Golf in the Olympics?
There's no chance the surface of a Beijing Olympic podium will get scratched by golf cleats, but that could change in the future. More strongly unified than ever before, golf's leading bodies are campaigning to have the sport included in the 2016 program. The official decision will come in October 2009, when the International Olympic Committee votes on adding no more than two or none of seven sports: golf, baseball, karate, roller sports, rugby, softball and squash.
€I wouldn't expect Olympic golf to have a significant impact in the United States, but in countries where golf isn't so developed, it could grow the game tremendously,€ says David B. Fay, executive director of the USGA and joint secretary of the International Golf Federation, the body that deals directly with the IOC. In most countries, Olympic sports enjoy more cachet and inevitably receive more public and private funding. Income from television is redistributed to provide facilities, coaching and scholarships for developing athletes.
The IOC's fear is that the world's best players might not compete. Ernie Els, Phil Mickelson and Lorena Ochoa have been supportive, but Tiger Woods has been noncommital. PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem has provided support for golf's Olympic bid, and the tours have noted they would have seven years to juggle schedules to accommodate players.
Before joining Augusta National and later becoming chairman, Billy Payne was head of the organizing committee for the 1996 Atlanta Games. Payne nearly got golf included, but contention about Augusta National's maleonly membership ended the bid. €Once players are asked to represent their country, they will play,€ he says. €You'd be surprised by the power of the Olympics to move people.€
Tennis, which like golf draws international fields, returned to the Olympics in 1988. Andre Agassi won in 1996; Andy Roddick is skipping the Games this year. Of course, in 2016 Tiger will be 40 years old. Anthony Kim, now 23, says it would be an honor to play for a medal.
The proposed format for the Games is 72 holes of stroke play, with a limit of three spots for each country, determined by world rankings or wildcards.Seventy percent of the population is naturally averse to risk, says Jennifer Munro, owner of Golf Mind Rx, which provides mentalcoaching services to golfers. Munro has worked with hundreds of professional golfers and has found that more than 80 percent of PGA Tour players are riskaverse. Conversely, some of the most successful and exciting players, like Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods, embrace risk. €To play your best golf you need to know how your brain is wired to make decisions, and be aware of factors that can hurt or help that process, like the pace of your preshot routine and the people you play with,€ says Munro, who classifies golfers into four main types. To find out your type, select the answer that best applies to you in the following 11 questions. Total the point values of your answers and consult the key at the end of the quiz.
1. On your way to the golf course you drive
+ 1 The speed limit or a little below.
+ 2 A little above the speed limit.
+ 3 10 miles per hour over the speed limit.
+ 4 11plus mph over the speed limit.
2. Your golf clothes are
+ 1 Conservative colors like khaki and white.
+ 2 Wilder colors and patterns than your offcourse clothes.
+ 3 Mostly trends and top labels.
+ 4 Your uniform for competition. You prefer strong, solid colors like red, black and blue.
3. On the first tee, a player in your foursome suggests a game with a monetary wager. You
+ 1 Refuse to play on principle.
+ 2 Would rather not gamble, but will go along if the stakes are low.
+ 3 Were about to suggest the same. You like the added fun of a bet.
+ 4 Add automatic twodown presses. You like to play for enough cash to make it interesting.
4. There's a par 3 with a long carry over water. On the tee you
+ 1 Reach into your bag for an old ball.
+ 2 Might consider switching to an old ball if your swing is off that day.
+ 3 Keep playing the same ball. You like to think positive.
+ 4 The thought of switching to a lessvaluable ball never crosses your mind.
5. At the memberguest cocktail party you
+ 1 Mostly find yourself listening to what is being said.
+ 2 Look for your group and join them.
+ 3 Find the bar and talk to everyone who comes by.
+ 4 Tease your competitors.
6. In a fourball team match, an opponent takes what you believe is an illegal drop. You
+ 1 Say nothing.
+ 2 Tell your playing partner and defer to him for the next course of action.
+ 3 Approach in a friendly manner like your opponent might have done it by accident.
+ 4 Confront the opponent directly and without hesitation.
7. There's a blind tee shot on an uphill par 4. You
+ 1 Insist on verifying the fairway is clear before anyone hits.
+ 2 Suggest your group wait a few more minutes; by then the group ahead should be gone.
+ 3 Will hit if others hit, or you might go check if you have a cart to drive to the top of the hill.
+ 4 Hit away; those slowpokes need to get moving, and besides, it's the course's fault for not having a bell or a mirror.
8. You're on the 18th green with an extremely slick, downhill curler for birdie and your best score ever. You
+ 1 Read the break from both angles. You stroke it a cozy speed so it might go in, but if it doesn't you'll still have matched your personal best.
+ 2 Don't want too long a comebacker, but you won't forgive yourself if you miss this putt on the low side.
+ 3 Don't spend much more time on it than you would a normal putt. You perform best when you keep a quick routine.
+ 4 Hit it firmer to take some of the break out and increase your chance of making it.
€I wouldn't expect Olympic golf to have a significant impact in the United States, but in countries where golf isn't so developed, it could grow the game tremendously,€ says David B. Fay, executive director of the USGA and joint secretary of the International Golf Federation, the body that deals directly with the IOC. In most countries, Olympic sports enjoy more cachet and inevitably receive more public and private funding. Income from television is redistributed to provide facilities, coaching and scholarships for developing athletes.
The IOC's fear is that the world's best players might not compete. Ernie Els, Phil Mickelson and Lorena Ochoa have been supportive, but Tiger Woods has been noncommital. PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem has provided support for golf's Olympic bid, and the tours have noted they would have seven years to juggle schedules to accommodate players.
Before joining Augusta National and later becoming chairman, Billy Payne was head of the organizing committee for the 1996 Atlanta Games. Payne nearly got golf included, but contention about Augusta National's maleonly membership ended the bid. €Once players are asked to represent their country, they will play,€ he says. €You'd be surprised by the power of the Olympics to move people.€
Tennis, which like golf draws international fields, returned to the Olympics in 1988. Andre Agassi won in 1996; Andy Roddick is skipping the Games this year. Of course, in 2016 Tiger will be 40 years old. Anthony Kim, now 23, says it would be an honor to play for a medal.
The proposed format for the Games is 72 holes of stroke play, with a limit of three spots for each country, determined by world rankings or wildcards.Seventy percent of the population is naturally averse to risk, says Jennifer Munro, owner of Golf Mind Rx, which provides mentalcoaching services to golfers. Munro has worked with hundreds of professional golfers and has found that more than 80 percent of PGA Tour players are riskaverse. Conversely, some of the most successful and exciting players, like Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods, embrace risk. €To play your best golf you need to know how your brain is wired to make decisions, and be aware of factors that can hurt or help that process, like the pace of your preshot routine and the people you play with,€ says Munro, who classifies golfers into four main types. To find out your type, select the answer that best applies to you in the following 11 questions. Total the point values of your answers and consult the key at the end of the quiz.
1. On your way to the golf course you drive
+ 1 The speed limit or a little below.
+ 2 A little above the speed limit.
+ 3 10 miles per hour over the speed limit.
+ 4 11plus mph over the speed limit.
2. Your golf clothes are
+ 1 Conservative colors like khaki and white.
+ 2 Wilder colors and patterns than your offcourse clothes.
+ 3 Mostly trends and top labels.
+ 4 Your uniform for competition. You prefer strong, solid colors like red, black and blue.
3. On the first tee, a player in your foursome suggests a game with a monetary wager. You
+ 1 Refuse to play on principle.
+ 2 Would rather not gamble, but will go along if the stakes are low.
+ 3 Were about to suggest the same. You like the added fun of a bet.
+ 4 Add automatic twodown presses. You like to play for enough cash to make it interesting.
4. There's a par 3 with a long carry over water. On the tee you
+ 1 Reach into your bag for an old ball.
+ 2 Might consider switching to an old ball if your swing is off that day.
+ 3 Keep playing the same ball. You like to think positive.
+ 4 The thought of switching to a lessvaluable ball never crosses your mind.
5. At the memberguest cocktail party you
+ 1 Mostly find yourself listening to what is being said.
+ 2 Look for your group and join them.
+ 3 Find the bar and talk to everyone who comes by.
+ 4 Tease your competitors.
6. In a fourball team match, an opponent takes what you believe is an illegal drop. You
+ 1 Say nothing.
+ 2 Tell your playing partner and defer to him for the next course of action.
+ 3 Approach in a friendly manner like your opponent might have done it by accident.
+ 4 Confront the opponent directly and without hesitation.
7. There's a blind tee shot on an uphill par 4. You
+ 1 Insist on verifying the fairway is clear before anyone hits.
+ 2 Suggest your group wait a few more minutes; by then the group ahead should be gone.
+ 3 Will hit if others hit, or you might go check if you have a cart to drive to the top of the hill.
+ 4 Hit away; those slowpokes need to get moving, and besides, it's the course's fault for not having a bell or a mirror.
8. You're on the 18th green with an extremely slick, downhill curler for birdie and your best score ever. You
+ 1 Read the break from both angles. You stroke it a cozy speed so it might go in, but if it doesn't you'll still have matched your personal best.
+ 2 Don't want too long a comebacker, but you won't forgive yourself if you miss this putt on the low side.
+ 3 Don't spend much more time on it than you would a normal putt. You perform best when you keep a quick routine.
+ 4 Hit it firmer to take some of the break out and increase your chance of making it.
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