Brandon Stone, winner of the South African Open, has the ability to surprise on tomorrow when he tees off in the Olympic Golf Tournament in Rio.
Llewellyn van Leeuwen, head coach at the Tuks Academy, said the main challenge for Stone (Tuks/HPC) is to acquire ‘a sense of belonging on the international circuit’.
“The moment Brandon realizes that he is actually playing better golf than most of his rivals, will be when he will begin to consistently finish in the top ten or better in major tournaments. It will be important for him to get off to a good start. If he manages to do so he will progressively play with more confidence over the last three rounds.
“For a young player like Brandon there is certainly a huge incentive to win as it will mean he automatically qualifies for all four of next year’s ‘Majors’”.
Thursday will be a historic moment for golf because after being out in the cold for 112 years it will be an Olympic sport again for the first time. The last times golf was played at the Games were in St Louis in 1904 and before that in Paris in 1900.
The debate about whether golf should be an Olympic sport or not is still going on, especially in light of the fact that quite a few of the top players withdrew for various reasons.
When the question was posted on the Golf Digest website the reaction of the players varied.
“Of course!” Bubba Watson said winning Olympic golf “would be a little bigger than a green jacket.” Jordan Spieth said, “Winning a gold would be, I believe, like winning a major championship.” And Jason Day said, “It’d be a really fantastic honour to win a gold medal, or any medal, in the Olympics.” That's the spirit!
The wildlife on the golf course in Rio will certainly make for an interesting experience. The course is apparently populated by an assortment of fuzzy and creepy creatures, including boa constrictors, three-toed sloths, monkeys and small crocodiles. Capybaras, a large rodent, are all around the course.
Though a family of ground-nesting owls has set up home under the lip of a greenside bunker on the ninth hole, golfers need not worry. They will get a free drop if their golf balls should wind up in any of the holes.
Stone will tee off on Thursday with Rodolfo Cazaubon (Mex) and Bernd Wiesberger (Aut). Jaco van Zyl, South Africa’s other player at the Games, will play with Mikko Ilonen (Fin) and David Hearn (Can).
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