Seven players headed to extra holes to determine a bronze medalist at the Olympics. Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile via Getty ImagesWhat's that? You don't think golf should be in the Olympics? Too boring, you say. Not enough drama. Was the perennial runner-up escaping trees, rough and demons for a miraculous 18th-hole par to win a life-changing gold medal not enough for you? How about the South African-turned-Slovakian shooting a preposterous final-round 61 and fist-pumping his birdie putt on 18 when it was only about halfway to the hole to claim silver? Was that not weird enough? Well then, let me take you to the scene at No. 18 tee at about 3:25 a.m. Eastern Standard Time (4:25 p.m. local time) when seven of the world's best golfers headed back to the course to play off for the illustrious honor of solo third place. As it turns out, once people stop handing out something insignificant like "a million dollars" for third place (the prize for second runner-up at this year's Players Championship) and instead play for a small copper circle (yeah, they make the bronze medals from mostly copper), things get awfully interesting. At least, interesting for those still awake to watch. The Olympics was marketed as a chance to "grow the game," but the late hour likely thinned the herd of viewers to golf sickos and insomniacs. In wonderfully Olympic fashion, the seven pros in the bronze-medal bonanza represented seven different nationalities. One guy had just won his second major championship in less than a year. Another guy was the proud owner of twice that many. A third was playing on the Korn Ferry Tour a few weeks ago. And that was less than half the playoff's competitors. The Olympic playoff rules dictate that as long as no more than six players are in a playoff, they can all go off in the same group. Well, bad news for the Olympic playoff rules. Seven golfers — in just a 60-player field! — meant a foursome and a threesome navigating an awkward two-step down the challenging 18th.'I've been proven wrong': Rory McIlroy walks back prior Olympic commentsBy:Zephyr MeltonC. T. Pan was first to scare the hole for a potential walk-off birdie. Pan, representing Chinese Taipei, had been left for dead after a first-round 74 but then played the next 54 holes better than anyone else in the field, shooting 66-66-63 to join the party at 15 under. On the first playoff hole, his putt grazed the very left edge. Nobody else got closer. Two players were unable to attend the par-fest on the first playoff hole. Paul Casey drove it into the trees, punched out and couldn't get up-and-down. Hideki Matsuyama, who missed a short par putt at No. 16 and a short birdie putt at No. 17, watched another try go wanting as scores of Japanese media winced from the sidelines. The rest of the fellas played on. All data is taken from the source: http://golf.com Article Link: https://golf.com/news/olympic-golf-playoff-bronze/ #Olympicgolf #newsyesterday #newstodaymsnbc #newstodaycnn #newstodayworld #newsworldwide #
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Seven way playoff for bronze medal sends Olympic golf into chaos
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