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• Olympic Golf will continue beyond 2020, says Tim Finchem
• “Golf there for the long term,” said outgoing PGA Tour chief
• Admits there may need to be a tweak in the events’ format

OLYMPIC GOLF | PGA TOUR

Outgoing PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem says Olympic Golf will continue beyond 2020.

Doubts had been raised about the long-term future of the event beyond the next Games in Tokyo after a number of the world’s best players – including Jason Day, Dustin Johnson, Rory McIlroy and Jordan Spieth – opted not to take part in Rio de Janeiro.

“He was blown away by the galleries” – Tim Finchem

But, after what was hailed as a hugely successful return for Olympic Golf after a gap of 112 years, Finchem says the sport has done enough to keep its place.

“I had an interesting conversation with Thomas Bach, the president of the IOC, who came to our venue on Sunday, the men’s competition,” said Finchem. “He was blown away by the galleries. I think we were the only sport that was sold out that particular day.

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“He told me now understand the power of being an Olympian, of being able to compete on this stage, of being able to interface with these wonderful athletes from all over the globe. Just ask the players who did go. It was a game changer in their minds.

“Then he went on to tell me other things I don’t know, like Japan is a very strong golf country and that we can expect mammoth galleries in Japan. We played the World Cup there in 2001, and if you just look at the footage, thousands and thousands and thousands of people came out. So it’s going to be a big event in Japan, and I think golf is there for the long term.

“Now, we may want to do some tweaking in the format. It would be nice to have some more medals, in my view, but that will be something that the team will work on going forward.”

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