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2021 men’s Olympic golf: Top 10 power rankings at Kasumigaseki CC

By Mike Randleman

Hideki Matsuyama reacts after putting the 17th during the first round of Rocket Mortgage Classic at the Detroit Golf Club in Detroit, Thursday, July 1, 2021.
Hideki Matsuyama reacts after putting the 17th during the first round of Rocket Mortgage Classic at the Detroit Golf Club in Detroit, Thursday, July 1, 2021. /
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Jun 20, 2021; San Diego, California, USA; Xander Schauffele looks over his putt on the first green during the final round of the U.S. Open golf tournament at Torrey Pines Golf Course. Mandatory Credit: Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 20, 2021; San Diego, California, USA; Xander Schauffele looks over his putt on the first green during the final round of the U.S. Open golf tournament at Torrey Pines Golf Course. Mandatory Credit: Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports /

The men’s Olympic golf field is relatively young, particularly with newcomers who did not tee it up in Rio de Janeiro in 2016.

Xander Schauffele is one of those. He’s become a veteran on the PGA Tour already at age 27, but still has a lot of his prime years ahead and new experiences like this to be a part of.

Schauffele has been on the schnide trying to get a win on the PGA Tour since his last of three came in 2019. A win at the Tokyo Games wouldn’t snap that skid, but it’d still be a weight off Schauffele’s shoulders.

Not to mention, he’s the king of limited field, no-cut events with two wins and four second-place results.

Competing in the Land of the Rising Sun means a little more to Schauffele, whose grandparents live in Japan.

‘I love Tokyo, I love going there, I’ve been there probably 10 times now in my life, so I just like the culture and everything,” Schauffele was quoted by ASAP Sports in June. “So in terms of representing my country, it’s obviously a true honor. I had a little taste of it at the Presidents Cup just not too long ago and that’s probably more of a team sort of environment than this would be at the Olympics, but, yeah, it’s something new, something I’ve never accomplished, and never done and as a kid I, or once the Olympics were announced for golf, something my dad and I discussed, and so it would be a true honor to compete.”

The Californian is one of the most well-rounded players in theworld and has the game to play well on a variety of different courses. Schauffele ranks third on the PGA Tour in total strokes gained (1.881) and is top-50 in all the main SG categories. The former San Diego State Aztec is also ninth in SG putting (.602).

Schauffele has missed just two cuts in 2021 and his last four starts all resulted in top-26 finishes highlighted by T-7th at the U.S. Open.

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