In front of a sizable and boisterous home crowd on Thursday, Victor Perez of France celebrated the opening tee shot of Olympic golf by repeatedly pumping his fist above his head.
At Le Golf National, Hideki Matsuyama proceeded about his business in silence, finishing with an 8-under 63 score and a two-shot lead. Following closely after was none other than Xander Schauffele, who was playing as if he hadn’t missed a beat despite being ten days away from his Open Championship victory.
The unexpected sight was the roughly 20,000 fans outside the ropes, trudging through the intense heat and observing abnormally low scores due to the course’s softening effects from the previous night’s rain.
Matsuyama recorded six birdies through ten holes and maintained a clean card with a 15-foot par save on the 17th. Matsuyama lost in a 7-man playoff for the bronze medal at the 2020 Tokyo Games.
Luckily, I managed to keep the ball in the fairway, giving me more opportunities to score. Therefore, I’m happy with the outcome in that aspect. However, there are still many areas in which I could do better. I’m definitely off to a terrific start, and I’m hoping to maintain this enthusiasm for the remainder of the week.
When storm clouds moved in, the first round slowed down, and lightning in the vicinity caused two delays. After having to withdraw off the course when on the 18th tee, Schauffele came back to tie the score, but then there was still another delay.
Amid the stop-and-start racing, Carlos Ortiz from Mexico was fighting for the lead. On the par-3 16th hole, he teed off into the water, making a double bogey and a bogey at the conclusion. All he could manage was a 69.
Tom Kim of South Korea, Emiliano Grillo of Argentina, Joaquin Niemann of Chile, and Scottie Scheffler, the tournament favorite and winner of the Masters, were all at 66.
For Kim, 22, winning an Olympic gold would mean he would not have to serve in South Korea’s required military. Despite saying it’s not on his mind, he would still have the opportunity to compete in the Olympics at least once more.
“It’s not at all concerning to me”Kim said.
Scheffler’s family was present in full form, including Bennett, his 3-month-old baby, who was startled awake by the raucous applause when he birdied the first hole.
Really, I had no idea what to anticipate. Around the course, things have been somewhat calm for the past several days. However, it was nice to perform for a sizable, enthusiastic audience. It was a great time. More people than I had anticipated, for sure.
Scheffler believed he could have shot lower, but he wasn’t too unhappy with his game. Ludvig Åberg and Rory McIlroy, who both shot 68, were his playing partners.
With their phones out to snap anything they could, the spectators stood eight thick around the first green and down the second hole, following the lead group that had just finished.
41 players out of the 60 players in the field scored well.
The key lesson, though, was found outside the boundaries.
The first tee was definitely more than a typical event and certainly more than anything you would ever see on a Thursday, even if it wasn’t nearly a Ryder Cup.
He was partnered with the other French player on the team, Matthieu Pavon. When the spectators saw Pavon on the bridge going to the first tee box, they started chanting “La Marseillaise,” and players could hear their jubilant cheers from two or three holes away.
Even though Pavon only had one additional birdie of the day in his round of 72, the noise level increased when he birdied the opening hole.
Ahead of Pavon was the group that included Schauffele.
“It thought like, “This is pretty special,” as people started shouting Matthieu’s name and it seemed to be reverberating around the corner. Of course, Tokyo held a particular place in my heart, but there were no fans. The city was shut down. I was stranded at my lodging.”Schauffele said.
Going out to dinner, taking in the sights and sounds of everyone, even chanting fans, makes me feel as though I’m in this place for the first time.
For someone hoping to win another gold medal, Schauffele’s 65 was a solid start. It seems easier than it was. On the opening hole, he chipped in for a birdie. On the next, he needed to get up and down for par. On the third par 5, he missed the fairway but still had a decent chance to make birdie.
“It wasn’t quite the ideal, striped beginning that a golfer dreams of. However, I’m content to sort of sail through and escape from what may have been worse. A couple putts came in that I missed. However, Thursday is here. I’m not worrying too much about it.”he said.
