I had the pleasure of attending my first Men’s Olympic Games Golf event on the spectacular Albatros course at Le Golf National, famous for hosting the 2018 Ryder Cup.
It is now 124 years since golf was first recognised as an Olympic Sport in the Paris games in 1900 and then dropped through lack of international participants. I remember my father telling me that it was always one of his regrets that golf was not an Olympic sport when he was at his prime as an amateur.
When managing Seve Ballesteros in Spain the early 2000’s, the efforts made by people such as Emma Villacieros, President of the Spanish Golf Association, George O’Grady from the European Tour and Peter Dawson from the R&A finally came to fruition in 2009 when golf was voted to be reinstated for the 2016 games in Rio. They can be very proud of their achievement getting the game reinstated and to witness what a special and spectacular event it has become in such a short time.
The atmosphere in Paris brought back memories of when I played amateur team Golf for Ireland and in the Walker Cup where a huge cohort of national fans attend to support their national representatives. Representing your country is the proudest moment for all athletes and doing so at the Olympics is the pinnacle of that experience. The players wear their countries’ colours proudly without any commercial logos and respond, wave, touch hands with the crowds, many draped in their national flags. They thrive on that old fashioned national pride feeling the way they did as youngsters coming up and representing their countries. It had a completely different feel and level of tension to it to other golf events including the Majors.
This struck me especially at the tennis semi-final match I attended with brother Marty. We sat behind the Djokovic box and Novak’s parents, wife and daughter were waving their country flags cheering him on constantly during the match. Seeing Djokovic’s emotional reaction to winning Gold for Serbia and the reaction from Scottie Scheffler screaming “come on!” after holing his birdie putt on the 71st hole on his way to winning Gold for USA sets this event apart from all the rest. It also demonstrated the extreme high level of pressure felt by the players playing for their countries. This was especially noticeable with Jon Rahm and Rory McIlroy on the back nine.
The stadium golf course was packed with crowds that matched the Ryder Cup. There was NO BOOZE for sale anywhere and the multitudes, including many kids with their families, were impeccably behaved and respectful, and everybody was just happy to share the pleasure of being there. It was a pure joy to behold. No lager louts, no music, no ‘get in the hole’ loudmouths, just old-fashioned appreciation for the game and the players representing their countries in the way it was always meant to be.
It struck me having experienced this that it may not be such a bad idea for the next Ryder Cup in New York to go alcohol free to help contain the new wave of radical fans who wouldn’t know how to spell the words ‘integrity’ or ‘respect for the game!’ I am not optimistic that this will come to pass as the mighty dollar will win out again..!
Even though the field is limited to 60…the crème de la creme of world golf were battling it out with a different sense of purpose and desire. It’s not about the money, but playing for their countries and their people. How beautifully refreshing that atmosphere was to feel in the air of a golf event, which in its second edition and the fact that it is played only once every four years makes it, in reality, golf’s new fifth Major.
It was also a special occasion for our family as my son Jaime was on the Irish Hockey squad and the first Carr to attend an Olympics for Ireland. Happy days.
Well done to the proud medal winners.