Marcus Fraser: Rio’s Unlikely Australian Leader
Marcus Fraser has impressed with how he’s seized the lead at the Olympic Games. We take a closer look at the widely unheralded Australian.
Two days into golf’s historic return to the Olympics, one unlikely Australian has stolen the spotlight.
Surprisingly enough, this individual is not world No. 1 golfer, Jason Day. Nor is it 2013 Masters champion, Adam Scott. The two biggest and brightest PGA Tour stars from the land down under elected to skip this year’s spectacle in Brazil, citing concerns of the busy tour schedule and the Zika virus.
Instead, when looking at the world golf rankings, you have to scroll down to the 90th position to come across the Aussie who finds himself atop of the Olympic leader-board, Marcus Fraser.
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Not to be confused with fellow Aussie mate Marc Leishman, world No. 46 who finished T-2 in the 2015 Open Championship, Fraser posted an eight-under-par 63 on the first day of competition at the Olympic Golf Course. He followed up his stellar 63 with a 2-under-par 69 on Friday, providing him a one stroke lead over Belgian Thomas Pieters heading into the weekend.
Fraser came into the tournament with only a 150-1 chance to overcome the field of 60 to win gold. Those odds were even slimmer a few months ago.
It took the aforementioned Day, Scott, Leishman, and world No. 87, Matt Jones, bypassing these Olympic games for Fraser to have a chance wield his nation’s gold and green colors.
“I’m glad they decided not to come,” Fraser said on Thursday. “I’m really glad to be here. At the same time, I fully respect their decisions. I’m embracing the fact that I am here.”
Unbeknownst to the most casual of golf fans, Fraser is no stranger to the top of a leader-board in professional golf. He turned pro in 2002 and has been a regular member of the European Tour and the PGA Tour of Australasia. Fraser boasts 44 top-10 finishes in his career, including five wins.
But to say that his surge at the Olympics was to be expected is certainly an overstatement. The 38-year-old has not had a very strong season. He did win a European Tour event in February in Malaysia, but his only other top-10 since his victory was a tie for a second at a Japanese Tour event in April. In two of this year’s major events, Fraser tied for 73rd at the PGA Championship and missed the cut at The Open, which were also his last two starts.
Before his official tee time on Thursday, Fraser had been struggling in his first practice rounds. It wasn’t until he spoke to Australian legend and team leader, Ian Baker-Finch, that Fraser began to calm his nerves and keep his ball striking firm.
“It’s been great being able to talk to Ian all week about different things, the experiences that he had been through in his career and trying to pluck as much information out of him as I can,” Fraser said. “Ian was always an idol of mine growing up.”
This example of team support is one of the many ways in which Fraser believes this Olympic tournament has been different from the typical grit of tour golf.
“It’s so different to every other week when we’re playing for ourselves,” Fraser said. “This week we’re playing for Australia first, and then for ourselves. The Olympics is the Olympics. What more can you say?”
Fraser will need every little piece of advice to hold off some big names who are chasing him for the coveted top position. Sweden’s Henrik Stenson and Great Britain’s Justin Rose are chomping at the bit to add an Olympic medal to their already boisterous trophy displays. They lurk behind Fraser at 8-under-par and 6-under-par, two and four shots back.
Regardless of his outcome this weekend, Fraser has already discovered his true purpose for participating in the Olympics.
“My kids kept telling me I’m going to the Olympics,” he said after his round. “Later in life, they’ll be able to say Dad went to the Olympics; that’s a big reason I wanted to come here.”
Next: Olympic Golf: Marcus Fraser Leads By One At The Halfway Stage
If Fraser can keep playing like he did in the first two days, his kids may be able to go one step further and say that their Dad is an Olympic medalist.