Tag: 2021 Olympics

Olympic golf pairings, tee times and schedule for the second round

Everything you need to know for the second round of men’s golf at the Olympics.

After making its competitive return at the Rio Olympics in 2016, Olympic golf is back once again this week in Japan.

Kasumigaseki Country Club plays host to both the men’s and women’s competition. Kasumigaseki’s East Course will play 7,447 yards for the men, July 29-August 1. For the women, August 4-7, it will play 6,648 yards.

Each competition has 60 players and there is no cut.

The first round featured a weather delay, but that didn’t rain on the Sepp Straka show. With his twin brother, Sam, on the bag, Sepp shot a bogey-free, 8-under 63 to grab the lead in the first round. Jazz Janewattananond is a stroke behind Straka while Thomas Pieters and Carlos Ortiz are two back.

While the second round competition will be held Friday morning local time, the 13-hour time difference means play will begin Thursday night, July 29, in Eastern Daylight Time.

OLYMPICS: Leaderboard | How to watch

From tee times to TV and streaming info, here’s everything you need to know about the second round of the men’s golf competition at the Olympics. All times Eastern.

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Tee times

Time Players
6:30 p.m. Rory Sabbatini, Mito Pereira, Renato Paratore
6:41 p.m. Jhonattan Vegas, Thomas Detry, Kalle Samooja
6:52 p.m. Mackenzie Hughes, Alex Noren, Jazz Janewattananond
7:03 p.m. Rasmus Hojgaard, Romain Langasque, Si Woo Kim
7:14 p.m. Viktor Hovland, Cameron Smith, Garrick Higgo
7:25 p.m. Collin Morikawa, Rory McIlroy, Sungjae Im
7:41 p.m. Patrick Reed, Tommy Fleetwood, Shane Lowry
7:52 p.m. Rafael Campos, Maximilian Kieffer, Ashun Wu
8:03 p.m. Fabrizio Zanotti, Juvic Pagunsan, Scott Vincent
8:14 p.m. Udayan Mane, Ondrej Lieser, Jorge Campillo
8:25 p.m. Rikuya Hoshino, Thomas Pieters, Sepp Straka
8:36 p.m. Adri Arnaus, Sami Valimaki, Matthias Schwab
8:47 p.m. Sebastian Munoz, Henrik Norlander, Joachim Hansen
9:03 p.m. Carlos Ortiz, Antoine Rozner, Guido Migliozzi
9:14 p.m. Xander Schauffele, Abraham Ancer, Christiaan Bezuidenhout
9:25 p.m. Justin Thomas, Joaquin Niemann, Paul Casey
9:36 p.m. Hideki Matsuyama, Marc Leishman, Corey Conners
9:47 p.m. C.T. Pan, Ryan Fox, Anirban Lahiri
9:58 p.m. Hurly Long, Carl Yuan, Gavin Kyle Green
10:09 p.m. Kristian Johannessen, Adrian Meronk, Gunn Charoenkul

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Sepp Straka ties Olympic record, takes clubhouse lead in men’s competition in Tokyo Summer Games

With his twin brother, Sam, on the bag, Sepp Straka took advantage of ideal scoring conditions and wrote nine 3s on his scorecard

Last week, Sepp Straka missed the cut in the 3M Open in Minnesota.

On Thursday, he tied an Olympic record.

Straka, who in fact missed six of his last seven cuts before heading to Japan to represent Austria in the Tokyo Summer Games, shot a bogey-free, 8-under 63 to grab the clubhouse lead in the first round of the men’s golf competition.

With his twin brother, Sam, on the bag, Straka took advantage of ideal scoring conditions and wrote nine 3s on his scorecard at the East Course at Kasumigaseki Country Club in Saitama, about 35 miles northwest of downtown Tokyo.

Straka’s 63 tied the lowest round shot in the Olympics. Matt Kuchar of the U.S. and Marcus Fraser of Australia each shot 63 in the 2016 Rio Games when golf returned to the Olympics for the first time in more than a century.

Straka lipped out his birdie attempt on the last that would have set the record.

“That’s special,” Straka said when he was told he tied the record.

So was his round.

Straka didn’t have a 5 on his card as he roughed up the East Course softened by overnight rains and ruled on the pristine greens. While the heat was in the 90-degree range, the winds were in the 2-mph range and only five of the 60 players in the field were over par midway through the first day.

Straka said he was getting too technical with his putting, so he simplified his routine by limiting his practice strokes and putting more by feel. Sure worked.

“I hadn’t played great over on the PGA Tour the last few weeks, but my putting was really the reason and I just switched up my routine on my putting and it’s worked out,” he said. “It was just a steady round. I really hit the ball well. I didn’t put myself into trouble and the putter was pretty hot today.

“I felt like my game was in a pretty good spot. Those first few weeks before Travelers when I missed the cut my irons were bad, but my short game was really good. So, I worked on my irons a lot and then my short game got bad. So that’s when I missed the last couple cuts. But just changed my putting routine up a little bit and it worked really well, and my irons have been pretty good the last few weeks, so I felt pretty good about my game.”

Among the early finishers, Straka leads by two shots. At 65 were Carlos Ortiz of Mexico and Thomas Pieters of Belgium, who was fourth in the Rio Games in 2016.

The U.S.’s Xander Schauffele got off to a slow start and ended with a bogey en route to a 68 and Justin Thomas couldn’t buy a putt and didn’t make a birdie to shoot 71. Reigning British Open champion Collin Morikawa was 2 under through 11 holes and Patrick Reed was 4 under through 10 holes.

Among the best scores of those still on the course included Viktor Hovland of Norway (5 under through 11) and Jazz Janewattananond of Thailand (6 under through 13).

Pieters had been under the weather leading into the tournament and didn’t feel great when he got up for the first round. But his health improved when he got to the course and then when his scorecard filled up with circles.

“Didn’t play my way out of the tournament the first day, so that’s good. I was not in good ways yesterday, so I kind of didn’t expect this today,” he said. “I felt horrible this morning even when I woke up, so but maybe it’s just because I was thinking about bad shots or places not to hit it, I was just my caddie told me hit it there and I did it and that was, I kept it simple.

“When you get to the course and you realize this is like once every four or five years, it hits you every time. I’m a bit better, yeah.”

So is Straka.

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Why being an Olympian is ‘a big deal’ to Xander Schauffele and a bigger deal to his dad

The Olympics are ingrained in the Schaufelle family story.

When Xander Schauffele was asked at the U.S. Open if he intended to compete at the Tokyo Olympics, he remained firmly on the fence. He complained that the logistics were tricky, the inability to attend the opening ceremony, and the lack of a true Olympic experience. He seemed conflicted if it would be worth the effort.

“You’re kind of locked down in your hotel. You can’t go and see other venues or events. In terms of an actual Olympics, obviously, you’re playing for some hardware, some gold medals and whatnot, but the overall experience, which I hear is really cool, isn’t going to be there in Japan this year,” he said at the time. “That would be a reason not to go, I’d say.”

But Schauffele eventually decided to represent the stars and stripes in the men’s competition, which begins Thursday (Wednesday night in the U.S.), at the East Course at Kasumigaseki Country Club in Saitama, about 35 miles northwest of downtown Tokyo, after having a conversation with his father and swing coach, Stefan.

“He said, ‘If I don’t go to the Olympics, will I regret my decision?’ ” Xander said.

The elder Schauffele was a decathlete hopeful, who dreamed of being a member of the “Aufbaukader,” the famed German national decathlon team. He began training in earnest in track and field when he was 18, shortly after the death of his grandfather, Richard, the 1935 German track and field champion.

But in November 1986, Stefan was struck by a drunk-driver head-on as he was en route to the training facility. His dream was shattered. A piece of windshield lodged in Stefan’s left eye, requiring six eye surgeries within a two-year period. It failed to repair his sight and left him in a dark place.

“The last memory of my Olympic dream was all the guys from the German decathlon team coming to my hospital room. It was an emotional farewell,” Stefan said in a story published at XanderSchauffele.com. “Everything was over – my independence, my new life, my track career, my plans, and all my dreams. I certainly had a death wish. Dark times. There was alcoholism, lots of recreational drugs, and other excesses before I came to my senses and learned to fully accept the new reality that presented itself. I decided to use the misfortune as inspiration for my future. I adopted an attitude that it couldn’t get any worse in life and that would mean from here on out it’s relatively speaking all good – no matter what happens.”

The Olympics are ingrained in the Schaufelle family story — Richard Schauffele was named the head judge for all track and field throwing disciplines at the 1936 Berlin Olympic Games. Given the unusual circumstances of the Tokyo Olympics, which were delayed a year due to the global pandemic, athletes are only permitted one guest. Xander chose his father. That choice may sound obvious, but his mother, Ping-Yi Chen, was raised in Japan and has many relatives living in the Tokyo area. But he recognized that in some small way this was his father’s dream coming full circle. “He was supposed to make the team, but who knows,” Xander said.

“I became determined to ensure that my boys would find out how far they can go,” Stefan said. “In fact, I became obsessed with it.”

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And so while Xander grew up dreaming of winning majors like Tiger Woods, Olympic gold would be “a big deal” to him and an even bigger achievement to his dad. No words were spoken but none were needed: Xander knows his father would’ve enjoyed partaking in the opening ceremonies.

“I think maybe he would have gotten emotional, just because it was a dream of his for so long, he put all his eggs in one basket for such a long time and it got taken away from him and he’s learned how to deal with that situation,” he said.

Xander has empathy for what his father endured. That’s why Schauffele already has begun thinking about making the next Olympics, scheduled for Paris in 2024, when perhaps circumstances will be different and he could bring his father to the opening ceremony or to watch the decathlon live.

“Hopefully I can qualify for another Olympics,” Xander said, “so he can experience that and I think that would mean a lot to him.”

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Olympics: Hideki Matsuyama shoots for a gold medal to go with his green jacket

Matsuyama’s star power went next level in April when he won the Masters. But winning Olympic gold at home? That would be legendary.

Does gold go with green? Reigning Masters champion Hideki Matsuyama sure hopes so.

With Naomi Osaka bounced from women’s tennis in the third round of the Olympics, Matsuyama will take center stage as the most prominent Japanese athlete in the Tokyo Games. During his pre-tournament press conference on Tuesday, Matsuyama noted that he’d been watching his fellow Japanese athletes compete in the Olympics via his cell phone and it’s been very inspiring.

“Some of them are winning the medals as well. Last night I watched one of them win the table tennis gold medal too, which was also inspiring as well,” he said. “So, I think I want to join them and do my best and convert the inspiration into how I play well on the golf course.”

Tee times: Olympic men’s golf competition

Matsuyama’s star power went next level in April when he became the first male Japanese golfer to win a major and sent his golf-mad country into a frenzy. Winning gold at home? That would be sporting immortality.

But it won’t be easy.

Matsuyama hasn’t been the same golfer since his victory at the Masters. His best result since is a tie for 23rd at the PGA Championship. Last month, he was forced to withdraw from the Rocket Mortgage Classic after the first round when he tested positive for COVID-19. He also missed the British Open and hasn’t completed an event in six weeks.

“When I was initially diagnosed with COVID 19, the number was very high,” Matsuyama said. “I tested positive for COVID for about 10 days in duration, so in that time I was staying home and did my best to recover from the symptoms. During that time I was unable to practice, but once I got back to Japan I started practicing. So in terms of preparation, it started a little bit with a delay but hopefully I’ll be able to be in the best form possible for the event this week.”

Matsuyama, World No. 20, didn’t sugarcoat the fact that his recent results haven’t been up to his high standards.

“Since my Masters win I haven’t had the best results so far this summer, so I’m a little bit nervous, but I’m really looking forward to it, I think it’s going to be really fun and I’m going to try to do my best to play well,” he said.

Working in Matsuyama’s favor is local course knowledge. He won the 2009 Japan Junior at Kasumigaseki Country Club’s East Course and the 2010 Asia-Pacific Amateur at the club’s West Course to earn his first Masters invitation.

“In a way Kasumigaseki has been a place and catalyst for me to progress and grow, so hopefully I could do the same this week and move on to the another level,” he said.

The pressure to succeed and win a medal at home is immense for Matsuyama, but he delivered with flying colors at Augusta National in April, so there’s no reason to believe this moment will prove to be to big for him

“This is the first time playing the Olympics, so I’m not sure how I’m going to feel,” he said, “but I’m going to do my best and try to get myself to the best position possible.”

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Olympics: Viktor Hovland used to ‘hate’ his fellow Norwegian golf competitor, who remembers him as ‘a fat little kid’

World No. 11 Viktor Hovland may be the best medal hopeful for Norway at the Summer Olympics in Tokyo.

World No. 11 Viktor Hovland may be the best medal hopeful for Norway at the Summer Olympics, but he and fellow Norwegian Kristian Johannessen, who ranks No. 297 in the world and plays primarily on the European Tour’s Challenge Tour, delivered a Gold-medal level pre-tournament press conference on Wednesday in Tokyo ahead of the men’s golf competition.

Traditionally, Norway is a trophy collector at the Winter Olympics, especially in the alpine sports. Summer games? Not so much.

“We usually crush it in those and get a lot of medals,” Hovland said. “That hasn’t been the case with the summer Olympics as much, but we’re going to try to change that.”

As a matter of fact, Johannessen’s father was a ski jumper. Asked why he didn’t follow in his father’s skis, he cracked, “I’m just too fat.”

Olympic men’s golf competition: Preview | Tee times

That was also how Johannessen remembered Hovland when he first met him at age 13 or 14.

“He came up like a, yeah, a fat little kid and started to play really well,” Johannessen said.

“I feel like our relationship has gotten better every year, even though we started out hating each other, but it’s getting better, still a work in progress,” Hovland said with a laugh.

When a reporter asked Johannessen why he “hated” Hovland, he said, “No, I think it was the other way around, really.”

“I hated him,” Hovland interjected.

Then he explained that they first met in Spain at a junior tournament.

“At the time he was in high school (Wang Topidrett in Oslo) and I was thinking about starting at this high school so they let me kind of come a couple years early and stay with the school team as well as play the event,” Hovland said.

That week in Spain, the team rented a villa and Hovland’s roommate had a girlfriend and they were hogging the room.

“I might have, like, complained a lot about that and I had never met Kristian before, but I knew who he was and after I like told this to a couple of different people he just asked me straight up, ‘Well, what did you shoot the first two days of the tournament?’ Because we had already played two rounds. And I just said, ‘Well, I shot 82, 82.’ And he was just like, ‘Well does it matter where you’re sleeping if you’re shooting 82, 82?’

“Never met the guy before and I’m like, ‘All right, we’re off to a good start,'” Hovland said. “And I was thinking, when I start at this school in a couple years, we’re probably going to butt heads a lot. But yeah, despite the nasty comments he’s actually a pretty decent guy.”

Asked what Hovland does better than him on and off the golf course, Johannessen continued with his brand of self-deprecating humor. “On the course you can just tell by his scores he does everything a bit better than me and he’s said that before himself,” Johannessen said. “I like the way Viktor just don’t give a (crap) about anything other than what’s best for him and I can definitely learn from that.”

Hovland also was reminded that as a junior, he failed to medal at the Youth Olympics.

“I think I was leading after two or three rounds and I can’t remember if we played three or four rounds, but I remember I shot 68 and 68 the first two days and played really well, but struggled with my putter the last day and I ended up in a playoff for the bronze and I lost that playoff,” he recalled. “Hopefully, I got a little taste of what it is to compete for a medal and hopefully this time I do a little bit better.”

And what would be more meaningful back home for Norwegian fans – winning an Olympic medal or a major?

“I don’t know how to answer that,” Hovland said. “I think winning a major is bigger, personally, and I think most people think that way and I think maybe the Norwegian people would interpret it that way, just based off of the reaction of other people. But people not knowing anything about golf and there are plenty of those people in Norway, I think would probably be more excited about an Olympic medal compared to a major because they might not know what a major is, but everyone’s heard of the Olympics and an Olympic medal carries a lot more weight than a major maybe does for some people.”

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Olympic golf pairings, tee times and schedule for the first round

Everything you need to know for the first round of men’s golf at the Olympics.

After making its competitive return at the Rio Olympics in 2016, Olympic golf is back once again this week in Japan.

Kasumigaseki Country Club plays host to both the men’s and women’s competition. Kasumigaseki’s East Course will play 7,447 yards for the men, July 29-August 1. For the women, August 4-7, it will play 6,648 yards.

Marquee groups include: Xander Schauffele, Abraham Ancer, Christiaan Bezuidenhout; Justin Thomas, Joaquin Niemann, Paul Casey; Collin Morikawa, Rory McIlroy, Sungjae Im; Patrick Reed, Tommy Fleetwood, Shane Lowry.

While the competition will be held Thursday morning local time, the 13-hour time difference means play will begin Wednesday night, July 28, in Eastern Daylight Time.

From tee times to TV and streaming info, here’s everything you need to know about the first round of the men’s golf competition at the Olympics. All times Eastern.

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Tee times

Time Players
6:30 p.m. Rikuya Hoshino, Thomas Pieters, Sepp Straka
6:41 p.m. Adri Arnaus, Sami Valimaki, Matthias Schwab
6:52 p.m. Sebastian Munoz, Henrik Norlander, Joachim Hansen
7:03 p.m. Carlos Ortiz, Antoine Rozner, Guido Migliozzi
7:14 p.m. Xander Schauffele, Abraham Ancer, Christiaan Bezuidenhout
7:25 p.m. Justin Thomas, Joaquin Niemann, Paul Casey
7:41 p.m. Hideki Matsuyama, Marc Leishman, Corey Conners
7:52 p.m. C.T. Pan, Ryan Fox, Anirban Lahiri
8:03 p.m. Hurly Long, Carl Yuan, Gavin Kyle Green
8:14 p.m. Kristian Johannessen, Adrian Meronk, Gunn Charoenkul
8:25 p.m. Rory Sabbatini, Mito Pereira, Renato Paratore
8:36 p.m. Jhonattan Vegas, Thomas Detry, Kalle Samooja
8:47 p.m. Mackenzie Hughes, Alex Noren, Jazz Janewattananond
9:03 p.m. Rasmus Hojgaard, Romain Langasque, Si Woo Kim
9:14 p.m. Viktor Hovland, Cameron Smith, Garrick Higgo
9:25 p.m. Collin Morikawa, Rory McIlroy, Sungjae Im
9:36 p.m. Patrick Reed, Tommy Fleetwood, Shane Lowry
9:47 p.m. Rafael Campos, Maximilian Kieffer, Ashun Wu
9:58 p.m. Fabrizio Zanotti, Juvic Pagunsan, Scott Vincent
10:09 p.m. Udayan Mane, Ondrej Lieser, Jorge Campillo

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Typhoon expected to hit near Tokyo on Tuesday, could make for a soggy start to Olympic men’s golf competition

Several inches of rain could fall in Tokyo during the tropical storm, leaving soggy conditions in its wake at Kasumigaseki Country Club.

The Olympic golf competition may be in for a soggy start, as the men are scheduled to begin play Thursday just days after a weak typhoon is predicted to make landfall Tuesday north of Tokyo.

Tropical Storm Nepartak is a mid-grade tropical storm by U.S. categorizations, the Associated Press reported. It could dump several inches of rain on Kasumigaseki Country Club northwest of Tokyo, which is on the eastern, Pacific Ocean-facing side of Japan. Maximum gusts have approached 70 mph, the Japan Meteorological Agency reported, with sustained winds of about 45 mph.

“It is a tropical storm of three grade out of five, so you shouldn’t be too much worried about that, but it is a typhoon in Japan interpretation,” Tokyo Games spokesman Masa Takaya said. “This is the weakest category, but this is still a typhoon so we should not be too optimistic about the impact of the course (of the storm).”

The storm, which is approaching the island nation from the east, is predicted to be gone from the area before the men tee off Thursday morning. But the golf course’s drainage could be tested, and there is a high probability of more rain throughout the next two weeks. The men play July 29-August 1, and the women play August 4-7.

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Check the yardage book: Kasumigaseki East Course for the 2021 Olympic Games

Kasumigaseki Country Club dates back nearly a century, but it was a Fazio renovation in 2016 that prepared the course for the Olympics.

Kasumigaseki Country Club and its East Course, host site for golf in this year’s Olympic Games, was founded in 1929 and renovated a few years later by British designer C.H. Alison before being closed during World War II. The U.S. Air Force took over the property following the war, and the East and a new West Course were re-established in the following years.

The East featured two greens on each hole for decades, with one green covered in a winter grass and the other in a grass that thrived during the warm summers.

All that changed with a 2016 renovation by American architect Tom Fazio and his son, Logan, who converted the private Kasumigaseki’s double greens into single greens. The Fazios also repositioned fairway bunkers to challenge modern professionals, and they reframed several holes in their existing corridors. The greens are now covered in bent grass, with zoysia in play on the rest of the course.

A 2017 aerial photo of Kasumigaseki Country Club in Kawagoe, outside of Tokyo, Japan (Miyuki Saito/Kyodo News via AP)

The course will play 7,447 yards for the men July 29-August 1, and it will play 6,648 yards for the women August 4-7.

Kasumigaseki has been the host of several notable golf events, including several Japan Opens and various top amateur events. It hosted the 1957 Canada Cup, a precursor to the World Cup, and Hideki Matsuyama won the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship on Kasumigaseki’s West Course in 2010. Now the Masters champion, Matsuyama is a favorite in these Olympics.

Thanks to yardage books provided by Puttview – the maker of detailed yardage books for more than 30,000 courses around the world – we can see exactly the challenges that players will face this week and next. Check out each hole below (yardages will be adjusted for the women), and follow this link to the club’s website to see drone footage of each hole, with narration by Tom Fazio.

Captain America: Patrick Reed answers call to represent U.S. in Olympics after Bryson DeChambeau tests positive for COVID-19

“Anytime I can represent my country and go play for my country, I’m going to do it no matter what.”

BLAINE, Minn. – Patrick Reed was in scoring after Saturday’s third round of the 3M Open when he got a message to call USA Golf executive Andy Levinson.

“It’s about the Olympics,” it read.

Reed made the call and learned from the other end that he would represent the U.S. in the men’s golf competition at the Summer Games in Tokyo after Bryson DeChambeau tested positive for COVID-19 and was forced to withdraw.

Per COVID protocols, Reed began testing Saturday night and needs to pass tests on Sunday and then at least 24 hours later on Monday to be able to play. Reed said he was flying home to Texas and will test there on Sunday and Monday.

If the two tests come up negative, he will fly from Houston to San Francisco on Tuesday morning and then fly from the Golden City to Tokyo, arriving Wednesday afternoon. Reed, the world No. 13 and 2018 Masters champion, would join No. 3 and reigning British Open champion Collin Morikawa, No. 4 Justin Thomas and No. 5 Xander Schauffele in representing the U.S.

Reed tied for 11th in the 2016 Rio Summer Games.

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“Anytime I can represent my country and go play for my country, I’m going to do it no matter what, no matter where it is, no matter what time zone or how I have to get there,” Reed said. “When they gave me the name Captain America, the fans did, it feels like an obligation and a duty of mine to go out and play for our country whenever I can and whenever I get the call.

“To be able to call myself not just an Olympian but a two-time Olympian is pretty sweet. I look forward to going over there and playing. I know things are going to be a little different this time than the first time we were at Rio where we were able to go and experience all the other venues and things like that, but to be able to go in and represent our country with a small group of guys and go out there and try to bring home gold is just an honor I can’t pass up.”

The first round begins Thursday in Japan on the East Course at Kasumigaseki Country Club in Saitama, about 35 miles northwest of downtown Tokyo. Reed said he won’t have time to play a practice round, but he doesn’t fear playing any course blind. Back in his Monday qualifying days, he was 6-for-6 in earning a spot in a PGA Tour event when seeing the qualifying course for the first time; he was 0-for-2 when he played a practice round at the Monday qualifying site.

“And these days with how good yardage books are and with how much we have to kind of figure things out on the fly as it is, I expect to go in there and play well and be able to manage the golf course and hit the golf shots,” said Reed, who will have his coach, Kevin Kirk, on the bag.

Reed, 30, who won his ninth PGA Tour title earlier this year in the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines, finished at 6 under after an even-par 71 Sunday at TPC Twin Cities and finished in the middle of the pack at the 3M Open.

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John Rahm tests positive again, out of Olympics

Rahm had to take four PCR tests in the United Kingdom before coming to Tokyo. He failed three consecutive tests.

It’s deja vu all over again for Jon Rahm.

The Spanish golfer, World No. 1 and  2021 U.S. Open champion will not participate in the Tokyo Olympics after testing positive for COVID-19.

Rahm, who finished tied for third in the British Open last week, had to take four PCR tests in the United Kingdom before coming to Tokyo. He failed three consecutive tests, the Spanish Olympic Committee confirmed to USA TODAY Sports.

Testing positive had been Rahm’s kryptonite. He won the U.S. Open just 15 days after he tested positive for COVID-19 and was forced to withdraw from the Memorial Tournament ahead of the final round despite holding a commanding six-stroke lead. Ahead of the U.S. Open he said of coronavirus, “I’ve got it all. I had it, I got the antibodies, got the vaccination. I feel invincible at this point.”

The Spanish Olympic Committee said, via the International Golf Federation, that they could not get a replacement for Rahm due to inadequate “time to find a replacement and comply with the necessary health protocols required for the Tokyo Olympics.” Adri Arnaus will be Spain’s only representative in the men’s golf competition, which is scheduled to begin Thursday.

Speaking in May, Rahm commented on his desire to represent his country in the Olympics despite what he termed the “inconveniences” involved in competing.

“I’ve been able to win championships representing Spain as an amateur in almost every imaginable level, and to bring back the gold medal would be something amazing…It’s an absolute dream of mine to be an Olympian.”

Rahm said he had mild symptoms of the coronavirus when he previously tested positive. He had to quarantine ahead of the U.S. Open. At the time of his original positive test, he tweeted out, “This is one of those things that happens in life, one of those moments where how we respond to a setback defines us as people. I’m very thankful that my family and I are all OK. I will take all of the necessary precautions to be safe and healthy, and I look forward to returning to the golf course as soon as possible.”

Ahead of winning his first major, Rahm said he was vaccinated the Monday before the June 3-6 Memorial and regretted waiting to get vaccinated.

“Looking back on it, yeah, I guess I wish I would have done it earlier, but thinking on scheduling purposes and having the PGA and defending Memorial, I was just – to be honest, it wasn’t in my mind,” Rahm said at the time. “I’m not going to lie; I was trying to just get ready for a golf tournament. If I had done it in a few days earlier, probably we wouldn’t be having these conversations right now. It is what it is. We move on.”

Less than six hours earlier, American Bryson DeChambeau also tested positive and was replaced on Team USA by Patrick Reed, who had been third in line to be a replacement, behind Patrick Cantlay and Brooks Koepka.

Contributing: Jim Reineking, Alex Ptachick, USA TODAY.