It is quite normal for an athlete to be excited about the Olympic gold medal, and why shouldn’t they be? It’s an honor to their handwork and resilience. However, that is not the case with the recent Open Championship winner, Xander Schauffele, who stunningly went from zero major wins to two major wins this season. He recently shared that majors are still more special than the Olympics for him and for all the right reasons.

In a recent press conference with the Men’s Olympic Golf Competition, the 2x major winner was asked what was the difference he felt when winning a major or a gold medal. And to everyone’s surprise, the 2020 Tokyo Olympics golf winner said,“ 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.”

The gold medal for golf is still getting the recognition it deserves. After all, golf was not a part of the Olympics for so many years. According to the player, in 30–40 years, the medal will become even more special as golf becomes a more established part of the Olympics. Schauffele then talks about why the majors are more special to him and the reason is something we can all relate to. “I think a lot of the kids were watching Tiger, or if you’re a little bit older, you’re watching Jack or Arnie, the older legends of the game. You’re watching them win majors.”

The golfer believes that the current generation grew up watching the legends win one major after another. And because of that, the majors still hold a special place in everyone’s heart. Speaking of everyone’s hearts, the man of the people, Bryson DeChambeau, couldn’t qualify to perform in the 2024 Paris Olympics, and there were several controversies surrounding the topic.

Schauffele’s thoughts on DeChambeau’s absence at the Olympics

When asked if the qualifying process for the Olympics should change its ways in light of DeChambeau’s absence, Schauffele said, “In terms of making it better, I haven’t put a whole lot of thought into it.” However, he complimented DeChambeau on his recent major win by saying, “Bryson obviously played really well, has played well in the majors overall, and won the U.S. Open in fashion.”. 

Schauffele thinks that other people are more qualified to figure out how to improve the qualifying process. “I’m not sure how to include or rank events and those things.” That would be for someone else to figure out.” So, instead of worrying about changing the system, he’s happy to focus on his own golf game and qualify for the Olympics through the current rules.”I don’t really—you know, I’ll look at the requirements, and as long as I’m in it, then I’m going to try my best to qualify for it,” said the 2x major winner.

What do you think? Should there be a change in the qualification process, or should it stay the same? Let us know in the comment section below!