WHO KNOWS where it will be. Chicago? Tokyo? Madrid? Rio de Janeiro? Whatever golf course is chosen in whichever city, Ireland’s golfers at Hazeltine, where the US PGA Championship teed off yesterday, were delighted that their sport had been one of those proposed for inclusion in the Olympic Games in 2016.
As Pádraig Harrington, a three-time major winner with a penchant for setting high goals, put it, “I’d love to be an Olympic athlete. Obviously, golf, which I believe is the greatest sport in the world, has a long way to go to prove itself with some of the Olympians. But being in there, the golfers will show what it takes to play golf and I think it would be a fantastic honour for anyone to be an Olympic athlete.
“I will have to work very hard for it, but it is something I can add to my list of goals, to go to the Olympics and win it.”
Harrington, in fact, had formed part of the International Golf Federation’s bid to get golf into the Olympics and had written to Pat Hickey, the president of the European Olympic Committee, endorsing the campaign.
Graeme McDowell and Rory McIlroy were also enthusiastic about the prospect, even if it was seven years down the road with many majors to be played before then, but – in their particular situation as residents of Northern Ireland – the question of whether they would or could represent Ireland or the United Kingdom left them on rather uncertain ground.
“Golf’s an all-Ireland sport,” said McDowell. “You know, I’d play for anyone . . . . I’ve never been able to explain why golf’s an all-Ireland sport and rugby’s an all-Ireland sport but football (soccer) is two different sports . . . it would be an honour to represent your country. And I don’t mind which one I (could) play for.”
McDowell, who listed track and field as his favourite Olympic sports, added: “The Olympics is the biggest sporting event on the planet, and I’d love to be involved in it. I’d love to win a gold medal. It’s every young man’s dream, and this is huge for golf around the world. I’m not a fan of golf being an elitist sport, it has to go to the masses and give young people all over the world a chance to experience what I think is the best game in the world.”
McIlroy, nominating gymnastics as his favourite event to watch, had been a sceptic originally about the proposal to get golf into the Olympics but has grown to appreciate its significance and said: “At the start of getting the golf into the Olympics, I was a little sceptical and apprehensive about it. But the more I think about it, the more it will be great for golf just to globalise the game and get countries like Russia and India and China recognised on a global stage.
“At the start I sort of thought it’s not fair on the other athletes who train four years for the Olympics as the height of their career, but I can see this being great for golf. So I’m very happy that golf is in the Olympics.
“Hopefully it will grow the game and get more people to play,” he added.
Ty Votaw, the executive director of the IGF’s Olympic bid, said at Hazeltine yesterday they had presented a “compelling case over the past 16 months for the sport to be included.
“We’ve had unprecedented unified support across the entire golfing world.”
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