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The United States was the only country to
clinch the maximum possible four spots in the 60-strong list
unveiled on Tuesday by the International Golf Federation for the
men's contest on Aug. 1-4 at Le Golf National, the venue south
of Paris that hosted the Ryder Cup in 2018.
The U.S. contingent also includes Wyndham Clark, last year's
U.S. Open champion, but not Patrick Cantlay, whose tied-third
finish on Sunday at this year's U.S. Open was just short of the
top-two position he needed to pip Morikawa in the world rankings
used to establish the Olympics list.
The newly crowned 2024 U.S. Open winner, Bryson DeChambeau,
missed out on the U.S. team too. That illustrates how the advent
of the Saudi-backed LIV tour, on which DeChambeau plays but that
yields no ranking points, influenced the race for Paris.
World number two Rory McIlroy leads the pack of non-U.S.
contenders for Olympic glory, though the games were not on his
mind on Monday as the Northern Irishman announced he was taking
a few weeks off to digest his late collapse at the U.S. Open
that prolonged his decade-long wait for a fifth major.
McIlroy, who represents Ireland, was close to a medal in Tokyo
but came up short in a seven-way playoff for third place in
which Morikawa also lost out.
Tokyo bronze medallist C.T. Pan of Taiwan will be back along
with defending champion Schauffele. The 2021 runner-up, South
African-born Rory Sabbatini who competed for Slovakia in Tokyo,
will not be in Paris.
Japan's Hideki Matsuyama, the top-ranked Asian player, will have
another shot at an Olympic podium after leaving home fans
disappointed in Tokyo when he ended tied-fourth.
France's hopes of a medal on home soil have been boosted by a
breakthrough year for Matthieu Pavon, whose fifth place at the
U.S. Open lifted him to a career-high 20th in the world
rankings.
Pavon will represent France alongside Victor Perez.
The qualification list for the women's golf event in Paris,
which takes place on Aug. 7-10, will be published next Tuesday.
Finalised lists of participants for both the men's and women's
competitions will be released on July 2.
(Reporting by Gus Trompiz; Editing by Toby Chopra) [© 2024 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
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