Quoteboard: Players react to golf becoming Olympic sport

text size

Golf has been voted in as an Olympic sport starting with the 2016 Summer Games in Rio de Janeiro. Here is the reaction for PGA TOUR players and other pros after hearing Friday's news. (Editor's note: Europeantour.com also contributed to this report).

TIGER WOODS (U.S.): "I think it's great for golf. It's a perfect fit for the Olympics, and I think we are all looking forward to golf getting into the Olympics. ... We as golfers have never had it, so this will be a new experience for golfers who get to participate in the Olympics. Having talked to other athletes who have gotten a chance to experience the Olympics, they have absolutely loved it and had the greatest time."

RELATED

IOC adds golf
Video: Finchem reaction
Field if Olympics began today
Awtrey: Golf good for Games
Audio: Votaw audio
Votaw blog
Olympic coverage

PADRAIG HARRINGTON (Ireland): "I do believe in time the Olympic gold will become the most important event in golf and I don't believe it will take that long. In the four years between the Olympics there will be 16 major championships, so winning gold will be that much more special. ... It's seven years away, and physically I should be capable of continuing for a number of years. Competing in the Olympics gives me the motivation to push on -- I want to be there in 2016. Being an Olympian is a big deal in Ireland, one of the greatest honors for any Irish person, and I want to be one."

RYO ISHIKAWA (Japan): "As a golfer, I am honored. By having golf be a part of the Olympics, golfers will be more interested in the Olympics, and then sport of golf will get noticed more as well. I am looking forward to playing golf in the Olympics."

PHIL MICKELSON (U.S.): "Everybody is very excited that golf became an Olympic sport, and we are working hard on our games so that over the next six years we are able to make the team and represent our country in the Olympics. ... I think this is important for the game of golf. It's important for the growth of the game of golf and it's exciting what it will mean on a worldwide level for this great game. And for us to be able to showcase the game in the Olympics is a unique opportunity."

SERGIO GARCIA (Spain): "I think it is going to be an amazing experience for all of us. We are all very thrilled and excited about the possibility of being part of the Olympics. It's still a long way to go -- seven years -- but we will try to stay healthy and see if we can get in there. I'm 29 and will be 36 in 2016 so if I stay in good shape I might have three chances of getting to the Olympics, so I'm looking forward to that. When you watch the Olympics on TV, you see all the runners and the athletes and think it would be nice to have that chance. Finally it has happened and we are all very excited."

MIKE WEIR (Canada): "Having golf added to the 2016 Olympic Games is awesome news. It will accelerate the growth of the game globally. It means a world-class athlete like Ryo Ishikawa, a teammate of mine this week at The Presidents Cup, can have the opportunity to win an Olympic medal for his country, something none of us in golf would have thought possible when we were growing up in the sport. It also opens the door for so many kids around the world and in Canada who may be playing junior golf today and competing for a gold medal in seven years. ... This is a proud and historic day for our sport. For golf to be associated again with the Olympic Games is a perfect fit in terms of honour and integrity, pride and passion, sportsmanship and goodwill. It is a positive decision which we warmly welcome."

STEWART CINK (U.S): "I don't know if it's great for me or not because I'll be 43 and I might be over the hill by then. But it's exciting. I think that when a sport gains Olympic status, it gets a lot more attention, and national sports institutes tend to pay a lot more attention, so it will only do good for the game of golf. ... I see the Olympics as the pinnacle of all the sports that are involved. You know, many other sports, it's such a do-or-die situation in the Olympics, where you wait so long, there's your chance and it comes and goes so quickly and the pressure is so intense. To perform under that kind of pressure has always been sort of the dream come true for any athlete."

COLIN MONTGOMERIE (Scotland): "I am so delighted to hear that golf has been approved to be in the Olympics in 2016. I am proud to have been a part of the process and it is a credit to everyone who has leant their support to this process. I have made my support very clear and I think this is a very significant moment for the game of golf and all of the players who are lucky enough to compete in the 2016 Olympic Games will be part of a truly unique experience. I think this decision will see us entering an exciting phase for global golf."

ANGEL CABRERA (Argentina): "I'm delighted to hear golf was elected to the Olympic Games. We have the No. 1 athlete in the world in our sport, so why shouldn't golf be an Olympic sport?"

ANTHONY KIM (U.S.): "It just means the game is going to grow and it can never hurt to have younger kids playing in the Olympics, and having golf be a part of it, it's going to be a big deal and hopefully it will inspire a bunch of kids from a lot of different countries to take up the game and make the game better."

CAMILO VILLEGAS (Colombia): "To have golf voted into the 2016 Olympic Games adds to the wonderful news from last week that the games would be played in South America. I am very happy that my fellow players and I will have a chance to experience the Olympic Games as competitors instead of spectators."

SEAN O'HAIR (U.S.): "I think it's awesome. You're going to be able to play for your country at the Olympic level ... I think it's huge for the game. I think it's great for the Olympics. You know, I don't see any negatives to it. I think it's fantastic."

PAUL LAWRIE (Scotland): "I would definitely play. I think it's important -- there are so many sports in the Olympics now that are professional sports, so can't golf be in? I would love to win Olympic gold."