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The scores have been tallied and the calculations are complete. All the eligible golfers for the Olympic Games in Tokyo – scheduled to begin July 29 and run through Aug. 7 – have been identified. The only remaining question is: Which ones will choose to go?
The top 15 players in the Rolex Rankings are eligible but there is a four-player-per-country cap. Only the United States and South Korea hit the four-player limit.
There were no changes on the American front. Nelly Korda, who vaulted to No. 1 in the Rolex Rankings after her victory at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, will be joined by Danielle Kang (No. 5), who had back-to-back victories in 2020, Lexi Thompson (No. 9), who came ever so close at the 2021 U.S. Women’s Open at Olympic Club, and Nelly’s older sister Jessica Korda (No. 13), who won the first event of the 2021 LPGA Tour season.
“We are thrilled to welcome these world-class players to Team USA and excited to watch them compete at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games,” said Rick Adams, chief of sport performance for the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee. “The return of golf to the Olympic program in Rio was a highlight of the Games, and the golf competition in Tokyo will be no different.
“We are thankful to this group of eight athletes for taking on this challenge as members of Team USA and representing the United States this summer.”
The South Korean lineup includes Jin Young Ko (who held the top spot in the world for 100 weeks before being dislodged by Nelly Korda), reigning Olympic gold medalist Inbee Park, 2020 Rolex Player of the Year Sei Young Kim and major champion Hyo-Joo Kim.
As of the qualifying deadline all players from the United States and South Korea planned to attend the games. So far, only Charley Hull from England has opted out. Hull’s replacement is Georgia Hall.
Steve Eubanks