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With Jordan Spieth deciding he’d rather not run the risk of catching Zika while playing for the stars and stripes in Rio, the first year that golf will be included in the Olympics since 1904 is going to have pretty lackluster field. The top four players in golf will not be playing, and I personally can’t blame them. The scheduling of the Olympics for these guys could not be worse.
The British Open, the PGA Championship, and the Olympics will all be held within five weeks of each other. Two weeks after that, the FedEx Cup playoffs begin, followed by the Ryder Cup immediately after. That means if you’re a top ranked player you’d have to golf at least eight times in 13 weeks, which is practically unheard of for a tour pro.
Couple that with the fact that guys on the PGA Tour care about winning majors, and you’ve got yourself a recipe for guys who are totally uninterested in winning a gold medal for their country. Am I bummed I won’t get to see Spieth in Rio? Not really. But it does suck that the very first year the Olympic Committee got some positive press for putting golf back in the field, they decided to have the games in Rio. I don’t care how much sex the athletes are having, getting zika is not worth it.
Plus, golf is probably the last sport I’m trying to watch in the limited time that the Olympics get broadcast. I’m way more interested in fringe events that aren’t on TV every weekend like table tennis and gymnastics. Let’s go, Kanak Jha. .
[via USA Today]
Image via L.E.MORMILE / Shutterstock
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jduda@grandex.co
I just understand why they didn’t go (zika, crime, etc.) but if it was me, I would want to go. Just the chance to walk in the opening ceremony, win an Olympic gold medal, and to have amazing seats to all those events would be too much to pass up. Plus playing for the USA would be awesome, but I guess they do that already with the Ryder/Presidents Cup.
Our guys that are going though (Fowler, Bubba, Reed, and Kuchar) are the guys that always get super into playing for their country in the Ryder Cup, so not surprised they’re doing it.
I wouldn’t go either! Place is a cesspool of debauchery, disease and crime.
Aren’t those the places you would go?
Nah, nowadays I hangout near Ponte Vedra Beach and play the TPC and vacation out to Palm Springs, California during the winter.