Min Woo Lee enters the week at No.62, with his position in the playoffs likely, but not guaranteed, the West Australian would not be playing the week after the Olympics if he didn’t have to.

Another number likely on Lee’s mind is the top-50, with players inside that number after the next two weeks advancing to the BMW Championship, and, more importantly, qualifying for next season’s Signature Events. The latter a status Lee did not have this season.

Jason Day (23rd) heads the Australians on the FedEx Cup standings followed by Cam Davis (41) and Adam Scott (42).

Further down the list are Aaron Baddeley (151) and Harrison Endycott (193).

Elsewhere, Lee’s sister Minjee and Hannah Green have their turn at Olympic glory as the women take on Le Golf National at the Paris Games.

“We all know what we need to do to get a podium finish,” Green said.

“I felt a little bit unlucky in a sense in Tokyo because of the weather delay we had and it kind of killed my momentum.

“I had to make birdie (on the final hole) to have any sort of chance, and I perhaps chose a more aggressive approach and didn’t pull it off and made bogey.”

Both Green and Lee have scored early round one tee times, so be sure to tune in over dinner tonight and cheer our Aussies on!

An incredible 18 Australians are in the field for the International Series England event on the Asian Tour, and Karl Vilips looks to continue his incredible run on the Korn Ferry Tour.

All times AEST*

Olympic Women’s Golf

Le Golf National, France

5:44pm Hannah Green

7:44pm Minjee Lee

8:06pm Lydia Ko (NZ)

Defending champion: Nelly Korda (USA)

Past Aussie winners: nil.

TV times: Wednesday-Saturday from 5pm (Nine, 9Now, Stan)

PGA TOUR

Wyndham Championship

Sedgefield Country Club, Greensboro, North Carolina

9:56pm* Cam Davis

10:40pm Aaron Baddeley

10:40pm* Ryan Fox (NZ)

2:32am Min Woo Lee

Defending champion: Lucas Glover (USA)

Past Aussie winners: Steve Elkington (1990)

Prizemoney: US$7,900,000

TV times: Thursday and Friday 8:30pm-5am Fox Sports 503 and Kayo. Sunday 2am-8am Fox Sports 503 and Kayo. Sunday 9:30pm-8am Fox Sports 503 and Kayo.

Asian Tour

International Series England

Foxhills Country Club (Longcross Course), Chertsey, UK

3:40pm* Travis Smyth

4pm* Ben Campbell (NZ)

4:15pm Maverick Antcliff, Nick Voke (NZ)

4:20pm* Scott Hend

4:30pm* Kazuma Kobori (NZ)

4:45pm Jordan Zunic

4:55pm Jed Morgan

5pm* Todd Sinnott

5:05pm Andrew Dodt

5:15pm Jack Thompson

5:20pm* Douglas Klein (NZ)

8:35pm* Justin Warren

8:55pm* Aaron Wilkin

9:05pm* Jeff Guan

9:10pm Wade Ormsby

9:25pm* Sam Brazel

9:50pm Kevin Yuan

9:55pm* Harrison Crowe

10:05pm* Zach Murray

10:20pm Deyen Lawson

10:35pm* Lachlan Barker

Defending champion: Andy Ogletree

Past Aussie winners: Nil

Prizemoney: US$2,000,000

TV times: Thursday 10pm-2am Fox Sports 505 and Kayo. Friday 10pm-2am Fox Sports 506 and Kayo. Saturday 10:30pm-2am Fox Sports 503 and Kayo. Sunday 10pm-2am Fox Sports 507 and Kayo.

PGA Tour Champions

Boeing Classic

The Club at Snoqualmie Ridge, Washington, USA

Australasians in the field: Steven Alker (NZ), Steve Allan, Stuart Appleby, David Bransdon, Greg Chalmers, Richard Green, Mark Hensby, Rod Pampling, Cameron Percy, John Senden, Vijay Singh (FIJI), Michael Wright

Defending champion: Stephen Ames (CAN)

Past Aussie winners: Rod Pampling (2021)

Prizemoney: US$2,200,000

TV times: Saturday, Sunday and Monday 8am-10am Fox Sports 503 and Kayo.

Korn Ferry Tour

Pinnacle Bank Championship presented by Woodhouse

The Club at Indian Creek, Omaha, Nebraska, USA

10:18pm Brett Drewitt

10:18pm* Dimi Papadatos

3:32am Rhein Gibson

3:43am Karl Vilips

Defending champion: Alejandro Tosti (ARG)

Past Aussie winners: Nil

Prizemoney: US$1,000,000

Challenge Tour

Farmfoods Scottish Challenge supported by the R&A

Newmachar Golf Club, Aberdeenshire, Scotland

Australasians in the field: Elvis Smylie, Sam Jones (NZ), Hayden Hopewell, Connor McKinney.

Defending champion: Sam Bairstow (ENG)

Past Aussie winners: Nil

Prizemoney: €230,000

Japan Golf Tour

Yokohama Minato Championship

Fujiki Centennial, Japan

8:50am* Anthony Quayle

Defending champion: Keita Nakajima (JPN)

Past Aussie winners: Nil

Prizemoney: ¥120,000,000

LET Access Series

Ahlsell Nordic Golf Tour

Ahlsell Trophy by Destination Jonkoping

Gränna Golfklubb, Gränna, Sweden

5pm Kelsey Bennett

5:10pm Stephanie Bunque

5:40pm Kristalle Blum

7:20pm Munchin Keh (NZ)

Defending champion: Sara Kouskova (Czech)

Past Aussie winners: Nil

Prizemoney: €40,000

But they move into the bigger spotlight from today as they prepare their own quest for a piece of history in the Olympic Games women’s strokeplay starting Wednesday at the same venue.

Both Green and Lee are experienced Olympians – Green came close to winning a medal in Tokyo in 2021 finishing tied-fourth, a shot out of a playoff for third, and Lee has previously represented Australia at Rio de Janeiro in 2016 and Tokyo where she was tied-29th.

Both women prioritise the Olympics and have openly said this is their major focus of 2024.

With world rankings of No. 6 for Green and No. 11 for Lee, and with both being major championship winners, Australia’s chances theoretically are better on the women’s side.

No Australian has ever won a medal in golf at the Olympics, with the sport having been reincluded after a break of more than a century at the 2016 Rio Games.

The field at Le Golf National is white hot, headed by world No. 1 and reigning champion Nellie Korda of the USA, and all of the top-ranked players.

The tournament begins at 5pm Wednesday AEST.

AUSTRALASIAN PLAYER PROFILES

HANNAH GREEN
Age: 27
The Perth star is having her best year on the LPGA Tour with two wins. Currently ranked No. 6 in the world, she is No. 3 on the tour rankings and hellbent on going a step farther than her Tokyo campaign when she finished a single shot out of a playoff for bronze. One of four Australian women to win a major championship having secured the 2019 Women’s PGA Championship.

MINJEE LEE
Age: 28
Already a three-time Olympian at just 28, Lee has had a quieter year and was overtaken in the world rankings by her compatriot Green, but she is still just outside the top 10 in the world, has won two major championships and has set herself the goal of making the LPGA Hall of Fame. A win in France would help her cause markedly, and she could be dangerous this week. Two majors – the 2022 US Women’s Open and the 2021 Evian Championship – already have her as an all-time great of the sport.

LYDIA KO (NZ)
Age: 27
Still chasing a coveted gold medal after she won silver in Rio de Janeiro and bronze in Tokyo, the remarkable Kiwi is still playing superb golf and will most likely be a strong challenger in France. Has had one win and a string of top-10s in 2024 to show that she is still highly competitive.

THE COURSE
The women’s course will play one shot higher to par at par-72 this week and 700 metres shorter than it was for the men. The 18th hole, a par-4 for the men, becomes a par-5 for the women. The course plays to 5828 metres overall.

Le Golf National’s L’Albatros Course is built on unremarkable land a clay base almost an hour out of Paris, near Versailles. There is dispute over its designer – the original architect was Hubert Chesneau but his routing for the two 18-hole courses was scrapped by consultant Robert van Hagge – and they had to work hard for their money, moving 1.5 million cubic metres of dirt to shape the course because of the flatness of the terrain.

The federation wanted a TPC-style course, and it’s said to have touches of Florida – looking in parts like Sawgrass with nine holes having water in play – plus a sprinkling of Ireland, too with a linksy feel. It is far from the best course in France, but it does cater for up to 80,000 spectators and its 18th hole has a spectacular amphitheatre.

Le Golf National’s biggest moment was in hosting the 2018 Ryder Cup, won in memorable fashion by Europe, but it has also hosted 29 playings of the men’s Open de France on the DP World Tour since opening in 1990.

TV COVERAGE

*All times AEST.
Rounds One-Four: Wednesday-Sunday from 5pm (Nine, 9Now, Stan)
Link to 9Now: https://www.9now.com.au/shows/2024-olympic-games

DEFENDING CHAMPION:

Nelly Korda (USA)

LIVE SCORES:
https://olympics.com/en/paris-2024/results/golf/men-s-individual-stroke-play/fnl

By Tony Webeck

American and world No.1 Scottie Scheffler added to his growing legacy in the game with a course record of 9-under 62 to claim the gold medal at 19-under par, one clear of Great Britain’s Tommy Fleetwood (66).

Tied for the lead at the start of the day, Fleetwood earned the silver medal at 18-under par with Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama (65) claiming the bronze medal at 17-under.

Frenchman Victor Perez fell one shot shy of a medal but created a legion of fans with a breathtaking 8-under 63 that was serenaded by his countrymen and women throughout his 18 holes.

Playing in the group behind, Jason was immersed in the pulsating atmosphere but could not produce his best golf when he needed it most.

The 36-year-old narrowly missed a birdie putt on one but hit a brilliant tee shot into the par-3 second and holed a 26-foot putt for birdie on three to remain in medal contention.

But as his round stalled through the latter holes of the front nine, the likes of Scheffler, Fleetwood, Rory McIlroy (66) and Jon Rahm (70) surged.

Six-under for the day through 10 holes, Rahm established a four-stroke lead only to fade out of medal contention with bogeys at 11, 12, 17 and 18 and a double-bogey at the par-5 14th.

At 13-under with four holes to play, Jason remained in the mix but dropped shots at 15 and 17 – either side of a birdie at 16 – saw him end the week at 12-under and tied for ninth.

“Top-10 finish for not quite having the stuff that you needed, it was quite nice,” Jason said.

“It was a weird scenario. I drove it pretty poorly the first three days, hit irons really nice and it was the reverse today, had no idea where the ball was going.

“It was nice to keep my round going with my short game and my putting.

“Some guys are playing phenomenal golf right now and I’ve got to do a lot of work to get to that level.

“It’s just a good step in the right direction.”

With sister Minjee and world No.6 Hannah Green at the course in support, Min Woo Lee completed his maiden Olympic campaign with a final round of 3-under 68 and tie for 22nd.

On the back foot following a 5-over 76 in Round 1, Min Woo displayed admirable spirit to make inroads on the leaderboard each of the final three days.

“Obviously the first day, I felt devastated. Felt like I let the country down,” Min Woo admitted.

“But made sure I bounced back and I thought I did a pretty good job the next three days.

“The crowds were really special this week.

“It was special. It was cool. I was very surprised at how big it turned out.

“It’s great for golf.”

Speaking about the passion for the game that has been reignited within him, Jason already has eyes on representing Australia again at the Los Angeles Games in 2028.

“It’s amazing what sport can do to bring people together,” Jason added.

“This is a week that we are not playing for money. We are playing for a medal and your country.

“It’s brought out old feelings that I still have deep down. Why we play golf and why we love it so much.

“I thoroughly enjoyed the week and I’m hoping that I get to play LA in four years.”

The women’s golf competition begins at Le Golf National on Wednesday where Hannah Green and Minjee Lee will vie to become Australia’s first golf medal winner.

Notching up an incredible eighth win for the year today at Bribie Island, Taylor is certainly enjoying the events in his home state, adding to his back-to-back wins in Toowoomba just weeks ago.

Posting a 2-under 70, Taylor was the winner by two shots over Legends rookie Wayne Perske, Scott Barr, and yesterday’s winner from Wantima Murray Lott.

HOW THE WINNING SCORE UNFOLDED 

Starting his day on the first, Taylor got into his work quickly with an opening birdie, however it was the back nine where he really started to make things happen.

Four birdies coming in, only marred by a double-bogey on 13, was enough to hand Taylor the winner’s check, with he the only player able to navigate the Bribie Island course under-par.

WHAT THE WINNER SAID 

“Course is very tough out there today, but I hit the ball very nice today,” said Taylor.

“I did make a double there on probably the one of the easiest holes, which slowed me up a little bit but making a couple of birdies on the way in definitely helped.

“The greens are great, I mean they roll probably some of the best greens we’re going to putt on all year.

“They’re beautiful to putt on, second to none.”

LEADERBOARD RUNDOWN 

70 Chris Taylor (QLD)

72 Wayne Perske (QLD), Scott Barr (WA), Murray Lott (QLD)

73 Matthew King (QLD), Michael Harwood (VIC), Tim Elliot (VIC), Mark Boulton (VIC)

NEXT UP 

Bribie Island marked the end of the Moreton Bay swing, with the PGA Legends Tour next heading to the Pine Rivers Legends Pro-Am on Monday.