personal connection to the brand. We couldn’t be happier to welcome Carly to the team and we look forward to kicking things off.”

Carly Booth added: “I am humbled to be part of the Old Tom Gin 1821 team for what will be a great duo. I look forward to building a positive and successful future together.”

Carly Booth, who played in the Scottish Open on Thursday, joins seasoned professional golfer Gary Evans who was announced as Old Tom Gin’s first ‘Brand Champion’ just a few weeks ago.

Having already taken the ‘Super Premium’ drinks category by storm, Old Tom Gin 1821 holds a long-term vision to become the gin brand of choice for consumers at prestigious venues and iconic sporting events worldwide, affirmed by its official partnership with the Ryder Cup in 2023.

RECEIVE FUTURE CPG NEWS

VISIT OLD TOM GIN 1821

PING Europe is a CPG Business Partner and member of the Business Club by CPG – Find out more here

As the Official Apparel Supplier of the European Solheim Cup team, PING released details last month of the apparel collection worn by Team Europe at the 2021 Solheim Cup, at Inverness Club, in Toledo, Ohio.

PING has a long-standing and strong relationship with the biennial contest, having played an important part in the competition’s inception in 1990, with the tournament subsequently being named after Karsten and Louise Solheim, PING’s founders.

Expanding their commitment to supporting and growing women’s golf, PING supplied Team Europe with an all-new apparel collection, engineered to help the players look and play their best. The collection utilises PING’s innovative Sensor technology platform with premium performance fabrics, to deliver a collection that will perform in any condition on the course.

Lisa Lovatt, Managing Director of PING Europe, commented: “This is a fantastic opportunity for PING to be the Official Apparel Supplier of Team Europe, in a competition that everyone at PING holds so close to our hearts.

Inspiration for the collection has been drawn from flowers native to Ohio, whilst also placing a modern twist on recognisable European themes. The opening day’s outfit was inspired by the milkweed flower, a native flower to Northwest Ohio, where this bloom has been incorporated with the European Shield of Stars to create a unique print design that pays homage to the tournament’s host state. To coordinate with the star flower patterned skort or short, the players wore royal purple polo shirt that features star detailing, creating a striking head-to-toe look.

The second outfit is based on the vibrant colours of the European flag but given a contemporary twist, through the use of a slightly warmer citrus yellow shade, while still incorporating the traditional blue and gold stars through trims and rivets.

For the final competition day, PING created a stylish, yet impactful design that utilised the classic European blue and white colourway, with metallic gold star highlights, as Team Europe retained their Solheim Cup title.

Commenting on the designs, Global Creative Director for PING, Fiona Reilly, said: “It has been a pleasure to be involved with the designing of Team Europe’s apparel collection for the Solheim Cup. Our goal in creating the 2021 Solheim Cup uniform was to provide Team Europe with unique, clean and contemporary designs that reflect a distinctly European aesthetic. Comfort and freedom of movement is of paramount importance for the athletes and, to ensure this, all of the garments are engineered from our performance Sensor technology fabrics.

Limited availability of the final day’s outfit and waterproof jacket is available to purchase here from today, allowing European fans to sport the same look as their favourite players.

RECEIVE FUTURE CPG NEWS

VISIT PING

Old Tom Gin 1821 is a CPG Business Partner and member of the Business Club by CPG – Find out more here

A new and exclusive luxury gin brand with links to the Ryder Cup has welcomed seasoned professional golfer Gary Evans to the team as a ‘Brand Champion’ and advisor.

Having recently been established as an official Supplier and Licensee of the 44^th Ryder Cup taking place in 2023, Old Tom Gin 1821 is now looking to increase brand awareness and further develop its links within the golf industry, both in the lead up to the iconic event and beyond.

As a professional golfer on the European Tour between 1991 and 2006, followed by the Staysure Tour in 2019, Gary Evans has been a strong and consistent figure within one of the world’s greatest sports for 30 years.

During his career, Gary has developed a wealth of brand knowledge and experience through representing and consulting for a number of premium, luxury and iconic names including Hugo Boss, Leica and Emirates.

In his new ‘Brand Champion’ role, Gary will assist Old Tom Gin 1821 in its efforts to drive credibility and availability across the UK and Ireland by utilising his own personal network and links within the industry.

Founder of Old Tom Gin 1821, Giorgio Cozzolino, explained: “Since its launch, Old Tom Gin 1821 has successfully attained credibility within the high-end drinks market, reinforced by our impending involvement with the 2023 Ryder Cup.

“Welcoming our first advisor to the team is yet another momentous occasion, and we couldn’t be happier to announce this latest sponsorship deal. As well as sharing an obvious passion for the game of golf, Gary’s values align perfectly with those of Old Tom Gin 1821, making him the ideal ‘Brand Champion’.

“Given his long history in tournament golf, he is a great ambassador for the game and boasts a network second to none. We cannot wait to start working together on some exciting initial projects – watch this space.”

Gary Evans added: “I’m both excited and humbled to be chosen to work with Mr Cozzolino and his team in St. Andrews. I’ve been fortunate enough to work with several world-class brands over the past 30 years and now I’m looking forward to using my knowledge and experience to help spread awareness of the Old Tom Gin 1821 brand and to be a part of its journey in golf.”

Created in St. Andrews, Scotland, and distilled using the finest Sicilian ingredients, Old Tom Gin 1821 symbolises a harmonious marriage between Giorgio’s Italian homeland and his love for the Scottish town, where he has resided for the last six years.

The limited-edition embossed cobalt blue decanter-style bottle incorporates the official Ryder Cup branding and a certified bohemian crystal golf ball stopper, while a luxurious, Italian fabric lines the packaging interior.

Having already taken the ‘Super Premium’ drinks category by storm, Old Tom Gin 1821 holds a long term vision to become the gin brand of choice for consumers at prestigious venues and iconic sporting events worldwide, affirmed by its official partnership with the Ryder Cup in 2023.

RECEIVE FUTURE CPG NEWS

VISIT OLD TOM GIN 1821

Saturday at Parcours du Vieux Village in Bromont, Quebec belonged to Riley Fleming.

From the time he made a 15-foot eagle putt on the fifth hole to break the deadlock between himself and Kevin Stinson to take the lead at the PGA Championship of Canada to the time he narrowly fought off water works on the 18th green with the P.D. Ross trophy in hand, the day was his, and the game is seldomly played as beautifully as Fleming played it this week.

FULL SCORES PROVIDED BY GOLF GENIUS CAN BE VIEWED HERE

“This is the biggest win of my career by far,” said Fleming, who pieced together rounds of 66-63-68-66 this week to win by three. “Kevin (Stinson) and I duked it out pretty good on the front, and even on the back, I was only one clear after 13, so it was pretty tight. I’m just so excited.”

While the 63 the pro from Lynx Ridge Golf Club in Calgary, Alberta managed on Thursday may have been his lowest number, Saturday’s 66 was arguably his most impressive.

With a one-stroke lead on the par-5 7th hole, Fleming made one of his only major mistakes of the week – hitting his tee shot right, where it landed out-of-bounds. After striking his provisional perfectly down the center, a long-way down the center, I may add, his demeanour was unflustered, and he only sacrificed a single shot.

The 8th hole at Parcours du Vieux Village presents an interesting option for players. At only 330-yards and slightly downhill, it is certainly drivable, but with a pond guarding the right side, Fleming, who “is almost always against laying up,” as he told us after his round, took iron off the tee early in the week.

This was not the case on Saturday. Fleming, with thoughts of his wayward drive on seven nonexistent, made a winning decision and drove the green. Birdie for Fleming and bogey for Stinson, erasing the blemish from the seventh and adding even more cushion between himself and the PGA of BC pro. He never looked back and didn’t relinquish his lead for the remainder of the tournament.

By the time Fleming strolled down the 18th fairway, he had given himself a three-shot cushion. The scene could have been from a movie, (and the scene of Fleming walking towards the green with the Bromont faithful encircling him was like a tamed-down version of Tiger Woods at the 2018 FedEx Cup Finals) as Fleming buried a 35-footer for birdie and put his hands in the air.

“The crowd was so friendly and supportive, even cheering on the Alberta guy,” said Fleming, who takes home $10,000 with the win. “It was so much fun to see them there and our group hit some really good shots today so hopefully they enjoyed it as much as we did.”

His caddie, Chad Thompson, who booked his own ticket to Montreal to be there for his friend (and, little did he know, a moment of Canadian golf history), gave him a big bear hug.

When asked how it felt to have his name alongside Lee Trevino, Moe Norman and Arnold Palmer on the P.D. Ross trophy, Fleming fought back tears.

“It’s hard to believe… it’s pretty cool to have my name on a trophy with Arnold,” he said.

Kevin Stinson, who made only one bogey all tournament, finished in second place at 22-under, while Sang Hwa Lee rounded out the top three at 20-under. The full leaderboard can be viewed here.

“We have a lot of great people that run events, but you can’t do it without sponsors,” said Fleming. “We’re all really appreciative that they jumped on board and we can’t say enough about how great it is to have their support.”

RECEIVE FUTURE CPG NEWS

VISIT PGA OF CANADA

The 23-year-old shot a closing 2-under par 69 Saturday on Kasumigaseki Country Club’s East Course for a 17-under 267 total and one-stroke victory over silver medalist Mone Inami of Japan and bronze medalist Lydia Ko of New Zealand, who finished second in the 2016 Rio Olympics and is now Olympic women’s golf’s first repeat medalist.

“It feels amazing,” said Korda, who this year has won her first major championship, moved to No. 1 in the world and now claimed Olympic gold. “After today Lydia was playing really well, so was Mone, they both played super well, so we were all bunched up there. It was very stressful, but I kept it together, I fought pretty hard.”

Ko and Inami, who tracked and briefly caught Korda with five birdies on the back nine including four straight, shot 65 before settling their order in a one-hole playoff on No. 18. Inami’s quest for gold in her home country ended with a bogey on the 72nd hole after her hybrid approach shot plugged in the face of the front bunker.

“I lost the opportunity to win the gold because of my failed shot and so forth, but still I’m delighted,” said Inami, who plays on the Japan LPGA Tour. “This Olympic Games was held in Japan and I’m so grateful to win this medal. I’m so happy.”

Ko entered the day with the words of her coach in mind, that “what’s meant to be is going to be. So I think that’s what I tried to think today. The Olympics is a very special occasion where obviously, yes, we play for our country on a daily basis, but we’re really playing for them, this means so much then just for us. So, yeah, it’s a huge honor to be able to bring two medals for New Zealand and to be a two-time medalist in the last couple Games.”

Aditi Ashok of India, who started the day in second place three strokes behind Korda, gutted her way around the course despite a distinct disadvantage in length before finishing one stroke out of the playoff with a 68. She hung in and gave herself a chance by holing a number of crucial putts.

“I think today I didn’t really drive the ball very good and then it’s hard to get birdie putts or hit greens when you’re not in the fairway,” said the 23-year-old, who impressed throughout the week and received congratulatory messages from both the Prime Minister and President of India. “So, yeah, that was definitely the hardest part to make a score today. … I didn’t leave anything out there, I think I gave it my hundred percent, but, yeah, fourth at an Olympics where they give out three medals kind of sucks.”

Ultimately, the day was about Nelly Korda and her perseverance, though it started with an early start due to the threat of weather interference with a tropical storm headed toward the area. As it turned out, the only moisture before the brief rain delay was produced by cooling misting fans strategically placed around the grounds.

Korda’s march to the women’s golf title had been tracking ever since she took the second-round lead Thursday en route to her record-tying 62. She briefly built her lead to four with a birdie on the second hole before her coronation took an unexpected detour with a double-bogey 5 on the 7th hole, the result of two misplayed chip shots. It erased what by then was a two-stroke lead over Ko and Ashok and brought others into the mix, including Emily Kristine Pedersen of Denmark (one back) and Inami (two back), thus issuing a reset for the tournament.

Korda, though, quickly rallied with three straight birdies starting at No. 8, displaying a rare sign of emotion with a mild fist-pump as her birdie fell on No. 9.

“Yeah, I think I was very frustrated with myself and I was not happy at all, so I told myself there’s still a lot of golf to be left and I’m very proud of how I handled the next three holes or even just the entire round after that,” Korda said.

A bogey-5 on No. 11 kept things close, then a weather delay hit at 12:26 p.m. after the final group of Korda, Ko and Ashok hit their tee shots on the 17th hole. But that actually might have been a blessing for Korda.

“Obviously I was nervous,” she said, “but during the rain delay I was just with my sister (Jessica), we were relaxing, kind of chit chatting on the ground, in the clubhouse and I think that really helped a lot just to kind of not think about it and just to kind of take a step away in a sense during that rain delay and have some fun.”

Korda then parred the final two holes to secure the victory. She admitted afterward to feeling a different sort of pressure than she’s used to.

“I mean, you’re playing for something way bigger than just yourself, you’re playing for a gold medal, you’re playing for your country and I mean it’s an amazing achievement, so obviously that was in the back of my head,” Korda said. “So, it’s a different feeling, but I feel like as a golfer or just an athlete you go into every competition or every whatever tournament wanting to win, you have a one goal and that’s to tee it up and hopefully make the last putt on Sunday. So that’s every tournament I feel like is kind of in a sense you stress yourself out the same amount.”

She then added, “I’m going to grow old very fast.”

For now, though, she’s young, mature and an Olympic champion.

News, Notes and Quotes

High praise for Ashok

After her final-round 68 (-3) left her one stroke shy of the playoff for the silver and bronze medals, Aditi Ashok shook off her disappointment and went through the line of multiple media interviews. After satisfying every request, she returned to the clubhouse to start the process of departing Tokyo following a stunning performance that will inspire many in India and around the globe. When she finally got around to checking her phone, she would have seen the following messages.

The Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi tweeted: “Well played @aditigolf! You have shown tremendous skill and resolve during #Tokyo2020. A medal was narrowly missed but you’ve gone farther than any Indian and blazed a trail. Best wishes for your future endeavours.”

The President of India, Ram Nath Kovind also tweeted: “Well played, Aditi Ashok! One more daughter of India makes her mark! You have taken Indian golfing to new heights by today’s historic performance. You have played with immense calm and poise. Congratulations for the impressive display of grit and skills”

Jessica Korda finishes strong with a 64, turns attention to younger sister

While all eyes were on little sister Nelly Korda, Jessica Korda had a strong finish in her first Olympic competition, firing a bogey-free round of 7-under-par 64 to finish 9-under and tied for 15th . She had a disappointing start with rounds of 71-67-73.

Asked about the experience, she said, “I wish it wasn’t so hot, I think I got a little maybe heat issue, especially after the first day. But what a great week to have playing the Olympics and I could only dream of this. I wasn’t even dreaming of this, if we had to qualify last year I wouldn’t have been anywhere near it. So, the fact that we had it this year being, having to qualify for the U.S., being the fourth girl, it’s not easy to make our team. So I’m just really proud of myself for grinding it out and playing consistent enough to be able to climb my way on to the team.”

Jessica, who now was going to turn her attention to Nelly’s final stretch run toward the gold, was asked how her observation of her sister might be different from a regular spectator.

“Her and I kind of talked about it that we’re really calm watching each other, we’re definitely more stressed watching our brother,” she said, referring to their young brother Sebastian, a world-class tennis professional. “For some reason we’re just pretty calm with each other and I think it just kind of know how the other one’s playing and it’s golf, so you don’t really know what could happen coming down the stretch, but I feel like we both have so much fate in each other that we’re just really calm.”

So why is it more nerve-wracking to watch her brother? “Because you don’t know what the other person’s going to do and it’s more like head-to-head and so anything kind of goes, I feel like,” Jessica said. “Whereas this is just a little, you know it’s just a little different. You kind of plot your way around a golf course and you’re a little bit more in control whereas I think in tennis it’s more unknown.”

Returning bronze medalist Shanshan Feng has strong finish, noncommittal about retirement

Shanshan Feng of China, who won the bronze medal in the 2016 Rio Olympics, was slow out of the gate with a 3-over-par 74 but came on strong the final three days with rounds of 64-68-67, finishing in 8th place at 11-under par.

“It was great,” she said of her Olympic return. “I have been waiting for so long for this to come. I thought it was going to happen last year during my birthday, but it was just one year later. And I waited and the good thing was I was still good enough to at least qualify for the team. So here I am and, yeah, I’m already, I already finished the whole tournament.

“I didn’t have a great start, but I felt like the last three days I played like a champion, even though I was like really behind after the first round, but I think I really came back and there’s no regret because this is golf, I mean especially in the Olympics, you have the best girls in the world playing. You just have to have four good days to be able to win a medal. So I think the girls on the top they deserve it. And I’m very happy to see actually like some new faces like some players that are not ranked like really high but they’re all up there competing for the medal, I’m very happy to see that because we need some new faces from new countries. I played with Matilda (Castren) and she’s from Finland, I think she’s an upcoming star. She’s already won a tournament this year and she was great. But other than that, I hope that I can see more Chinese faces getting on the Tour and get on the top of the leaderboard and win tournaments.”

Regarding ongoing speculation of her retirement at age 32, Feng said, “I don’t know. I wouldn’t say I’m retired yet. I would like to play some more on the LPGA, just to give it like a conclusion or what do you call it?”

Send off? Finale? Swan song?

“Okay, something like that,” she said. “But I just don’t feel like I want to do three times quarantine in this second half of the year … So I think that might be a little too much, so I’m going to wait to see how the schedule is like in Asia next year maybe, so hopefully I’ll come back.”

Yuka Saso gets untracked in the final round

U.S. Women’s Open champion Yuka Saso of the Philippines had a strong finish with a 6-under 29 on the back nine with four birdies, including three straight, and an eagle-2 on the short 17th hole, where she hit a 3-wood to 10 feet. That gave her a 6-under-par 65 for the day to finish at 10-under 274.

“I putted really good,” Saso said. “I finished that way. Yeah, it feels good. The first birdie (on the back) came, it was really long putt. I didn’t really expect it to go in but it did. Next hole I hit it close and it was a downhill putt, I putted really good. The par-5 I reached it in two, that was really good, a 3-wood. Then on the last hole as well. I really hit a good second shot and made the putt. Now it’s a finish like that, it felt really good to end that way. I hoped I would play that well the first three days.”

Another 29 recorded by Kelly Tan on the back nine

While the drama was unfolding atop the leadership early in the day, Kelly Tan of Malaysia, was quietly putting together her own 29 on the back nine – where she started her round – with six birdies, including five on the last six holes. She cooled off on her final nine, but still finished at 7-under 64. It was a satisfying finish after entering the day five over par with rounds of 73-73-72.

“Yeah, honestly I felt the same every day, I felt that I could do that, it’s just that today the score reflected it and it’s really great to see,” Tan said. “Deep down I felt that I was playing really well, just that the first two days it didn’t show on my card but, yeah, it felt great to be able to just pull it off like that.

“To be able to shoot 7-under at the Olympics on the final round I think that’s something that I’ll never forget,” she added. “Shooting 29 on the back nine, that’s something I haven’t done in my career, so that’s a positive for me as well. Yeah, I know I didn’t get a medal, but I know that I fought hard and I played hard for my country and I’m really proud of the way I did and I bettered my position from the last Olympics and that’s all that matters, so it’s great to see those improvements.”

Green closes in 30 after early struggle

Hannah Green began the day in the penultimate group, five strokes back of Nelly Korda’s lead with the goal of winning a gold medal, but that possibility quickly faded after a 2-over 38 on the front nine. However, the Aussie never gave up, notching four birdies and an eagle at the par-5 14th before the horn sounded suspending play while she was on 17 green. Forty-nine minutes later, she returned to make par before dropping a shot at the 72nd hole, eventually finishing tied for fifth, three strokes out of the playoff for bronze.

“I think to be even in contention come the last couple holes…really proud of myself for how I hung in there and didn’t get too down on myself and tried to think of the bigger picture I guess and being so lucky that we even have an Olympics to compete in,” said a reflective Green.

“I felt like with nine holes to go that I was nowhere near it so when I made the putt on 10 I think it was really important for my confidence,” said Green. “I think the eagle putt on 14 really was when like oh, okay, maybe I am in contention. So super happy to have birdied 15 and 16, but I felt like I made almost a bogey on 17 not birdieing that hole.”

Green had such good momentum and admitted the delay hurt her chances of a medal, but she was happy officials were able to allow the players to complete 72 holes.

“It was hard to pump myself back up again,” she said about returning after the weather delay. “I felt like I was on Cloud 9 for those five holes so, yeah, it was definitely hard to go back and rest and then come back out again.”

Green has been bitten by the Olympic bug and will be striving to make it to Paris in 2024.

“I didn’t really think too much of it but I guess it is only a few years away, so hopefully I can keep continuing to play well,” she said.

Tavatanakit saves best for last

Following rounds of 71-71-69 Thailand’s Patty Tavatanakit saved her best for last with a final-round 68, eventually finishing in a tie for 23rd at 5-under par. She did it with a PGA TOUR winner, who is also her instructor, on the bag.

Grant Waite won the Kemper Open in 1993. He also famously finished second to Tiger Woods at the 2000 Canadian Open when Woods hit a spectacular fairway bunker shot over water onto the green on the 72nd hole to secure the win.

“Grant has been a huge part of my success so far this year just because he put my game in a good place and mentality too in the sense that I look at the course differently,” said Tavatanakit. “I approach things differently on the course, just the way I look at things or just in a better perspective.”

Tavatanakit has worked with Waite for a year now and feels like she still has a lot of work to improve.

“My game is trending upwards,” she said.

FIND OUT MORE AT IGFGOLF.ORG

Images courtesy of IGF Golf (Photo by Stan Badz/PGA TOUR/IGF)

It’s the difference between the two 23-year-olds, leader Korda at 15-under par 198 and second-place Ashok at 12-under 201, that makes this so fascinating. On paper, they arrived there with similar-looking rounds of 69 and 68, respectively. But when they say looks can be deceiving, it couldn’t be truer than in the comparison between the two heading into Saturday’s final-round chase for Olympic gold … and silver, and bronze.

Next in line are four players at 10-under: 2016 silver medalist Lydia Ko of New Zealand (66), Japan hopeful Mone Inami (68), Hannah Green of Australia (67) and Emily Kristine Pedersen of Denmark (70).

Statistically speaking, it doesn’t seem like a fair fight between the two leaders. While world No. 1 Korda is bombing drives and hitting short irons throughout the East Course, Ashok is dinking drives and relying on hybrids to reach a number of holes, with at least five par-4s typically measuring over 400 yards. Korda is averaging a full 44 yards further than Ashok, who is second-to-last in the field with a 233-yard average.

And yet, she makes it work with a keen understanding of her limitations and strengths. She still hit 17 of 18 greens, four more than Korda in round three. And then there’s her putting, the very thing she practiced endlessly when first introduced to the game.

“She’s a really solid putter,” said Korda after they played together. “Like she’s a sneaky player. She putts incredibly well. She rolls it really nicely and there’s this kind of like confidence she has on the putting green. She has some kind of swag on the putting green and she owns it.”

That said, Ashok said she’s actually about 15 yards shorter than normal at the moment and revealed for the first time that she had COVID in May and June.

“I do think it took a little bit of strength out of me. I was never this short. I was always short but not like 50 behind Nelly and 50 behind Nanna,” Ashok said, referring to Nanna Koerstz Madsen, the third Friday’s final grouping.

Which makes her performance this week even more remarkable.

Entering the day tied for second with the two Danes, Ashok spent most of the day as the primary suitor to Korda’s lead, supported by her mother who is caddying in place of her usual looper, her father.

“She’s doing great,” Ashok said. “It’s funny, this is the best I’ve played all year.” Asked if her dad is now out of a job, she said, “No, my dad’s good,” she said. “He’s enjoying watching me on TV and he enjoys listening to Bones (Jim Mackay) commentate on my game. It’s funny because he never gets to see me play on TV, he’s always caddying. So that’s been cool. My mom has obviously done a great job this week.”

Ashok was caught and briefly passed by Imani, but a bogey by Imani on No. 18 and birdie by Ashok on 17 flipped the leaderboard in Ashok’s favor.

After the disappointment of not medaling in the men’s competition after Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama entered the final round one stroke behind eventual gold medalist Xander Schauffele of the USA, the host country’s main medal hope rests with Inami. “I had a lot of fun today,” she said. “The only thing was on the final hole I misread the putt which caused a bogey. But otherwise, I had a really good day.”

All this was happening ahead of Korda, who never lost her lead, though she didn’t have nearly the day she did on Thursday when she tied the women’s Olympic record of 62 and flirted with a 59 before making double bogey on the final hole.

On Friday, she made three early birdies to open a brief five-stroke lead, but after a bogey-6 on No. 8, she parred the remaining holes.

“It was very upsetting that I bogeyed a par-5, there’s something inside of me when I bogey a par-5 that I just get so frustrated about because I shouldn’t be doing that,” Korda said. “I kept telling myself that there’s more opportunities ahead.”

But they never came. “I didn’t have a really good back nine, I was kind of spraying it all over the place, I had some testy par putts, but made all pars and I fought really hard to stay in it really or ahead of it,” she added. “I made some mistakes, but it wasn’t really easy out there with the positions I was in.”

Korda was obviously hoping to further distance herself from the field, saying, “I feel like that’s kind of the goal going into every round is to play the best I possibly can and maybe get a comfortable lead. But that’s the thing about golf, once you get a little too comfortable it humbles you when you start making mistakes and you get ahead of yourself. So, yeah, I would have loved to have had — I mean obviously no one’s ever going to complain about a bigger lead going into a final round, but I’m happy with where I’m at.”

But she still has the lead, and the confidence heading into Saturday’s final round, which gets a nice early start at 6:30 a.m. on the 1st and 10th tees to try to beat the predicted heavy rains from a tropical storm headed toward Japan.

But Korda says she won’t play with an additional sense of more urgency.

“No. My mindset is 72 holes so I’m sticking to that,” she said. “I’m trying to give myself opportunities and make them, that’s all. I’m trying to stay as present as possible and see how it goes.”

Other Notes/Quotes

Round of the day

Ecuador’s Daniela Darquea fired a bogey-free 6-under 65 for the low round on Friday.

Think about that for a moment – a 26-year-old from Ecuador, where the capital city of Quito has only eight golf courses, just outplayed 59 of the best women golfers on the planet! That’s the Olympics for you, making moments, inspiring others and building memories.

Darquea began the third round in relative obscurity, teeing off from the 10th tee tied for 46th position. By the end of the day, she sat tied for 25th position at 3-under and seven shots back of the current bronze medal score of 10-under.

Her round included four birdies and an eagle at No. 6 – the second day in a row that she posted an eagle 2 at the drivable par-4 hole.

The LPGA Tour member has experience with medals. She represented Ecuador at the 2015 Pan American Games, the 2016 Espirito Santo Trophy and the 2017 Bolivarian Games, winning silvers in the Individual and Mixed Team competitions at the 2017 Bolivarian Games.

In Ecuador, a country of almost 18 million people, golf is becoming increasingly popular, and Darquea is certainly doing her part to assist that growth.

Silver and bronze medalists from 2016 have worked their way into medal consideration

After playing together the first two rounds, the three returning women’s golf medalists from Rio 2016 were pretty much bunched together, well behind leader Nelly Korda entering Friday’s third round. Gold medalist Inbee Park of Korea was 10 back, bronze medalist Shanshan Feng of China nine back and silver medalist Lydia Ko of New Zealand eight back.

Ko made the biggest move on Friday, shooting a bogey-free 66 with five birdies to finish in a tie for third at 10-under 203, five behind leader Nelly Korda of the USA. Feng was continuing her rally from Thursday’s 64 on her birthday with an eagle-2 and two birdies, but then double-bogeyed the par-4 11th. A final birdie-3 on No. 17 gave her a 68 and 7-under total of 206. Park, meanwhile, couldn’t get untracked, finished 71—210.

Feng and Ko, at least, built some momentum on Thursday with Feng shooting 7-under 64 on her birthday and Ko 67. Park finished with a par 71.

“They moved the tee up again own that par four so it became a short par-4 and I just hit like a little controlled driver and then I hit it to three feet, I believe,” Feng said of the eagle on No. 6. “And that was my actually my first eagle of the year. I made a lot of birdies but that’s the first eagle. So I saved it for the best tournament.

“This is the Olympics,” Feng added, “like fourth or fifth it doesn’t matter. Like if it’s not top 3, it’s no difference. And I believe that we have the best girls here in the world so everybody’s going to try to go low tomorrow and somebody will. So hopefully that will be me.”

Ko, meanwhile, could only muster one birdie on the front, but then made four on the back.

“I was just so upset at myself,” Ko said of Thursday’s round of 67 which ended with two bogeys, “because normally I feel like my wedges are some of the most like stronger part of my game and I hadn’t hit a single wedge within 30 feet all day yesterday. At one point I got to realize it’s going too far or too short or something, but I just wasn’t getting a sense of it. And I hit such a great drive down the 18th and I only had like 105 to the pin and I was telling people, you have a 30 feet radius with a gap wedge and I missed that 30 feet, I was like so upset. And, yes, I missed like two, 3-footers, but at the same time trying to 2-putt 60-footers, that’s me putting myself in that position is where that is the flaw and not the putting itself.

“I think if I keep putting myself in 60-footer range I’m going to stress out the bits that I need to do to clean up,” she continued. “So I was really upset at my wedge game and I was hoping that like with the way I was feeling frustrated I didn’t want that to affect the way I went into today. Luckily, I had a pretty smooth start, but then I missed a 3-footer on 2 and I was like, ‘Not again.’ But I think I just stayed patient and there’s so much golf ahead of me. So I just tried to play my heart out and I played the back nine really well today, which was the aspect that I kind of struggled over the last couple days. So definitely nice to I know if issue on that. Hopefully good momentum into the 18 holes we get to play tomorrow.”

Brooke Henderson’s sister holding up despite the heat

Brittany Henderson is sister Brooke’s regular caddie, and is holding up well despite the continued hot conditions that already have sidelined a couple caddies and undoubtedly challenged every one of them. But Brooke said she’s holding up well.

“She’s been amazing,” said Brooke, a returning Olympian for Canada, said following Friday’s round of par 71. “She hasn’t even complained. So, she’s been doing really well. I know not all caddies can say that. I’m pretty proud of her for handling it so well and looking after me after I haven’t been playing very well either, she’s taking care of the both of us.”

Another week, another Irish pairing

Last week in the men’s Olympic competition, Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry played their way into the same third-round group. It happened again in the women’s competition, with Ireland’s Stephanie Meadow and Leona Maguire playing together in Friday’s third round.

McIlroy shot 67 and Lowry 68, with McIlroy playing his way into the seven-way playoff for bronze and Lowry finishing T22. Meadow and Maguire entered the day with a tougher task ahead for medal contention nine strokes behind leader Nelly Korda of the USA.

Meadow gained one stroke on Korda with a 68 and is 7-under for the tournament, which is still well within range of medal contention. Maguire has a bit tougher task after a 70, leaving her at 5-under.

Okay with a medal?

After shooting a 1-under 70 and working her way into a four-way tie for third at 10-under through 54 holes, Denmark’s Emily Kristine Pedersen was asked if she would be okay with sharing a bronze medal if the final round was not played due to inclement weather.

“I mean if I don’t get the chance…,” she said before taking a little time to ponder the question. “I would love to play for gold, but if I don’t get the chance at least I have some kind of a medal now, but I think we’ll play, I hope we’ll play.”

FIND OUT MORE AT IGFGOLF.ORG

Images courtesy of IGF Golf (Photo by Stan Badz/PGA TOUR/IGF)

What we do know is that world No. 1 Nelly Korda of the USA totally destroyed the immaculate, susceptible Kasumigaseki Country Club East Course through 17 holes on Thursday and was staring at the magical women’s 59 that only IGF President Annika Sorenstam has recorded in prominent professional competition, that back in 2001. Although Korda ultimately double-bogeyed the final hole, she still finished the day with a record-tying 62, 9-under par, to open a 4-stroke lead at the midway point of the chase for gold. Or so we hope.

The potential wrench is another Pacific storm that could bring torrential rain and wind to the area by Saturday’s scheduled final round, thus ravaging the tournament’s schedule … even to the extreme possibility of cutting to 54 holes.

That said, the intent is to continue as planned and monitor the storm before making a final decision. Meantime, there have been no cooling showers as the heat index reached a week-high of 43C/109F. With more of the same expected on Friday, the field will be starting on both the 1st and 10th tees.

For now, though, it’s all about the 23-year-old Korda, who stands at 67-62—129, 13 under par. Remarkably, she opened with four straight pars before (heat reference) torching the East Course front nine with a birdie-eagle-birdie-birdie-birdie stretch to make the turn in 30. Then, after two more pars to start the back nine, she birdied five of the next six holes before coming to the par-4 18th.

The trouble began with a tee shot into the right rough which forced her to punch out to the fairway. But her approach fell just short of the green in a bunker. “I just got a little too cute with that pitch shot,” said Korda, who then blasted out and two-putted for the 6.

Afterward, she said she wasn’t thinking about the possibility of breaking 60, more so that “I was like, oh, cool, I have a pretty good lead going into 18. But unfortunate that double on 18, but that’s golf and that’s just how it goes sometimes.

“I had a really good stretch of holes,” she continued. “I think I was like 4-under or 5-under through four holes at one point on the back. Or on the front. The heat’s getting to me. I just stayed really solid today. On the front I was definitely hitting it better and on the back, I wasn’t hitting it as well but making the longer putts.”

It still tied the women’s Olympic record of 62 set by Russian Maria Verchenova at the 2016 Rio Games, and opened the four-stroke lead over three players: Nanna Koerstz Madsen of Denmark (69-64), Aditi Ashok of India (67-66) and Madsen’s teammate, Emily Kristine Pedersen (70-63). Madsen and Ashok were in the day’s first group and Pedersen teed off two groups later. Another stroke back is first-round leader Madelene Sagstrom of Sweden (66-68).

The 26-year-old Madsen shot up the leaderboard first with a six-hole stretch of six under par with four birdies and an eagle-3 on No. 8. “I had a good run on the front nine. Made three birdies and an eagle in a row,” she said. “So I got to 6-under through 8. I was playing pretty good. Then on the back nine I was still playing all right, I just didn’t — I had some good chances I didn’t make but I was still happy with the back nine.”

Perhaps the key to Madsen’s round was that she didn’t have to rely on the sour taste of lemon wedges that are tucked in her golf bag. She’s relied on the unusual regime of biting a lemon to check her emotions and notoriously quick temper when she senses things are beginning to unravel internally. But that certainly wasn’t the case on Thursday, when her round was more like refreshing lemonade.

With that early scoring streak, she caught and passed Sagstrom and remained at or near the top for the rest of the day, which she ended with a 4-foot birdie putt on No. 18.

Playing alongside her was Ashok, who at 18 was the youngest golfer at the 2016 Rio Olympics. Now a mature and battle-tested 23-year-old, she continued her outstanding play with a steady, bogey-free round with five birdies, including on the final two holes. The one on No. 18 matched Madsen’s own, though Ashok’s barely carried the water before rolling to six feet.

“The last three holes I had a couple shots that were just a good number for me and I hadn’t really had any short approaches all day, maybe just a couple,” Ashok said. “So, yeah it was good to have the same number like two times and hit a couple of good putts as well.”

Regarding her 7-iron approach to No. 18, she said, “I hit it like a hair thin than I wanted to, but yeah, according to the number it should have flown and it did so it’s all good.”

Ashok steadily played her own game, which is shorter and has required hitting hybrids into a number of greens. Still, through two days, she has made 10 birdies and just one bogey to close the first round. “I didn’t hit as many as yesterday, but still probably hit five or six hybrids,” she said.

Pedersen’s own outstanding round of 8 under par featured eight birdies, an eagle-2 and two bogeys. “I was wedging it really well today, which gave me a lot of chances for birdie,” she said. “Then I had a really hot putter today and that’s kind of what made the score, I feel like.” The eagle, though, came from a 3-wood tee shot to eight feet on the shortened 248-yard 6th hole.

It was the same club that Korda used for her eagle on the same hole, which came on a 25-foot putt. And it proved to be the catalyst to a remarkable day. Though No. 18 cost her the six-stroke lead she had built, she is ready for whatever comes next.

“I’m going to have the mindset that it’s going to be a 72-hole tournament and whatever happens, happens,” Korda said.

Other Notes/Quotes

Heat remained a primary area of concern

Due to the continued extreme conditions, with the heat index expected to reach 43C/109F, mitigation measures were implemented, including umbrellas being made available to all players and caddies on the 1st tee, roving carts with ice and cooling towels, and volunteers with umbrellas on each tee.

The heat cost two premier players their caddies, World No. 10 Yuka Saso of the Philippines and World No. 12 American Lexi Thompson. Saso had a new caddie in place by the time she teed off for the first round, but Thompson had to find a replacement for Thursday’s second round after her regular caddie, Jack Fulghum, had to drop out with two holes to go on Wednesday.

She was able to get someone with experience in Drew Hinesley, who was in Tokyo working with NBC. Hinesley had previously caddied on the PGA TOUR for then-amateur Bryson DeChambeau at the 2016 Masters Tournament.

Field’s only two lefties paired together

It’s something you don’t see every day, two lefties playing in same group. But that was the case during the first two rounds of the Olympic women’s golf tournament with the only two lefthanders in the field, Kim Metraux of Switzerland and India’s Diksha Dagar, the last player to get in the field.

On Thursday, Metreaux brought further attention to the unique pairing when she holed her second shot of the day for an eagle-2 at the opening hole. The righty who rounded out the group was Tonje Daffinrud of Norway, who sits 60th at 12-over through 36 holes.

Parental advice at two different Olympics

As an 18-year-old Aditi Ashok took her dad, Ashok Gudlamani, to the 2016 Rio Olympics, where she made history as the youngest player in either the men’s or women’s competition and the only representative from India in the women’s field. It wasn’t a vacation for her dad. He caddied for his daughter en route to a tie for 41st and experience the duo will never forget. Five years later she has her mom, Maheshwari, on the bag in Tokyo.

“Last time, I had my dad on the bag, so that experience was just so incredible,” Ashok said. “I was like, I want to have my mom next time. I made good on that promise.”

It’s working out well for the now 23-year-old, who was asked about the difference between the caddie skills of her mom and her dad.

“I think when my dad’s there he knows my game a lot more, probably sometimes more than I know myself, so I always feel compelled to rely on him sometimes,” she said. “Whereas this week I know my mom’s there, I can ask her anything, but in terms of like golf advice she may not be able to help me as much as my dad. So I’m just, I guess I’m committing to my decisions more and being more decisive on my own.”

Dynamic Danes in medal contention

The Danish duo of Nanna Koerstz Madsen and Emily Kristine Pedersen shone brightly in Thursday’s second round with Madsen’s 7-under 64 and Pedersen’s 8-under 63 placing the pair in medal contention, tied for second at 9-under, four strokes back of Nelly Korda from the United States.

“Well I had a good run on the front nine,” said Madsen, who made four birdies and an eagle in her first eight holes. “Then on the back nine I was still playing all right, I had some good chances I didn’t make but I was still happy with the back nine.”

Two groups later, Pedersen hit a lot of wedges close and rode a hot putter to join her fellow Dane near the top of the leaderboard.

“I think it’s a really good showcase of golf for Denmark and for women’s golf in Denmark and super happy that we’re both up there,” said Pedersen. “I think we’re producing a lot of really, really good and talented players, when you think about how small we are and how many are on Tour and winning. So I think Danish golf is growing and I think that’s really important.”

Pedersen and Madsen played junior golf together at the same golf club and their families live 500 meters from each other. They grew up together and kind of followed each other all the way.

“We kind of always have been pushing each other, competing and I think that’s one of the reasons we’re both so good and it’s been a good environment to grow up in, having someone to push you a lot,” said Pedersen.

The pair are staying together this week and plan to continue the routine they’ve had off the course, which includes stretching, treatment and eating Chinese food.

Why not Japanese food?

“We have a Chinese restaurant in the hotel,” said Pedersen with a smile.

Olympic ace is highlight for Haddioui

Morocco’s Maha Haddioui, playing in her second Olympic Golf Competition having represented her country in Rio in 2016, made a hole-in-one with a 7-iron at the 163-yard 7th hole, the first ace at the Tokyo Olympics and the fourth in women’s Olympic golf since its return in 2016.

‘Amazing’ was how Haddioui described her first ace in any tournament.

“I’m really excited it happened here,” she said. “I’m always complaining I never got a hole-in-one yet. Always so close. But having it this week, in the Olympics, representing Morocco, I couldn’t ask for better.”

Haddioui’s scorecard included the rare cycle of a 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 among her 18 holes on Thursday.

All four women’s Olympic aces have come from players representing different countries – Lydia Ko (NZL), Xiyu Lin (CHN), Maria Verchenova (RUS) and Haddioui (MAR).

Aussie Green hot and cold in search for gold (or silver or bronze)

Following an even-par opening-round 71, Australia’s Hannah Green notched eight birdies and two bogeys en route to a second-round 6-under 65 to sit 6-under and seven strokes back of leader America’s Nelly Korda, but just three strokes back from a current medal position.

“I felt like yesterday was just a matter of getting the rust off,” said Green. “Today I gave myself a lot more opportunities for birdie and managed to roll a couple really important putts in and it kind of just gave me some motivation and some confidence with the putter. So I did exactly what I wanted and hopefully I can keep doing that for the next couple rounds.”

With inclement weather forecast for the weekend and a possibility of the women’s competition being reduced from 72 holes to 54 holes, Green was eyeing her position on the leaderboard when she completed her round early in the day.

“I would like two more days to get back up there,” said Green. “I feel like now that I’ve had a good round I can see what’s capable and there’s no reason why I can’t keep climbing. I really hope that this weather stays away and lets us have a 72-hole tournament.”

Green, a native of Perth where temperatures regularly climb into triple digits (F) during the summer, utilized an ice vest that her team management organized for her to stay cool.

“I pretty much used it every opportunity that I got,” she said. “It wasn’t so bad the first nine holes, the last nine was definitely starting to get warm, but today I have to make sure I’m doing the right thing, but I also have to think about the next couple days. So very grateful for the team running around everywhere and looking after me and my caddie.”

Feng celebrates 32 with 64

China’s Shanshan Feng, the bronze medallist in Rio 2016, celebrated her 32nd birthday in style when she fired a flawless 7-under 64 to haul herself back into medal contention on Thursday. After a disappointing 74 on the first day, Feng sank seven birdies against no bogeys to move up to tied 11th place on 4-under 138.

Feng knows she has her work cut out if she hopes to get back on the podium in Tokyo.

“It was pretty good. My ball striking was much better, so I gave myself a lot of birdie chances and I made most of them. So 7-under I think, yes, I’m still behind, but at least I think it’s halfway there,” said Feng.

FIND OUT MORE AT IGFGOLF.ORG

Images courtesy of IGF Golf (Photo by Stan Badz/PGA TOUR/IGF)

M.A.Meyer & Söhne will provide prizes for the Champion and Professionals will play for prize money of €25,000.

The Championship also forms part of ‘The Open Series’ alongside the Czech PGA Stroke Play Championship and PGA of Slovakia Penati Slovak Open: https://cp.golf/3lzpcPk (information below).

Strokeplay event over 3 x 18 holes for professionals and amateurs, women and men.

• 05.09.  – Pro-AM (or practice round possible from 16:30)
• 06.09. – 18 holes strokeplay
• 07.09. – 18 holes strokeplay (cut after 36 holes)
• 08.09. – 18 holes stroke play (final round)

Ausschreibung: Deutsch
Entries: English

Please make room reservations directly at the GC Weitra on +43 (0) 2856/2058.

Registration for the Championship 2021.

The PGA of Austria and the GC Weitra are looking forward to seeing you there .

———————————

The Open Series

Details of each of the tournaments are listed below, alongside details on how to enter each.

10-12 July 21 Czech PGA Stroke Play Championship – Austerliz Golf Resort, CZ

[For entries, contact Lukas Tintera pga@pga.cz]

06-08 September 21 PGA Championship of Austria – Golf Club Weitra – AT

[Entries: https://cp.golf/3imk9jk]

12–14 September 21 Penati Slovak Open – Penati Golf Resort – SK

[Entries: https://forms.gle/FQtKUtrtzHSnXT7M6]

RECEIVE FUTURE CPG NEWS

With a membership of 42 Member Countries across multiple continents, the Confederation of Professional Golf [CPG] recognises the importance of togetherness and collaboration.

The PGAs of Austria, Czech Republic and Slovakia – three of those 42 Member Countries – have provided a perfect example of this principle with a recent announcement that they will unite through a new, joint-event project.

The ‘PGA Open Series’ will combine three tournaments, one played in each of the three countries, to create a fantastic new mini-series for PGA Professionals to compete and travel cross-country in a bid to be crowned the overall champion.

With each of the three PGAs contributing further money to the overall prize fund, there is an added bonus for each player to compete in all three events and will provide a significant twist to each of the Member Countries’ respective, burgeoning tournament calendars.

Details of each of the tournaments are listed below, alongside details on how to enter each.

The Open Series

10-12 July 21 Czech PGA Stroke Play Championship – Austerliz Golf Resort, CZ

[For entries, contact Lukas Tintera pga@pga.cz]

06-08 September 21 PGA Championship of Austria – Golf Club Weitra – AT

[Entries: https://cp.golf/3imk9jk]

12–14 September 21 Penati Slovak Open – Penati Golf Resort – SK

[Entries: https://forms.gle/FQtKUtrtzHSnXT7M6]

RECEIVE FUTURE CPG NEWS

Leader Madelene Sagstrom certainly didn’t experience the 41C/105.8F afternoon heat index in her home country of Sweden, but she did attend Louisiana State University, now lives in Orlando, Florida, and has played in even worse furnace-like conditions in Thailand and Singapore.

That said …

“I’m not going to lie, it’s very hot,” Sagstrom said after shooting 5-under-par 66 to take a one-stroke lead over world No. 1 Nelly Korda of the USA and Aditi Ashok of India. “But it’s manageable. I know I mean most of us have been in Asia, played a lot of golf over here so we know kind of what to do, you drink a lot of water you have cooling towels, umbrellas, kind of just maintaining the energy and not go crazy. I think at this point it’s harder for the caddies than it is for the players, so it’s more about making sure they’re staying upright.”

Which, in fact, has been a problem.

On Tuesday, U.S. Women’s Open champion Yuka Saso had to replace her caddie due to the heat. And today, American Lexi Thompson lost her regular caddie, Jack Fughum, on the 15th hole and had team manager Donna Wilkins step in to finish the round. “I was so worried about him and, I mean, it’s so hot out there,” Thompson said after a difficult round of 73. “I’m from Florida and I’m still not used to that bad of heat. I just hope that he’s okay and he gets the hydration he needs, the nutrients tonight to go into the next few days. If not, I’ll figure something else out. I just want him to be healthy.”

Korda is another Floridian who is used to hot playing conditions, but after her round, she admitted to being light-headed a couple of times when teeing up her ball. “I think the mental aspect of it is probably the hardest just because you have to keep yourself hydrated and you kind of lose it a little out there,” she said. “But I kept myself in it, made sure I drank a lot of electrolytes, too.”

So Wednesday, in part, became a matter of survival, with Sagstrom coming away as the leader after a clean five-birdie, bogey-free round.

“I would say mostly my short game was kind of my savior,” she said. “I was striking the ball all right but not great, so having a strong short game and just giving myself the chances, like solid par chances was kind of the key of my round today.”

Sagstrom then echoed a consistent Olympic golf theme by praising the East Course and its condition. “This course is beautiful,” she said. “The condition of it has been perfect from the start. I like long golf courses in general and it fits my game really well, so very excited with the layout, it suits my eye and the greens are rolling phenomenal which works with my putting too. So, it’s phenomenal.”

Korda, meanwhile, after parring the first hole, went bogey-birdie-bogey before birdieing three of the next four holes, then played consistently on the back with two more birdies. “I’m hoping I’m in total control,” she said. “I kind of sprayed some shots out to the right on my last two holes with my irons, but you’re going to have that, you’re going to lose a little bit of concentration, but I’m going to go to the range after, after I cool off inside for a bit and then try and work on it.”

After Korda finished, Ashok came in with a chance to finish at 5-under by herself but bogeyed the final hole.

“I think I played better than I expected today because I had a lot of hybrids into the greens, so I didn’t really expect to be like 5-under through 17,” said Ashok, a returning Olympian who was the youngest golfer five years ago in Rio at age 18. “But, yeah, I kind of holed some putts and holed important par putts as well which kept the momentum. So, yeah, it was a good day.”

Another stroke back at 3-under 68 are Matilda Castren of Finland, Jin Young Ko of Korea and Carlota Ciganda of Spain. They are followed by nine players at 69, including returning gold medalist Inbee Park and teammate Sei Young Kim of Korea.

There’s also Wei-Ling Hsu of Chinese Taipei, who settled at 69 after taking the early lead with birdies on five of the first six holes … perhaps inspired by the outstanding performance of compatriot C.T. Pan on Sunday. She helped celebrate after Pan recovered from an opening 74, shot a closing 63 to make a seven-way playoff for the bronze, then emerged as the last man standing against the likes of Japan’s national golf hero Hideki Matsuyama, Ireland’s Rory McIlroy and American Collin Morikawa, who was the last to fall. As the world’s 208th-ranked player at the time, Pan outlasted these three players who have combined for seven major championship titles, including two this year. Once Pan beat Morikawa with a par at the 18th hole, Hsu was among several who rushed the green and doused Pan with water.

“That was amazing, what C.T. did,” Hsu said. “I was practicing here on Thursday and I think he shot like 3-over (on Thursday) and he is just amazing. He kept making birdies and in the playoff with seven people, he played another four holes. I was able to be in there to watch him and recognize that someone from Chinese Taipei was able make a bronze medal in front of me. I was able to watch the ceremony and I was tearing in my eyes. I was so touched. It was just incredible. It’s so touching every time someone wins a medal which is an inspiration to me.”

Now the field returns to Kasumigaseki Thursday for another day of sweltering heat, another day of hydration, electrolytes and survival, and a clear vision of what’s at stake.

Other Notes/Quotes

Japan’s women hope to deliver medals for their home country

The performance of Japanese star Hideki Matsuyama was inspiring, if not disappointing. Weighted by the combination of the golf-crazed host nation and his drained endurance due to a recent bout with COVID-19, Matsuyama hung near the top of the leaderboard and battled his way into a 7-way playoff for bronze, only to fall short of the bronze medal. He had chances to change the narrative throughout Sunday despite his low stamina, but missed several makeable putts down the stretch.

Nonetheless, two of his biggest supporters, Team Japan’s Nasa Hataoka and Mone Inami, were inspired by his performance, with Hataoka being onsite to follow him over the weekend at Kasumigaseki Country Club. They now hope to use that to spur them on when the women’s tournament begins Wednesday at Kasumigaseki Country Club. “It was extremely inspiring to watch him trying to go get the medal until the last second,” Hataoka said. “So, we will try to win the medal on the girls’ side.”

Both got off to a solid enough start Wednesday by shooting 1-under-par 70.

Inami arrived late Sunday and had a brief chat with Matsuyama about the course conditions and differences on the East Course since the last time she played it. “He also mentioned that because he couldn’t win the medal on the guys’ side, he sent me a good luck message on the girls’ side,” said Inami, who had the honor of opening the women’s competition Wednesday with the first tee shot.

Both certainly have the pedigree to challenge this week, and not just because of their familiarity with the East Course.

Hataoka, No. 11 in the world, is coming off a victory at the Marathon LPGA Classic, her first win on the LPGA in two years, coming several weeks after nearly winning the U.S. Women’s Open before losing in a playoff to Yuka Saso of the Phillipines. Inami, meanwhile, has five victories and seven other top-10s this year on the Japan LPGA.

Both say they were inspired by Matsuyama’s gutsy performance for their home country.

“I watched a lot of the Japanese athletes win the gold medals and it’s been very inspiring,” Hataoka said. “I hope we can do the same in the women’s golf.”

“I’m not really feeling the pressure,” Inami said, “but I’m more focused on having fun and hopefully I can deliver my best performance and play well out here.”

Don’t mess with Mexico …

Carlos Ortiz of Mexico said he had a blast staying in the Olympic Village last week, and part of the unique experience was staying with several Mexican boxers and their coaches. Now that it’s the women’s turn at Kasumigaseki Country Club, Olympians Gaby Lopez and Maria Fassi were asked about their rooming situation in the Village. The exchange went thusly:

“Yeah, we got weightlifters and boxers, too,” Fassi said.

“We got boxers,” Lopez emphasized.

“And a couple girls from rowing, I think,” Fassi continued. “So we’re protected as well.”

“Yeah, we’re the little girls,” Lopez added.

“Yeah, don’t mess with the Mexican team this week,” Fassi warned with a laugh.

Korda sisters felt the nerves as Xander Schauffele closed out his golden victory

The Korda sisters took time to follow fellow USA Olympian Xander Schauffele for the final holes of his gold medal performance Sunday. And it was nervous for both of them, particularly when he had to lay up from the rough on the final hole before saving par with a brilliant wedge shot to four feet.

“Definitely for me I was nervous on 18 when he pushed his tee shot out to the right and had to lay up,” said world No. 1 Nelly Korda. “But what a clutch pitch shot into 18 and making that putt. Especially with how well the guy in second played,” referring to Slovakian representative Rory Sabbatini, who put pressure on Schauffele with an Olympic record 10-under-par 61.

“Yeah, my Whoop registered an activity in like the last hole,” added Jessica Korda, referring to an elevated heart rate. “So I think we’re really feeling it for him and like Nelly says, it was just so clutch coming down the stretch and that last hole and with the putt and everything that it’s bigger than us and, than golf. So, it was just really cool.”

Nelly got off to a strong start with a 67 and tie for second, while Jessica shot par 71.

A very special moment in an outstanding career

Shanshan Feng of China has compiled more than 20 victories over the past decade, including one major championship. But the third place finish she earned five years ago in the Rio Olympics remains a favorite moment in her outstanding career.

And while other trophies are on display in her home, the bronze medal is tucked away in a safe, removed upon special request from visitors.

“Because it’s small enough, it’s staying in a safe itself,” she said. “It’s not put with the other trophies. When I have friends coming over, if they want to take a look at it, yes, I would show them the medal.”

Just how special is it?

“Out of all of my achievements, I would say a medal at the Olympics is very special because even though I have been a major winner … we have five majors every year, we have in four years 20 chances to win a major. So, I would say it’s harder, much harder to get a medal at the Olympics. So it was, of course, my one of what do you call that? I mean, like the most important or memorized moment in my career, I would say that.”

Feng struggled Wednesday in her return, shooting 3-over 74.

And then there was silver medalist Lydia Ko …

Unlike Feng, 2016 silver medalist Lydia Ko actually isn’t sure where her medal is. “I honestly think it’s in my dad’s wardrobe,” said the New Zealander, who shot 1-under 70 Wednesday. “I think he’s seen it more than me. It’s been a while since I’ve seen it.”

Not that it still isn’t special to her, and she’s relishing a return trip to the Olympics. “I always say that technically the silver medal, I came second to Inbee (Park), but it’s probably the most prestigious and honorable silverware that I’ve got … and no matter if you end up standing on the podium at the end of Saturday or not, just being here and to be able to represent your country and to say that you’re an Olympian, a select few athletes are able to say that. So I think we’re all champions just being here, so I’m just trying to enjoy and be grateful for my second opportunity at the Olympics.”

She then recalled an amusing realization when she was traveling back with the medal.

“I remember I think I was traveling from Rio to Canada, because the Canadian Open was the week after and I left it in my carry on and I think it beeped because, you know, it was obviously a hefty-size medal and you could see in the X ray it was like a perfect circle with what looks like a lanyard almost. And I was like, yeah, that’s the silver medal, which was like a very kind of cool moment. Obviously clearly it’s a perfect circle, that’s my silver medal. I’m normally, I think, not the type to say, hey, like this is what I got, but the Olympics is so special, ever since they announced that in 2016 golf was going to be back in the Olympics in over a hundred years, I knew that I wanted to make the team. I’m always proud to represent New Zealand on a daily basis when we’re playing on Tour and to be able to do that at the Olympics, alongside the best athletes, it’s a pretty surreal experience and I know that it was such an honorable moment.”

Ko also recalls when the last putt dropped to clinch the medal. “I was like a whole array of emotions going through me,” she said. “I thought I was going to cry, but then I saw to my right and Inbee was not crying and she was the gold medalist. I was like, I don’t know if the silver medalist deserves to cry when the gold medalist is like totally fine. So, I think I held back my tears then. But I think it was very meaningful, not for myself only, but for my team and my family and everyone that’s kind of walked through this journey with me to be there and make me be the person that I was at that point.”

FIND OUT MORE AT IGFGOLF.ORG

Images courtesy of IGF Golf (Photo by Stan Badz/PGA TOUR/IGF)

After starting his final round at seven-under par in T-17th position, Sabbatini dug deep to card a course record-smashing, ten-under par 61 for sole second.

Rory Sabbatini 4 days ago… “If things work out and I was able to medal, it would be extremely impactful on Slovakian golf…”

Fast-forward to @OlympicGolf Silver Medalist at #Tokyo2020!! 🥈👏 🇸🇰 @olympijskytim #PGASK #SlovakGolf #OlympicGolf pic.twitter.com/KkYKqv6xC7

— Confederation of Professional Golf [CPG] (@cpg_golf) August 1, 2021

“I was out there…just trying to remind myself, okay, don’t think ahead, don’t think ahead, just enjoy the moment that you’re in because you don’t know when it’s going to end, just enjoy every hole as it comes,” Sabbatini said.

“It just seemed like every time I kind of had a hiccup out there I was like, oh, maybe this is the end of the run, but okay. And then all of a sudden, I kicked back into gear. So, it was a lot of fun and it was just one of those rare days that you have on the golf course.”

Any Olympic medal is undoubtedly special, but the legacy of this silver medal may well live on a bit longer than most. Slovakia is a modest golfing nation – 45 PGA Professionals working across around 30 facilities with 8-9,000 golfers – so a role model such as Sabbatini securing a spot on the podium is something that, until recently, may have seemed a long way off.

That was until a family connection sparked the idea of a change in citizenship to match that of his Slovakian wife and caddie for the week, Martina [pictured, above], and an idea from her cousin and President of the Slovak Golf Association, Rastislav Antala.

“You know Slovakia did not have anybody, so he [Rastislav] started saying there has got to be a great opportunity to create some interest in the game of golf and to get more kids involved and hopefully develop future generations of Slovak golfers,” explained Sabbatini at the beginning of the Olympic week.

“We are using it as a springboard to hopefully get some corporations, and the government, behind golf to develop future golfers. Before I came over to Tokyo, I was in Slovakia for a week and spent a lot of time with junior golfers and they were so extremely excited about it. Being able to medal means it will be extremely impactful and raise the excitement even more for these junior golfers.”

Antala [pictured above celebrating with Sabbatini] was on hand throughout the Olympic week and was able to give an idea of just what kind of impact the Olympian would have:

“For us it is a huge milestone. A few years ago, we had not even thought about it but here we are…getting a lot of messages from very excited people and ready to go.

“The interest is there, and this is exactly what we hope to accomplish…basically grow the interest for the sports in our country and hopefully get young kids to start playing and to see Rory as a role model.

“I have been involved in Slovakian golf since it started this new era of the late 90s, so it is a very young sport and I remember how we were simply trying to raise the money to basically just participate in amateur championships. Now we are more professionalised, are trying to move ahead and grow the number of people…we honestly did not even dream about this one – it is beyond or dreams to be here.”

Sabbatini’s work in promoting golf in the country was also well underway well ahead of the Olympics, after competing in, and winning, the Slovak Open in 2019:

“We met Rory in 2015, when he did his first charity event at Penati Golf Resort,” explains PGA of Slovakia General Secretary, Peter Petrovič. “After he became an official Slovak citizen and was at the Slovak Open, we agreed that he would be part of the PGA of Slovakia organisation as a Member.

“We are extremely proud that one of our Members has been able to compete at the Olympics…and it will only open the door to others – maybe not today or in a year, but we believe that we will raise the successor of the first golf Olympian.

“In the last two seasons we have had an increase in children and their parents becoming golfers. Hard work and everything you need to inspire children to play and win is encouraged, so we believe that new hopes worthy of the Olympics will emerge…children have to have stars to look up to and now we have Rory – he wants to help Slovak golf, and we are there to help as the coaches that will raise these future stars.”

FIND OUT MORE AT IGFGOLF.ORG

RECEIVE FUTURE CPG NEWS

Images courtesy of IGF Golf (Photos by Ben Jared/Stan Badz/PGA TOUR/IGF)

Schauffele [pictured, below] ultimately emerged the winner on this hot, sunny day, clinching his golden moment with one final, gutsy par-save on the final hole for a 4-under par 67 and 18-under total. But it took the mental resilience he said came by way of his upbringing, fostered by a father of German-French descent and Chinese Taipei mother who was raised in Japan. Consider it a respectful nod to the culture of the host country, where his grandparents still live.

“I felt like for the most part of the day I stayed very calm,” Schauffele said. “I usually look very calm but there’s something terrible happening inside at times. So I was able to learn on those moments where I’ve lost coming down the stretch, where I hit a bad shot or a bad wedge or a bad putt and sort of lose my cool. But I felt like today I really, I thought I had a one-shot lead going into 16 or 17 and I looked at the board and I saw Rory shot 61, so that was a nice wake up call for me; thank goodness there was a board there or I wouldn’t have known. Yeah, it was a roller coaster day for me especially on that back nine coming in and just happy I could fall back on parts of my game to sort of pull me through.”

Until that one swing on the par-5 14th hole produced a wayward drive and bogey, Schauffele remained undeterred through a scoring assault that was unfolding ahead, led by Sabbatini’s brilliant record-setting round that concluded more than an hour ahead of him. In fact, the perfect scoring conditions led to a seven-player elimination for the bronze medal, which was finally decided on the fourth extra hole with C.T. Pan of Chinese Taipei beating Collin Morikawa of the USA with a par 4 on No. 18. Both had matched the former Olympic record of 63 Sunday to get into the playoff.

Before the late drama unfolded, it appeared to be Schauffele’s private coronation. He entered the day leading Japan’s Olympic hope, Hideki Matsuyama, by one. Then birdies on the first two holes extended his lead to three and indicated the work he had done with his father/swing coach, Stefan, the evening before had resolved some driving issues that developed in round three.

He added two more birdies and seemingly was cruising along until No. 14, where he badly pushed his drive that ended up in dense underbrush and forced a penalty drop. Schauffele managed to save bogey, but that dropped him into a tie with Sabbatini at 17-under par … and his internal battle was on.

“I was cruising pretty nice, I saw that I had a three-shot lead going into 14 and made an absolute mess of the hole,” Schauffele said. “I really tried to keep my head down from that point on and I saw the massive board on 16. So the early putts that fell and the good shots were nice for a cushion and it was fortunately just enough for me to squeak by finishing up.”

While Schauffele had four holes ahead of him, Sabbatini [pictured, above] was waiting with his wife and caddie, Martina, to see how it would unfold. He had done everything he could, putting together a masterpiece that consisted of 10 birdies, and eagle-2, five pars and two bogeys. The closing birdie on 18 came with an emphatic fist pump as the ball approached the hole, giving Sabbatini the men’s Olympic record by two strokes.

“I was out there today and I kept just trying to remind myself, okay, don’t think ahead, don’t think ahead, just enjoy the moment that you’re in because you don’t know what it’s going to end, just enjoy every hole as it comes,” Sabbatini said. “It just seemed like every time I kind of had a hiccup out there I was like, oh, maybe this is the end of the run, but okay. And then all of a sudden, I kicked back into gear. So it was a lot of fun and it was just one of those rare days that you have on the golf course.”

Schauffele finally managed to retake the lead with a birdie-3 on the 17th hole, which was shortened to just 305 yards. But then on No. 18, another pushed drive forced Schauffele to lay up into the fairway, leaving a wedge to the hole. Undeterred, he calmly wedged to four feet and holed the par putt.

“Well, I tell you what, it (the wait) was for a long time,” said Sabbatini, who at 45 was the oldest player in the field. “It seemed like it was inevitable that Xander was going to win and then all of a sudden he created some excitement for us. So, he definitely kind of put me back on edge waiting there at the end.

“It was fun,” he added. “He played fantastic, he’s a great champion and I’m just happy to be able to stand anywhere near him on the podium.”

Once that drama was settled, it was time to settle the bronze medal winner in a star-packed field that also included Matsuyama (who shot 67), Paul Casey of Great Britain (68), Rory McIlroy of Ireland (67), Mito Pereira of Chile (67) and Sebastián Muñoz of Colombia (67). It was so large, it required splitting into two groups.

Matsuyama and Casey were eliminated first, followed by Muñoz, then Pereira and McIlroy.

“I was not able to deliver the performance I was hoping for,” Matsuyama said. ”At the same time, the positive is that I was able to contend. At one point of the round, there was a moment where I could potentially catch up and move past the leaders. But I just was not able to put it together at the end. There are somethings that I’ve identified that I need to work on, which I hope to work on moving forward.”

Morikawa bogeyed the final hole after his approach to the 18th green plugged in the steep upslope of the fronting bunker. Pan sank a par-saving putt for the medal.

“Very satisfying,” Pan [pictured, above] said. “It came as a surprise to me too. After day one, plus 3, 74, I remember I texted one of my good friends and I was like, the struggle is real. So it’s quite a turnaround for this week winning the bronze medal that I couldn’t even think about it, didn’t even think about it after Thursday’s round. So overall that was a very happy ending.”

Morikawa, on the other hand, thought his approach would make the green. “It was a long four holes and I thought my shot was going to be all right and just mishit it,” he said. “CT played great and we had to shoot 8-under for both of us to get in this playoff for bronze. So, it sucks, but hopefully it’s not a last and hopefully we’ll be back in four years.”

McIlroy for one came away more determined than ever to earn an Olympic medal.

“Yeah, it does, it makes me even more determined going to Paris (in 2024) and trying to pick one up,” he said. “It’s disappointing going away from here without any hardware, I’ve been saying all day I never tried so hard in my life to finish third. But it’s been a great experience, today was a great day to be up there in contention for a medal … certainly had a different feeling to it than I expected and yeah, as I said I’m already looking forward to three years’ time and trying to go at least one better but hopefully three better.”

Casey, on the other hand, at age 44 is unsure whether he will get another chance at the Olympics, But he made the most of this opportunity, playing his way into the final pairing after tying with Carlos Ortiz of Mexico for third.

He eloquently summed up the Olympic experience, saying, “This is my first Olympics, so I think that’s the one thing I witnessed a lot this week is there’s triumph and there’s the heart ache and we have seen it in the (Olympic) Village we have soon it in Team GB (Great Britain). Now you’ve seen it here on the golf course as well. So, I mean, first of all, what a day to play the final group in the Olympics with Hideki and then Xander gold medalist in Japan. Brilliant. For me that was one of the coolest rounds to be a part of. Sure, I wish I could have got my driver working a bit better and I struggled, but I battled and I’m so very proud of how hard I worked and tried to squeeze as much out of my game as I possibly could. Would love to have brought a medal home, not just for myself but for Team GB, would have been the ultimate. But the whole week has been phenomenal. I’ve made friends, can’t say enough good things about my experience this week.”

It was a common thread throughout the week, which ended with a most memorable day, particularly for the medal winners.

“I feel good,” Schauffele said of winning the gold medal in Japan, considering his heritage. “I maybe put more pressure on myself to go win this more than anything else for quite some time … And my ties here with my grandparents living here and my mom growing up here as well, there’s just all these things that sort of motivated me to do better, be better. And maybe I put more pressure on myself but it was sort of more than just golf for me and I’m just really, really happy and fortunate to be sitting here.”

Other Notes/Quotes

Behind every great round is a great caddie … or wife?

Might be a saying in there somewhere. That certainly seemed to be the case in the silver/bronze pairing that included Rory Sabbatini, representing Slovakia, and C.T. Pan of Chinese Taipei. Both had their wives caddying for them this week – Michelle on C.T.’s bag and Martina on Rory’s. And while it might have taken some time, the combination certainly paid off on Sunday. Sabbatini set a new Olympic scoring record with a blistering round of 10-under 61, while Pan tied the former record of 63. When they finished, Sabbatini was sitting alone in second place and Pan was tied for third with three others. But there was still a long wait ahead to see if they had done enough for medal. At least, they could do so in good company.

“I had the privilege of playing with CT today, so we kind of spurred each other one and he played some fantastic golf and down the end there suddenly I wasn’t so worried about Xander I was worried about CT” Sabbatini said. “So I tried to keep my foot on the gas to keep ahead of him. I think that kind of set the stage for us to put a little bit of pressure on Xander without him knowing.”

Strong showing for Chile

Chile had a particularly strong showing this week with Mito Pereira tying for third and going into a seven-way playoff for the bronze medal and Joaquin Niemann T10 after closing rounds of 67 and 65, respectively.

“Just a great experience and it was great to play for something bigger than me, for my country, so absolutely taking that out,” said Pereira, who had a very makeable birdie putt to win on the second playoff hole but saw it lip out. “I can’t believe that lip out just happened. It’s crazy. I hit a really good shot and it was a perfect putt and I don’t know what happened.”

While Pereira jumped into contention from the outset, Niemann had a slow start with opening rounds of 70 and 69 before shooting 66-65 on the weekend.

“Overall, it was a great week,” Niemann said. “Obviously, I wanted to play better the first two days to give myself a better chance for the weekend, but, yeah, I’m really proud of the way I played on the last two days and giving myself a chance on the last couple holes where I couldn’t make some birdies there. But, yeah, I’m pretty happy the way I finished and hopefully we can somehow win a medal.”

It ultimately didn’t happen, but Niemann came away with a positive memory. “It was a good experience being in Japan being in my first Olympics, I’m going to really remember my first Olympics. I enjoyed it. Yeah, I’m excited to come back and hopefully get another chance [in Paris].”

Thomas recovers with a 65, ending a memorable Olympic experience on a positive note

It wasn’t the week that world No. 4 Justin Thomas wanted or expected, but he at least gained some satisfaction with a closing round of 65 after struggling mightily with his putting the first three days. He finished 10 under par, well behind gold medal teammate Xander Schauffele.

“I think the scores are pretty self-explanatory,” he said after playing the first three rounds in 4-under par. “But it was nice to play well today. The experience was great, it’s a shame that there wasn’t able to be fans because Japan always has an unbelievable turnout and just with the amount of volunteers that were here, let alone if fans could have been here, it would have made a special week even more special. So, it was a shame, but it’s great, I mean with all that’s going on in the world, especially here, we’re fortunate that we were able to compete and it’s pretty cool to say that I’m an Olympian.”

Asked about the overall Olympic experience, Thomas said, “It’s just, it’s so different. It was cooler than I thought it was. I’m more proud of being here than I thought I would be. I thought I would be proud, but the first like day or two I immediately found out that this is like the coolest thing I’ve ever been a part of. The Ryder Cup is cool, the Presidents Cup’s cool, but this is just so different. I grew up watching the Ryder Cup, the Presidents Cup, the majors, and never grew up watching this, so no one was ever able to relay or say how it felt being an Olympian, especially a golfer. And so, it was really — I was never hitting putts as an 8, 10-year-old on the putting green to win the Olympics and win a gold medal. So, I think when you don’t have the ability to dream something, when you get here it’s, it can sometimes just take you by surprise and this definitely exceeded that.”

Playing with the yardages

Several interesting facts about Sunday’s course set-up: The 4th hole was playing as the longest par-3 of the week at 248 yards. Conversely, the 10th hole was the shortest par 3 of the week at 175 yards. And adding to the potential closing drama, the 17th hole, which averaged 344 yards over the first three days, was shortened to a temptingly reachable 305 yards. Only the 6th hole, which surrendered several eagles this week, played shorter at 294 yards on Friday.

Quiet as a Fox

It became early on that the course was ripe for scoring. While Rory Sabbatini was grabbing attention by moving quickly into contention with six under through eight holes, Ryan Fox was rather quietly polishing off a round of 64 with a six-birdie 29 on the closing nine.

“It was just a little too late,” said Fox, who entered the day plus-2 for the tournament. “I actually played quite nicely all week and got nothing out of my rounds and it was kind of the opposite today. I hit a lot of good shots, but when I was in trouble, I made some pars and when I hit good shots I made birdie, which is, that’s been the opposite this week. So it was nice to get a decent round under the belt.”

It capped what has been a rewarding first experience as an Olympian.

“It’s been great,” he said. “Obviously a bit different to last time with the COVID scenario and not getting to go to events and maybe not having the same level of socializing that we had last time, but I mean to get to represent your country at the pinnacle, at the Olympics, is pretty cool and certainly something I wouldn’t want to turn down and a great honor to do. And hopefully, I get another chance to do it in the future.”

FIND OUT MORE AT IGFGOLF.ORG

Images courtesy of IGF Golf (Photo by Stan Badz/Ben Jared/PGA TOUR/IGF)