Perhaps the only golfer Xander Schauffele will fear over a weekend at Le Golf National is Tommy Fleetwood.
Regardless of what transpires between now and January, Schauffele is the player of the year. The claiming of two Major championships secures that honour. Yet one player who certainly has the capacity to knock the American off his stride over the closing 36 holes at the Olympics is Fleetwood. Course and distance specialism belong to the Team GB man.
Six years have flown by since Fleetwood and Francesco Molinari formed the “Moliwood” partnership in swatting aside the Americans during the Ryder Cup. This week marks the world No 14′s first visit to Le Golf National since what is widely regarded as the standout event of his career thus far.
So far, so good; Fleetwood’s Friday 64 means he is the joint leader on 11 under par with Schauffele and 2021 Masters winner Hideki Matsuyama. Things would look even more promising for Fleetwood but for a dropped shot at the last.
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“It would be nice to think so,” said Fleetwood when asked whether he can draw upon 2018. “Whatever happened six years ago has no effect on what is going to happen tomorrow but you’re always better off coming to a course where you have good feelings and good things have happened.
“So I’ll definitely draw on those but I have to stand up there and hit the golf shots. Nothing that’s happened in the past is going to do it for me. But it’s better having good feelings than having a course that’s battered you to pieces.”
Fleetwood, who was a French Open champion at the same venue, has relished the Olympic scene. Huge attendances on the outskirts of Versailles have surprised many of the competitors.
“I actually haven’t been in contention for a while so I kind of enjoy that on its own, as well as it being the Olympics,” the 33-year-old added. “It brings with it its own mental challenges. You’re playing for a medal. You look at the atmosphere this week, we constantly get asked the question: ‘Where does the Olympics sit in golf?’ When you look at how it’s going this week, it continues to grow and what people feel about it. It brings its own nerves and excitement and it’s very, very special. It’s has its own unique feeling and it’s amazing.”
Jon Rahm lurks at nine under. At eight under, the Belgian Thomas Detry’s 63 was the lowest score of the day. That Tom Kim is on the same score as Detry could become significant, given he would be excused mandatory military service in South Korea should he earn a medal. “I’m just trying to focus on my game,” Kim insisted. “I’m a competitor and we all play for the same thing. It’s just golf. So I’m just trying to put my head down and play.”
Ireland’s Rory McIlroy has work to do from five under to put himself in contention but history dictates the four-time Major winner could still be a factor. The world number three has sympathised with those trying to schedule golf tournaments around the Olympics in what is the busiest spell of an elite player’s season.
“From what I’ve read, 2028 in LA is going to be much more of a headache than this one was,” McIlroy said. “But maybe the world of golf looks a little different then. There’s so many golf tournaments and not enough weeks in the calendar. Something needs to give.”
The case for McIlroy’s Ireland team-mate Shane Lowry is much harder to make, given he is even par after back-to-back 71s. Viktor Hovland’s erratic year continued after he took seven at the first before signing for a 75. – Guardian
