Olympic gold shines ‘different’ for Xander

PARIS, France (AFP) — Xander Schauffele admitted on Tuesday that winning Olympic gold is “very different” to lifting golf major titles as he prepares for the start of his title defense at the Paris Games.

The American’s Olympic victory in Tokyo three years ago was the biggest win of his career at the time as he struggled to shrug off his nearly-man tag at the majors.

But he finally won one of the sport’s four biggest events at this year’s PGA Championship and backed it up with a dramatic triumph at the British Open earlier this month.

Schauffele will be among the favorites as he bids to become the first man to win two men’s golf golds.

He believes success in the Games will become more prestigious in the eyes of players the longer golf is part of the Olympic schedule, having only been reintroduced after a 112-year absence in 2016.

“The majors are sort of what I grew up watching. They are two very different things to me,” he told reporters at Le Golf National ahead of Thursday’s opening round.

“I think the gold medal, it’s been marinating nicely. Maybe in 30, 40 years, it’s something that’s really going to be special as it gets more traction and it kind of gets back into the eyes or into the normalcy of being in the Olympics. It’s still so young.”