'Interpreted as Numbers'... 'Everything About Olympic Golf' [Paris Olympics]

2 Gold Medals, 22 First-Time Olympic Athletes
Four Days 72-Hole Stroke Play, 3 Korean-American Athletes
Paris Olympics Return After 124 Years Since 1900

Golf was ignored in the Olympics for over 100 years. The men's event disappeared after the 1904 St. Louis Games in the United States, and the women's event after the 1900 Paris Games. Through the 2016 Rio Games, the men's event returned as an official Olympic sport after 112 years, and the women's event after 116 years. Golf survived again at the Paris Games, which opened on the 26th. It remained an official Olympic sport for the third consecutive time. There is even a proposal to create mixed team events for men and women at the 2028 Los Angeles Games. Golf has begun to receive 'recognition' in the Olympics.

Park In-bee is smiling brightly after winning the gold medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics.

◆2 (events)= Number of gold medals. Awards are given for men's and women's individual events. There is a demand to expand the events to include team competitions. At the Asian Games, golf awards four gold medals across men's and women's individual and team events.

◆3 (players)= Korean diaspora players. Siblings Minjee Lee and Minwoo Lee from Australia, and Lydia Ko from New Zealand are on the roster. Lydia Ko won a silver medal at the 2016 Rio Games and a bronze medal at the 2021 Tokyo Games. She is the only player among the participants with two medals.

◆4 (players)= Maximum number of players from one country allowed to compete. The Olympic ranking is the criterion. If multiple players are ranked within the top 15, up to four players can participate. This time, only the United States men's team has four players: Scottie Scheffler, Xander Schauffele, Wyndham Clark, and Collin Morikawa.

◆9 (countries)= Countries that have won medals in the Olympics since 2016. These include Korea, England, the United States, Taiwan, Japan, New Zealand, China, Sweden, and Slovakia. Rory Sabbatini changed his nationality from South Africa to Slovakia at the Tokyo Games and won a silver medal.

◆22 (players)= Players making their Olympic debut at the Paris Olympics. Including Korea's Kim Joo-hyung, 12 men and 10 women, such as world No. 5 Lin Yining (China), are competing on the Olympic stage for the first time.

◆65 (countries)= Number of participating countries for men and women. According to the International Golf Federation (IGF), 32 countries are represented in the men's competition and 33 in the women's.

◆72 (holes)= Format to determine the winner. A 72-hole stroke play is held over four days. There is no cut-off. In case of a tie, a three-hole playoff is conducted to decide the medal colors. If still undecided, sudden death applies.

◆1900 (year)= The year golf was adopted as an official sport at the modern Olympics, held in Paris. Golf returned to Paris after 124 years.

◆1904 (year)= The last year golf was held in the Olympics before its long hiatus. Only the men's event was held at the St. Louis Games. The United States won the team event, and George Lyon of Canada won the individual event.

◆2021 (year)= The year the Tokyo Olympics took place. The event was postponed by one year due to COVID-19.

◆7331 (yards)= Total length of Le Golf National Olympic Course near Paris. It is a par 72. Built in 1990, it can accommodate 80,000 spectators.