Dutch Olympic officers are preserving dwelling two male and one feminine gamers from the golf competitors in Paris as a result of they consider their world rating is simply too low for them to have a practical likelihood towards 60-player fields.
The Netherlands Golf Federation stated Tuesday it offered “in depth arguments and knowledge” in a June 14 assembly with the Dutch committee that oversees the Olympics, hopeful of displaying distinctive variations in golf in contrast with different sports activities.
“In response to them, it has not been demonstrated that there’s a affordable likelihood of a top-eight rating throughout the Olympic Video games,” the NGF stated in a press release.
The choice means Joost Luiten and Darius Van Driel is not going to be going to Paris. It’s the second straight Olympics that Dutch officers have stored golfers dwelling for not being ranked among the many prime 100 on the planet.
Most telling in regards to the Dutch determination is what occurred on the Tokyo Olympics. Rory Sabbatini certified at No. 161 on the planet and shot 61 within the last spherical to win the silver medal in a historic day for Slovakian golf.
C.T. Pan of Taiwan received a seven-man playoff — which included Rory McIlroy and Collin Morikawa — to win the bronze. Pan certified at No. 181 on the planet.
Olympic qualifying relies on the Official World Golf Rating. International locations are allowed two gamers — 4 if all are among the many prime 15 — till the 60-player subject is stuffed.
For the Tokyo Video games, the Netherlands had set a normal of gamers being among the many prime 100 on the planet or the highest 36 within the Olympic rating for them to compete. Luiten was No. 177 and Wil Besseling was No. 221 when qualifying ended.
This yr, Luiten was No. 40 within the Olympic rating, with a world rating of No. 147.
Anne Van Dam, who’s No. 108 within the girls’s world rating and No. 34 within the Olympic rating, would be the solely Dutch golfer. The Netherlands Olympic Committee is not going to be sending Dewi Weber, who’s No. 302 on the planet.
The 38-year-old Luiten is a six-time winner on the European tour who has certified for 21 majors — together with the Masters twice — and final yr tied for 71st in The Open.
The absence of Dutch golfers imply the male gamers can be changed by Joel Girrbach of Switzerland (No. 366 on the planet) and Tapio Pulkkanen of Finland (No. 378) from the reallocation reserve checklist. Sarah Schober of Austria (No. 330) is about to exchange Weber. (The Worldwide Golf Federation will announce last subject on July 9.)
Besseling, in an interview two summers in the past on the U.S. Open the place he tied for 56th at The Nation Membership, had hoped Dutch officers would change the standards. He stated it was a “silly rule to make.”
The Worldwide Golf Federation despatched an in depth letter in help of the Dutch golfers for the June 14 assembly, attempting to elucidate that margins are so skinny in golf that gamers effectively outdoors the highest 100 can win on any given week.
“It’s common for lower-ranked gamers to make a major affect in main tournaments, defying their present standings,” the IGF letter stated. “There are quite a few examples of gamers who’re decrease ranked on OWGR who carry out effectively in large occasions.”
Seven gamers ranked outdoors the highest 100 on the planet have received PGA Tour occasions that provided full FedEx Cup factors this yr. That checklist contains Nick Dunlap, who was an beginner nonetheless in school when he received The American Specific towards a subject that included Scottie Scheffler.
The Dutch committee — formally the Netherlands Olympic Committee/Netherlands Sports activities Federation — tweaked its standards for sending golfers to the 2024 Olympics.
For males, anybody ending outdoors the highest 27 within the Olympic rating must file a top-eight end in a match — supplied that match had 5 gamers from the highest 50 on the planet or 10 from the highest 100. Something much less would require a top-four end.
The European tour, the place Luiten and Van Driel performs, not often will get that many from the highest 100 in a world rating that has been extra closely skewed towards the PGA Tour within the final yr.
Luiten has 5 top-20 finishes this yr, together with a tie for 14th within the Dubai Invitational, the place Tommy Fleetwood defeated McIlroy by one shot.
Van Driel received the Magical Kenya Open in February for his first European tour win. That match had solely two gamers from the highest 100.
