Despite winning 21 golf majors between them, Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson have never had a chance to win an Olympic gold medal, so why does the most famous sports event in the world continue to evade them?
The pair became synonymous with golf and Woods arguably transcended it as they forged an exceptional rivalry in the 2000s but with the sport only being an Olympic event once in the last century, they’ve never had a true shot.
Tiger Woods accidentally hits a fan on the Masters golf course, a day to forget
Golf experienced a 112-year hiatus from the Olympics between 1904-2016 before it was left off the list of events again in Tokyo 2020 meaning that Woods and Mickelson only ever had Rio de Janeiro eight years ago as their chance to become Olympians.
But unfortunately for the pair, it missed the peak of their careers and they were considered ineligible for selection by the Olympic Rules and International Golf Federation.
“The top-15 world-ranked players will be eligible for the Olympics, with a limit of four players from a given country,” the governing bodies ruled at the time. “Beyond the top 15, players will be eligible based on the world rankings.
“With a maximum of two eligible players from each country that does not already have two or more players among the top 15.”
Both were particularly and cruelly unfortunate. Two years prior, Woods was still the world number one, which was a spot he held since 1997, whilst Mickelson was the world number two ever since 2001.
Yet Woods suffered injuries and Mickelson‘s age and flirtation with LIV Golf saw them both lose their opportunities to become Olympians, even though the event will also be hosted at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.
Who did the USA send to the 2016 Olympic Games, and who won the men’s gold?
Despite their esteemed history in the sport, Team USA could not claim gold in Rio in 2016 as that award went to Great Britain’s Justin Rose whilst Sweden’s Henrik Stenson claimed silver in South America.
The USA didn’t leave empty handed, however, as Matt Kuchar took bronze.
