Brooks Koepka, Adam Scott, Tyrrell Hatton withdraw from Olympic consideration

Brooks Koepka, Adam Scott and Tyrrell Hatton are among a list of notable players who have requested to opt out of the 2024 Olympics, Golf Digest has learned. Spanish outlet ElPeriodiGolf was the first to report the news.

This summer in Paris will be golf's third appearance in the Olympics since the sport returned in 2016 after a 112-year absence. However, a number of marquee names bowed out of the 2016 Rio Games due to fears of the Zika virus, and though turnout was improved at the COVID-delayed 2021 Olympics in Tokyo, some of the game’s biggest stars still skipped the proceedings. While participation is expected to increase in 2024, not everyone wants to compete.

Koepka, the reigning PGA champ and five-time major winner, has asked the International Golf Federation to have his name dropped from consideration, according to internal documents at the IGF. Koepka would have faced an uphill battle in qualifying for the United States team; the top two players in the Official World Golf Ranking are automatically selected from any country, with up to four qualifying if all are ranked among the top 15 in the OWGR. Because LIV Golf has not secured OWGR accreditation, Koepka has dropped to No. 31 in the World Ranking, 18th among all Americans. Hatton, who recently defected to LIV Golf, would currently just miss out on a spot for Great Britain as he currently ranks No. 16 in the OWGR while two Brits, Matt Fitzpatrick (9) and Tommy Fleetwood (10) ahead of him. However, unless he does well in the major championships, it’s likely he would continue to drop as the year progresses.

Scott’s withdrawal is not a surprise. The Aussie had previously stated his apathy of golf’s inclusion in the Olympics, referring to it as an “exhibition” and the the better idea would be to allow amateurs in the field. He passed on both the 2016 and 2021 games. Scott is currently 51st in the OWGR, third highest among Australians behind Jason Day (20) and Min Woo Lee (32).

Other players who have asked to opt out include LIV Golf’s Louis Oosthuizen (South Africa) and Thomas Pieters (Belgium). Germany’s Marcel Siem is the only other player that has requested to be dropped from consideration.

Internal documents show that the IGF does not plan on releasing which players have opted out. However, as of writing, no women players have formally requested to opt out.

Qualifying for the 2024 Olympics began in July 2022, with golfers accumulating points in an official Olympics Ranking that essentially mirrors the men’s and women’s World Ranking. The first round of the 72-hole men’s Olympic competition gets underway at the Albatros course at Le Golf National (Aug. 1-4), site of the 2018 Ryder Cup. The women’s tournament starts three days after the men’s event ends, Aug. 7-10, before the closing ceremony Aug. 11. The total fields are 60 players, with at least one spot held for a golfer from the host country (France) if one does not otherwise qualify. No country can have more than four golfers competing, with all golfers ranked in the top 15 qualifying (up to the four golfer maximum for each country). After the top 15 in the ranking, golfers ranked 16th and lower will qualify with no more than two players from any one country eligible to compete.