Dutch Olympic officers are holding house two male and one feminine gamers from the golf competitors in Paris as a result of they consider their world rating is just too low for them to have a sensible probability in opposition to 60-player fields.
The Netherlands Golf Federation stated Tuesday it introduced “intensive arguments and knowledge” in a June 14 assembly with the Dutch committee that oversees the Olympics, hopeful of exhibiting distinctive variations in golf in contrast with different sports activities.
“Based on them, it has not been demonstrated that there’s a cheap probability of a top-eight rating in the course of the Olympic Video games,” the NGF stated in an announcement.
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 saved golfers house for not being ranked among the many prime 100 on the planet.
Most telling concerning the Dutch choice 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 gained 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 is predicated on the Official World Golf Rating. Nations 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 typical 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 12 months, 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 12 months tied for 71st in The Open.
The absence of Dutch golfers imply the male gamers might be changed by Joel Girrbach of Switzerland (No. 366 on the planet) and Tapio Pulkkanen of Finland (No. 378) from the reallocation reserve listing. Sarah Schober of Austria (No. 330) is ready 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 factors. 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 clarify that margins are so skinny in golf that gamers properly exterior the highest 100 can win on any given week.
“It’s common for lower-ranked gamers to make a big 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 properly in huge occasions.”
Seven gamers ranked exterior the highest 100 on the planet have gained PGA Tour occasions that provided full FedEx Cup factors this 12 months. That listing contains Nick Dunlap, who was an novice nonetheless in faculty when he gained The American Categorical in opposition to 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 exterior the highest 27 within the Olympic rating must report a top-eight end in a event — supplied that event 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, hardly ever 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 12 months.
Luiten has 5 top-20 finishes this 12 months, together with a tie for 14th within the Dubai Invitational, the place Tommy Fleetwood defeated McIlroy by one shot.
Van Driel gained the Magical Kenya Open in February for his first European tour win. That event had solely two gamers from the highest 100.
