AFP, Sydney :
Marc Leishman and Cameron Smith will lead Australia’s golfing campaign at the Tokyo Olympics, it was announced on Friday, with five-time LPGA Tour winner Minjee Lee spearheading the women.
The men’s pair, who teamed up this year to win the USPGA Tour Zurich Classic, will both be making their Olympic debuts.
“Growing up as a golfer you never thought about representing your country in the Olympics,” said Leishman, currently ranked 34 in the world.
“It would be such an awesome thing to be able to bring home a medal for your country.” The 28th-ranked Smith, runner-up at last year’s US Masters, said he was “super-pumped”.
“Any chance I get to put on the Australian flag and put on the green and gold I’m there,” he added.
Lee, ranked 14, is the only one of the four-strong team to have competed at an Olympics, finishing seventh at Rio in 2016.
She has a strong partner in Green, who has produced four top-10 finishes on the LPGA Tour this season, including runner-up in the Women’s World Championships. “I’m super-happy to be going to Tokyo and I can’t wait to get there,” said the 14th-ranked Green, who became the third Australian woman to win a major when she took out the PGA Championship in 2019.
