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Olympic Golf: Big Names Will Go for Gold on Sunday

By Tim Letcher

USA's Xander Schauffele watches his drive from the 8th tee in round 3 of the mens golf individual stroke play during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at the Kasumigaseki Country Club in Kawagoe on July 31, 2021. (Photo by Kazuhiro NOGI / AFP) (Photo by KAZUHIRO NOGI/AFP via Getty Images)
USA's Xander Schauffele watches his drive from the 8th tee in round 3 of the mens golf individual stroke play during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at the Kasumigaseki Country Club in Kawagoe on July 31, 2021. (Photo by Kazuhiro NOGI / AFP) (Photo by KAZUHIRO NOGI/AFP via Getty Images) /
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The 2021 Olympic golf tournament is tight with just 18 holes to play. There are a number of players in contention for medals, including some of the biggest names in the field.

Xander Schauffele of the United States took the lead with a 63 in the second round and held onto that lead with a 68 in round three. Schauffele is 14-under par through 54 holes and has a one-shot lead.

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Hideki Matsuyama, the home country favorite representing Japan, sits just one shot behind Schauffele. The Masters champion shot 64 on Friday and 67 to Saturday to get within one of the lead.

Two players are currently 12-under par and two shots back. Paul Casey, representing Great Britain, shot a 66 on Saturday to climb into a tie for third. He shares that spot with Mexico’s Carlos Ortiz, who opened with a 65 on Thursday and has gotten two shots worse each day (65-67-69).

Four players are at 11-under par through three rounds. Ireland’s Rory McIlroy shot 67 on Saturday to climb into a tie for fifth place. He shares that spot with Colombia’s Sebastian Munoz, Mito Pereira of Chile and Sepp Straka of Austria.

A pair of big names sit at 10-under par. Tommy Fleetwood of Great Britain and Shane Lowry of Ireland are both there, four shots behind Schauffele.

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Collin Morikawa, who was the favorite coming into the event, is 7-under par and likely out of it at this point. Justin Thomas and Patrick Reed are both 4-under par and, barring a miracle, out of contention to be on the medal stand.

The final round will take place in the middle of the night in the United States but it should be a fun round to watch for anyone willing to stay up and watch. This event has the feel of a major with 18 holes to play and it will be interesting to see which big name ends up with the gold medal.

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