Scottie Scheffler exploded with an Olympic-sized scream as his birdie putt rolled in on the 17th hole at Le Golf National on Sunday just outside of Paris.
It was his fourth birdie in a row — his ninth of the day — and the final one the World No. 1 needed to claim the gold medal in men’s golf at 2024 Summer Games.
It’s Scheffler’s seventh win of the season, as the game’s best player adds an Olympic victory to a year that already included his second Masters win, the Players Championship, and four PGA Tour signature events.
On an unbelievable day of golf at Le Golf National, the 28-year-old American tied the course record with an astonishing bogey-free nine-under 62 to reach 19-under par, one stroke clear of Englishman Tommy Fleetwood (66) who took home the silver medal.
After rolling in the 17-foot birdie putt on the penultimate hole, Scheffler screamed, “C’mon!” as he grabbed the lead for the first time since the competition began.
The rare show of emotion from the Scheffler, is a testament to the success of golf at these Paris 2024 Games. With much larger and energetic crowds than many players expected, golf has picked up plenty of momentum in its third trip back to the Olympics after more than a century away.
“If you look at the overall atmosphere this week, I think all of us were kind of taken aback,” New Zealand’s Ryan Fox said. “The atmosphere felt as big as a major, if not bigger, especially those first couple of holes.
“It shows how big an event the Olympics is overall. I think probably didn’t have a traditional golf crowd, more of a sporting crowd. People happy to be out there with their national flags everywhere and it was just really, really cool to be a part of that.”
Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama won the bronze medal, shooting a six-under 65 to finish at 17-under.
France’s Victory Perez was nearly a Cinderella story on Sunday, shooting 29 on the back nine with four birdies and an eagle to finish fourth at 16-under, narrowly missing a medal.
“Obviously great round. I don’t think there’s any shots that I could have picked up on that back nine for sure, even on the front nine. I think I played really well. You know, the course is not particularly easy,” Perez said after his round. “This theatre at the end created an atmosphere that we don’t get to experience that often, that stadium-like atmosphere which I think we all enjoy but we don’t get often in golf.”
Jon Rahm looked have the gold medal in his grasp, with a four-shot lead as the leaders played the back nine. But it wasn’t to be for the Spaniard, as he made four bogies and a double bogey over the final eight holes to fall completely out of the medals.
Corey Conners saved his best for last at the Paris Olympics, but a Sunday 66 wasn’t enough to earn the Canadian a spot on the podium.
Conners made five birdies without a single blemish on his scorecard in the final round at Le Golf National to finish 12-under par for the week, which was good for an admirable tie for ninth in the 60-player men’s golf competition.
“It was a very memorable week,” Conners told Postmedia after his round. “The atmosphere was incredible every day.”
It was the type of week Canadian golf fans have come to expect from the ball-striking wizard from Listowel, Ont., as Conners tee-to-green game was sharp all week long. Over the four day event, he finished near the top of the field in strokes-gained off the tee; and once in the fairways, he found the putting surfaces nearly 80% of the time hitting 56 of 72 greens in regulation.
“My game was quite solid but just couldn’t get on a roll,” he said. “Lots of positives to take away. Special feeling representing Canada on this stage.”
Next up for the 32-year-old is the PGA Tour playoffs, before a near-certain appearance for Mike Weir’s International team at next month’s President’s Cup in Montreal.
Nick Taylor made up for a slow start with a strong weekend, shooting 68-69 over the final two days to finish tied for 30th at four-under.