Seven years after golf was voted into the Olympics, the first round is finally here. It has been 112 long years since anyone has hit a golf ball in the Olympic Games, but Brazil’s Addison da Silva will change that on Thursday morning.
A lot has changed in the last century such as golf club and ball technology, golf course design and player physique. One thing remains, though: golf (and thus predicting golf) is still harder. Maybe harder than ever. Let’s take a look at who could win gold in Rio this year.
What: Summer Olympics | Where: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil | When: August 11-14
How to watch (all times ET)
Thursday-Saturday, 6:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. — Golf Channel
Sunday 6:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. — Golf Channel | 1-3 p.m. — NBC
Online: NBCOlympics.com
Participants and odds
- Henrik Stenson: 5-1
- Sergio Garcia: 7-1
- Justin Rose: 10-1
- Rickie Fowler: 14-1
- Bubba Watson: 14-1
- Patrick Reed: 14-1
- Martin Kaymer: 16-1
- Matt Kuchar: 16-1
Stenson deserves to be the favorite, but I hate his odds at 5-1. That’s a Tiger Woods-like number for a guy who has just one win (albeit a big one) in 2016. I’m more intrigued by Mikko Ilonen at 100-1 or Yuta Ikea at 125-1.
Field strength: C
It’s pretty bad.
Story to watch: How darkly humorous would it be if Sergio Garcia won a gold medal but not a major championship? He’s one of the heavier favorites to do so. Or maybe it would be perfect if he won the silver medal in both these Olympic Games as well as in 2020 in Japan. Either way, Garcia is looking forward to the experience.
“It’s such a great experience and something that I’m never ever going to forget,” said Garcia this week. “… I think the pressure is still the same. We all play Majors and Ryder Cups and stuff like that and there is so many people watching. The pressure is just what you want to achieve. I’m sure one the first day it’s going to be like any other tournament when you’re trying to do well, you want to do well, and you have a chance of doing something amazing. So the pressure is going to be just like pretty much any other tournament.”
I’m not sure if Olympics pressure equates to, say, a Masters Sunday, but if that’s what Garcia needs to tell himself to get the juices flowing, that’s fine. He’ll need to perform better than he did at the PGA Championship where he missed the cut. Certain guys get up for events where they can represent their country though, and Garcia is one of them. Patrick Reed is another.
“Anytime I can wear the red, white and blue l’m going to do that, and I’ll be on the first flight,” Reed told the Hartford Courant last week.
Let’s look at the picks this week.
Rio Olympics Expert Picks
| Player | Pick | Analysis |
|---|---|---|
 |
Winner | Patrick Reed has finished in the top 15 in each of his last three events including two major championships. He seems to raise his game a level when the red, white and blue is involved as well. Odds: 14-1 |
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Top 10 | Henrik Stenson has played some pretty unbelievable golf of late. A win at The Open followed by a top 10 at the PGA Championship. I would be shocked if he didn’t contend in Rio. Odds: 5-1 |
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Sleeper | Alex Cejka has top 15s in his last two outings and a top 10 at The Players Championship earlier this year. His odds roll pretty deep and he’s by far the underdog in his own country (Kaymer). But I like his demeanor and I like his poise. He won’t be overwhelmed by the big moment. Odds: 100-1 |
Hey, the John Deere Classic is also this week! Let’s look at some picks for that, too.
Winner: I’m just going to keep picking Jon Rahm until he breaks through. Has had an outrageous maiden voyage on the PGA Tour and is everything we thought Bryson DeChamebeau was going to be. Finished T3 at the Quicken Loans National, T2 at the Canadian Open and is coming off a top 25 at the Travelers Championship. Beware, rest of the field. Odds: 12-1
Top 10: Steve Stricker has won this tournament three times, and he’s riding a bit of a heater into it this season having just finished top 10 at The Open and T2 at the St. Jude Classic. You have eliminated the Jordan Spieths and Rickie Fowlers from contending as well. He should play quite well. Odds: 10-1
Sleeper: Why not Wesley Bryan? Just won for the third time on the Web.com Tour last week to graduate to the big boy PGA Tour. He has been unconscious all season. What’s another week of playing out of his mind? Odds: N/A
You can set your Pick 4 Fantasy Golf lineup now to compete for this weekend’s $1,000 prize. Here are my fantasy picks from our CBS Sports Pick 4 Fantasy Golf groups. Some of these are different than above because you aren’t picking with odds. It’s just straight up, and the players are tiered off.
