Golf made a triumphant return to the Olympic Games in 2016 after not featuring since 1904. Justin Rose of Great Britain and Inbee Park of South Korea won gold in the respective men's and women's competitions at Rio 2016, while in Tokyo at the 2020 Games, Xander Schauffele and Nelly Korda were the two to claim the gold medals.
In 2024, the Olympics heads to Paris, where men's and women's golf events will once again take place, this time at Le Golf National.
Many of the best players in the game will compete at each, with eight of the world's top 10 men and a similarly top-class women's field including World No.1 Korda. But how does Olympic golf work and what is the format?
What Is The Olympic Golf Format?
Both the men's and women's golf events at the Paris 2024 Olympics will be 72-hole individual strokeplay tournaments, similar to many events in the regular golf calendar.
For the Olympics, each tournament will take place over four rounds on consecutive days. Like many other events, scores are cumulative across each round, and the player with the lowest score at the end of the four days of action wins.
Even though most nations are represented by two or more players in both the men's and women's tournaments, there isn't a team format, meaning each player competes individually, with the final position on the leaderboard determining whether the player will ultimately claim a medal for their country.
Both the men's and women's fields consist of just 60 players rather than the usual 150+ for regular PGA Tour and LPGA Tour events, and that means there will be only 20 tee times each day, with players competing in groups of three. Because of the limited fields in each, there also won't be a cut.
The men’s tournament begins on Thursday 1 August, six days after the Olympics Opening Ceremony, with the final round on Sunday 4 August. Three days later, it’s the women’s turn at the course, with the action taking place between Wednesday 6 August and Saturday 10 August.
Is There A Cut In Olympics Golf?
Unlike regular PGA Tour events, LPGA Tour events and the Majors, there is no cut in the Olympics golf events. That's because the fields for each comprise just 60 players rather than the much larger fields of many other events. While other tournaments typically have a cut after 36 holes, all 120 competitors across both the men's and women's events will play all four days.
What Is The Olympics Playoff Format?
If players can't be separated at the top of the leaderboard after the 72nd hole, there will be a playoff. Each will play one extra hole in an effort to determine an outright winner, but it will continue with extra holes if necessary until a champion emerges.
Because the medal allocation needs to be determined, playoffs may also be necessary to separate players competing for the silver and bronze medals.
For example, at the 2020 Olympics, Xander Schauffele won the gold medal after 72 holes of the men's tournament, with Rory Sabbatini finishing in solo second to claim silver. However, seven players were T3, and each took part in a four-hole playoff that was eventually won by CT Pan to claim the bronze medal.
