Scottie Scheffler produced a spectacular 9-under 62 at Le Golf National on Sunday, equalling the course record and emerging from a star-studded leaderboard to win gold at the Olympic men’s golf competition.
On a thrilling final day in the outskirts of Paris, the American was flawless from start to finish, reaching 19-under-par as he surged to victory, highlighted by an impressive back-nine 29 to underline his status as the world No.1.
Team GB’s Tommy Fleetwood fell just short of emulating Rio 2016 gold medalist Justin Rose as a closing 66 saw him have to settle for silver, one shot behind at 18-under.
Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama rounded out the podium finishers with bronze, finishing a shot further back.
Frenchman Victor Perez delighted the home crowd with a brilliant final-round 63 to finish solo fourth at 16-under, with Rory McIlroy and Jon Rahm sharing fifth at 15-under.
Scheffler trailed overnight co-leaders Xander Schauffele – who was targeting back-to-back golds – and Rahm by four shots but showed his pedigree to follow up a fast start with an electric finish that included a run of four straight birdies from holes 14 to 17.
The victory is Scheffler’s seventh title of what has been a remarkable year, which already included his successful title defence of The Players Championship and his second green jacket at the Masters Tournament in April.
Fleetwood held a share of the lead with Scheffler on the 17th tee, but a miscued chip shot from behind the green led to a costly bogey and he was unable to find a birdie at the last to force a playoff after his approach over-shot the green.
“There is part of me that is disappointed, but I never dreamt I would be an Olympic medallist so I am unbelievably proud and happy with how the week went,” Fleetwood said. “Standing on that podium with a medal was one of the most special moments I have ever had.”
Matsuyama, who held a share of the halfway lead, lost ground on Saturday with a level-par 71, but he bounced back in style with a bogey-free 65 to medal in his second Olympics.
Earlier in the day, Rahm seemed on track to win gold for Spain as he opened up a four-shot lead around the turn, but back-to-back bogeys at 11 and 12 thwarted his momentum. A double bogey-7 at the par-5 14th further hurt his hopes before he missed out on the podium altogether with back-to-back bogeys on his final two holes.
RORY RUES COSTLY VISIT TO THE WATER
McIlroy finished alongside his Ryder Cup teammate after a spirited closing 66, with a double bogey at the 15th when he found water with his approach ultimately ending his chance of a medal.
Summing up the week’s experience, McIlroy said: “I still think that the Ryder Cup is the best tournament that we have in our game, in terms of pure competition, but I think this [the Olympics] has the potential to be right up there with it.
“With how much of a shit show the professional game of golf is right now, you think about the two tournaments that might be the purest form of competition in our sport, we don’t play for money in either of them. So it speaks volumes for what’s important in sport. I think every single player this week has had an amazing experience.”
For the final scores from the Olympic men’s golf competition click here.