Johannesburg - While the likes of Jason Day, Rory McIlroy and Adam Scott have withdrawn from the Olympic Games, South African Jaco van Zyl has done almost the unthinkable - he’s pulled out of the Open Championship and US PGA Championship to participate in Rio!
Freelance golf reporter Lali Stander reported this week that Van Zyl - the highest-ranked South African who has made himself available for the Olympics following the withdrawals of Branden Grace, Louis Oosthuizen and Charl Schwartzel - has taken the extraordinary step of missing two majors to be ready for Rio.
Van Zyl won’t play in the Open at Royal Troon in Scotland from July 14-17 and the US PGA at Baltusrol in New Jersey (July 28-31) in order to be physically and mentally prepared - following a busy schedule this year - for the Olympic golf tournament that takes place from August 11-14 at the Olympic Course.
Grace (ranked 10th in the world), Oosthuizen (14th) and Schwartzel (22nd), like their overseas counterparts, have all cited the concerns about the Zika virus as the reason for not being part of Team SA. McIlroy has also said that many golfers regard the four majors as their Olympics and that the risks associated with the Zika virus “wasn’t worth the reward”.
For the 65th-ranked Van Zyl, though, being part of the multi-sport event in golf’s return to the Olympics since 1904 is an historic moment. “I expect that there will be a camp that will criticise me for withdrawing from the majors, but I feel very passionate about golf’s debut at the Olympics. Rory (McIlroy) said in a recent press conference that we play four ‘Olympics’ a year because major titles are what we play for, but I don’t agree,” Van Zyl told Stander.
“To me, the Olympics is the pinnacle of all sporting events and to have the chance to represent Team South Africa on sports’ biggest stage is an honour I don’t take for granted. I need to go to Brazil with the rest of the South African team knowing that I am in peak mental and physical health, and that I can give my best over four rounds.
“The majors will still be there next year, but I don’t know if I will get another chance in 2020.”
But while he may have decided to go to Rio, the decision to skip the Open Championship and US PGA is puzzling. Van Zyl cited a busy schedule this year as the reason for pulling out, but one would’ve thought he could’ve skipped a few other tournaments over the last few months to ensure he can play in those tournaments and go to the Olympics.
Instead, he will spend the next six weeks at home in Benoni. “I was really starting to feel the effects of a very packed schedule at the French Open last week (where he finished joint-62nd on 13-over-par),” Van Zyl said.
“I have been at it almost non-stop since I returned to golf last January. I’ve had a jam-packed season this year, including a lot of travelling between continents, and then coming home to the added stress of building a house.
“This was definitely wasn’t a decision I took lightly, but something had to give and I decided to forego the majors in July in favour of the Olympics.”
The next-in-line on the rankings who could join Van Zyl in Rio is Brandon Stone, who moved up to 89th after a strong performance at the French Open, where he ended in joint-fifth on 4-under-par, seven shots behind Thai winner Thongchai Jaidee.
But the SA Golf Association don’t have to adhere strictly with the rankings in choosing the two-man team for Rio, and could pick anyone they think could bring back a medal. That leaves the selection door open for someone like four-time major winner Ernie Els, even though he is ranked at 241st at the moment.
The full Olympic team will be announced by Sascoc on July 14.