By Ryan Herrington
Rory McIlroy is firmly in the chase for an Olympic medal entering the final round at Kasumigaseki Country Club, a Saturday 67 leaving him just three shots back of Xander Schauffele in a tie for third place. No doubt that has something to do with change of heart he’s displayed this week toward golf in the Olympics.

Even so, the newfound respect for competing in the Games has felt genuine, McIlroy acknowledging he had spoken too soon when in 2016 he memorably noted after announcing that he was not going to play in golf’s return to the Summer Games in Rio, “I’ll probably watch the Olympics, but I’m not sure golf will be one of the events I watch.” And what would he watch? “Probably the events like track and field, swimming, diving … the stuff that matters.”

On Friday, McIlroy sounded like golf also mattered, too.

“I never obviously competed in an Olympic Games, I watched them from afar, but being a part of something that’s completely different and bigger than me and even our sport in general, that’s a pretty cool thing,” he said. “I didn’t know if this was going to be my only Olympics that I play or whatever and I’m already looking forward to Paris [host for the 2024 games].”

MORE: Justin Thomas calls Olympics ‘the coolest thing I’ve ever been a part of’

There was more introspection on Saturday from the four-time major champion.

“I’m thinking about that. I need to give things a chance,” McIlroy said. “I was speaking to my wife last night and saying maybe I shouldn’t be so sceptical. But I think I need to do a better job of just giving things a chance, experiencing things, not writing them off at first glance.”

This isn’t the first international event that McIlroy has done an about-face on after actually competing in it. You might recall McIlroy initially downplayed the Ryder Cup, calling it merely an “exhibition” before playing for Europe for the first time in 2010. Suffice it to say, he changed his stance quickly once experiencing first-hand the passion surrounding the event.

“That’s sort of a trait of mine,” McIlroy said, “but like I’m happy to be proven wrong. I was proven wrong at the Ryder Cup, I’ve been proven wrong this week and I’m happy that, I’m happy to say that.”

MORE: What makes Xander Schauffele’s harrowing Olympic win such a golden moment

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By Ryan Herrington
A second major champion in men’s golf has tested positive for COVID-19 and won’t be able to compete in this week’s Olympic men’s tournament.

The International Golf Federation announced on Sunday that Jon Rahm was in the midst of the final testing protocol before leaving for Tokyo when he tested positive. According to the Spanish Olympic Committee, this was Rahm’s third test taken before travelling. Because of the positive test, the reigning U.S. Open champion and top-ranked golfer in the world will not be able to compete for Spain.

The news on Rahm came roughly six hours after the IGF announced that Bryson DeChambeau of the U.S. had tested positive and would have to withdraw from the Olympics as well.

Rahm’s positive test comes less than two months after the 26-year-old Spaniard tested positive for COVID while playing in the PGA Tour’s Memorial Tournament. Rahm was in the tour’s testing protocol at the time, testing negative on a daily basis and thus allowed to compete in the tournament. He had built up six-stroke lead at the end of the third round when the PGA Tour informed him that he had tested positive and would be forced to withdraw from the event.

Rahm subsequently was vaccinated and came back with negative test results ahead of the U.S. Open two weeks later, was cleared to play by the USGA under its health protocols, and went on win his first career major at Torrey Pines.

While the U.S. said it would replace DeChambeau with another American, Patrick Reed, the Spanish Olympic Committee announced it would not have a replacement for Rahm due to the fact it did not have “adequate time” to find a replacement and comply with the necessary health protocols required. Spain, thus, will only be represented only by Adri Arnaus in the men’s competition, which begins Thursday at Kasumigaseki Country Club in Kasahata, Saitama, Japan, about 35 miles northwest of downtown Tokyo.

To replace Rahm, the IGF stated that it will use its Late Replacement Policy to find the next available athlete, but did not say who that golfer is at this time.

MORE: Two golfers serve as flagbearers during Opening Ceremony in Tokyo

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Riyadh Golf Club welcomed Sir Steve Redgrave to Saudi Arabia last month while the Olympic legend was in the Kingdom. One of the most famous athletes in Olympic history, having won an unprecedented five rowing gold medals in five consecutive Olympic Games from 1984 to 2000. After several top-level business meetings in the capital, Sir Steve swung by to play a round at Riyadh Golf Club and passed on some of his own sporting knowledge to the Golf Saudi team. Sir Steve is a global personality and businessman who shares his unique expertise and experience and the Golf Saudi team learnt a lot from his extensive understanding of both sport and commercial enterprise.

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By Dave Shedloski
Is Olympic golf in for another bout of participation doubt?

Four years ago, golf’s return to the Olympics for the first time since 1904 at the Rio Summer Games was muted as at least a dozen of the game’s top men’s players pulled out due to fears of the Zika virus epidemic in Brazil.

This year, it’s the growing concern over the spreading coronavirus that potentially could dampen strength of field in the 60-player men’s and women’s competitions at the Tokyo Olympics starting in late July.

“It’s something that we’re trying to stay on top of,” Rory McIlroy, the No. 1 player in the world, said Wednesday at the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill Club. McIlroy was one of the most prominent players who skipped the Rio golf event won by Justin Rose.

“It’s something that if the organizers and the Olympic Committee believe it’s safe enough that athletes can go and compete in the Games, then you have to take their word for it,” McIlroy, a native of Northern Ireland, added. “They’re obviously liaising with the people that are the best at doing this, whether it’s the CDC in this country, whether it’s the World Health Organization, whatever it is. If they’re speaking to those people, and those people are the best in their field, then you have to trust that their judgment is the right one.”

The men’s Olympic tournament, 72 holes of stroke play, begins Thursday, July 30. The women’s event, won by Korea’s Inbee Park in 2016, begins Wednesday, Aug. 5.

On Tuesday, Mark Adams of the International Olympic Committee said that the Tokyo Olympics will go on as scheduled starting with the Opening Ceremonies on July 24, though officials continue to monitor the situation. Japan’s proximity to China has caused speculation that the Games could be postponed or canceled altogether. The virus originated in Wuhan, in central China, and it has since spread to numerous countries, including Japan, Italy, England and the U.S.

It’s possible that the Summer Games simply could be postponed, Seiko Hashimoto, Japan’s Olympic minister was quoted as saying on Tuesday. Hashimoto pointed out that the contract between Tokyo and the IOC stipulates that the Olympics could be held anytime in the 2020 calendar year.

As of Tuesday, 283 cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed in Japan. It has caused six deaths.

Fears of the coronavirus impacted the recent Tokyo Marathon. No spectators were permitted on the course. Competitors ran on empty streets, according to a BBC Sport report.

Dustin Johnson, who also skipped the Rio Olympics due to concerns over the Zika virus, recently confirmed that he did not intend to play in Tokyo, though he cited scheduling considerations as his reason. Johnson currently is No. 5 in the world.

Australia’s Adam Scott, ranked seventh, echoed McIlroy’s sentiments that much depends on what health experts say. “I don’t know what’s going to happen,” said Scott, yet another player who opted out of Rio. “It seems a bit overblown at the moment. We don’t know which medical experts in the field to believe. It’s just, we’ll have to wait and see.”

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