AVONDALE, LA - APRIL 26: Justin Rose of England reacts after putting in for a birdie on the 18th hole to win during the final round of the Zurich Classic of New Orleans at TPC Louisiana on April 26, 2015 in Avondale, Louisiana. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)
The Olympians Come to Crooked Stick
The BMW Championships, September 8 to 11 at Crooked Stick Golf Club in Carmel, will feature the three reigning, and only living, Olympic medalists. It will also feature some Olympians who competed but were not part of the medal ceremony. What it won’t feature is drunk swimmers (although there will be a biergarten).
Here are some things about the medalists you may not have known.
Justin Rose, winner of the 2011 BMW Championships, shot a 268 in Rio to bring the gold medal home to England. Rose was born in South Africa, moved to England, and now lives in Florida. If you want to purchase Justin Rose merchandise, this golfer has a presence on eBay. His products range from sunglasses to autographs to T-shirts.
Henrik Stenson, winner of the 2016 British Open, shot a 270 to capture the silver medal for Sweden in Rio. According to the Golf Digest web page, during the 2009 Doral Open, he stripped down to his skivvies to hit a shot out of the water so as to not soil his clothes. Google it. He also named his snowmobile Stalin because “it was a red menace.”
Matt Kuchar has gone from ranked 189th in the FedEx Cup to his current standing in 16th place. His final Olympic round of 8 under 63 gave him a 271 total to grab the bronze medal for the U.S. This season, he has finished 46th in the U.S. and British Opens and just recently missed the cut at the PGA Championships in late July. Kuchar is a charitable golfer, choosing to help children with serious illnesses and supporting Camp Twin Lakes.
Bubba Watson, winner of the Northern Trust Open this year and two-time Masters champ, worked himself out of early trouble in Rio to shoot a 277 for an 8th-place tie for the U.S. Always a colorful player, Watson donated $100,000 for flood relief in Louisiana following the recent disaster there.
Emiliano Grillo has finished in the top 20 for three of the four majors this season, only dropping to a tie for 54th in the U.S. Open, and shot a 277 to tie with the USA’s Bubba Watson for 8th place in the Olympics for his country of Argentina. He almost missed the Olympic competition when the airlines he was flying lost his golf clubs en route to Rio. Thankfully, they were reunited just in the nick of time.
David Lingmerth, winner of the 2015 Memorial Tournament, where he beat out Rose in a playoff, shot a 278 to finish in 11th place for his home country of Sweden in Rio. Lingmerth is a two-time All American from South Florida (one year) and Alabama (three years).
Rickie Fowler, despite shooting a 64 in the third round of Olympic play, finished well back with a 284 total in Rio. Fowler is a self-taught golfer who learned on a driving range instead of course play. His middle name, Yutaka, is in honor of his maternal grandfather, who is Japanese. His maternal grandmother is Navajo. His traditional wardrobe for the final round is always orange in honor of Oklahoma State University.
