PGA Championship Tees Off as Olympic Tournament Looms

(ATR) Olympic bound golfers tee it up at the U.S. PGA Championship as the season’s final major begins at Baltusrol Golf Club in Springfield, New Jersey.

Twenty-nine of the 156-player PGA field will be headed to Rio for the men’s Olympic tournament in Barra da Tijuca, Aug. 11-14.

Carrying self-confidence from his recent victory at the Open Championship in Scotland, Henrik Stenson is now considered among the favorites for both the PGA and Olympic tournament. The 40-year-old Swedish golfer enters the final major as the 5th ranked golfer in the world.

"It’s a quick turnaround, but hopefully the momentum and good play will stay with me," Stenson told PGA.com.

Stenson is grouped alongside Masters champion Danny Willett and U.S. Open winner Dustin Johnson for Thursday’s opening round. Like Stenson, Willett of Great Britain said he is greatly anticipating golf’s return to the Olympics, while Johnson is one of 20 top players skipping the Rio Games, most of whom have cited the Zika virus or health concerns.

Two-time PGA Champion Rory McIlroy – whose comments shunning Olympic golf caused controversy at the Open – said although it has faced "ups and downs" he wishes the best to his fellow pros playing in Rio.

"Being just once every four years it’s a great spectacle and as I’ve said I’ve always enjoyed watching and obviously I hope it goes well for everyone who goes down there," McIlroy told CNN.

Following the Olympic withdrawals of U.S. golfers Jordan Spieth and Dustin Johnson, two-time Masters Champion Bubba Watson is now the highest ranked member of the U.S. Olympic team at number six in the world golf rankings.

"It will be a new experience, but a fun experience," Watson told Around the Rings about competing in Rio. "Anytime you can represent your country what an honor, what a thrill. I’m going to enjoy it and be a fan of the Olympics and sport."

Joining Watson in the PGA field are fellow future U.S. Olympians Rickie Fowler, Patrick Reed and Matt Kuchar.

"We’re all top 15 in the world and that’s the only way we could have four," Watson said about the Olympic qualification criteria. "There’s a chance that all four of us could be in a playoff and one of us doesn’t get a medal, so I’m hoping it’s not me if that happens," he joked.

Phil Mickelson, who was out-dueled by Stenson in the fourth round at Royal Troon in Scotland, won the last major to be played at Baltusrol, when he won the second of his five majors at the demanding 7,428-yard New Jersey course which was founded in 1895.

The 60-men Olympic field was finalized on July 11, however had qualification included results from the Open Championship, the 46-year-old Mickelson would have been representing USA Golf in Rio instead of Kuchar.

The PGA Championship has traditionally been played in mid-August, but was moved up on the golf calendar to accommodate the first Olympic golf tournament in 112 years.

RICOH British Open

While the men contest the final major of the season, the ladies are playing a major of their own – the Ricoh Women’s British Open at Woburn Golf & Country Club in Milton Keynes, England.

World Number one Lydia Ko of New Zealand, who earlier this season won another major – the ANA Inspiration in France – is a threat for Olympic gold in Rio and headlines the British Open field.

The 19-year-old phenom was the LPGA rookie of the year in 2014 and player of the year in 2015. Last year, she became the youngest player -- male or female -- to achieve world No. 1 at the age of 17.

Ko, who was born in South Korea, but raised in New Zealand, leads the LPGA Tour with four victories this season. She owns 14 career LPGA Tour victories and has earned more than $7 million.

The fourth of five women's major championships precedes the ladies Olympic tournament in Rio, August 17-20.

Unlike their male counterparts, all but one of the top ranked women golfers are slated to tee off in Brazil.

Written by Brian Pinelli

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