As a child, I always dreamed of playing in the Olympics. Although my aspirations were for another sport and the Winter Olympics, the dream was still there. My family and I always found time to watch the Olympics together, cheering for our country’s athletes. However, Olympic golf never held my attention in the same way.
Olympic Golf
When golf returned to the Olympics, I wasn’t particularly thrilled—I’m sure I wasn’t alone in that feeling. However, with all the changes in professional golf over the past few years, that feeling has changed. My interest in watching golf outside of the majors has waned, leaving a bit of a void. This is where Olympic golf caught my eye, especially with the Paris Olympics. I found myself eagerly following who would be playing and, more intriguingly, what the course would be like and the challenges it would present.
Le Golf National, the site of the Ryder Cup in 2018, hosted the Olympic golf events. While my memories of that Ryder Cup are hazy, I do remember the final results. Eager to learn more about the course and its challenges, I was pleasantly surprised to find that my Rhapsodo MLM2Pro had this course available to play virtually.
Experiencing Le Golf National virtually
Paris is only four hours away by train and while it was tempting to watch the events in person, the chaos of the Olympics made me choose to watch from the comfort of home. Playing the course virtually on my Rapsodo MLM2PRO seemed like the perfect way to get a feel for the course without being there.
What I quickly learned is that Le Golf National is tough. Period. Seeing Scottie Scheffler shoot a final round of 62 seemed impossible, but then again, that’s why he’s the best in the world.
For amateurs, this course is full of hazards, small greens and requires accurate tee placement and approach shots. Even with the different tee options in the Rapsodo simulation, the course was a real challenge.
Game settings and feel
rhapsody SIM rounds do not involve placement, but do offer a “gimme round” feature. Standard settings are 10 feet and 30 feet. Get your approach within 10 feet and you’re given an easy shot with an automatic shot; within 30 feet, a two-putt, and anything beyond that but still on the green results in a three-putt. This can be fixed, but given how many 10-feet I miss in real life, it seems more than fair.
I also enable height and penalty settings to make the experience as realistic as possible. While it’s not perfect, it does provide a decent feel while playing the course. The penalty for missing the fairway is brutal and led to some high scores on my card.
How I played
The short answer: not great. As I mentioned, it is not an easy course. Hazards are everywhere, bunkers are numerous and the fairways are narrow. Many fairways require either fades and tee pulls for the best approach angles.
I’ve played the front nine a few times and my best score was a 42. In real life, I’d be thrilled with that, but in sim rounds I usually expect to break 80. While the screen may not show perfect lies, the reality is that my lie is, so i need to make more consistent shots.
I only finished 18 holes twice and both rounds finished in the 90s. It didn’t take long to drop a few shots and I found it difficult to maintain consistency throughout the course.
Why you should play Le Golf National at Rapsodo
Most of the courses we see on television are out of reach for us due to location, cost or time. Television coverage flattens the slopes and minimizes the dangers of a golf course, but playing virtually at Rapsodo offers a new perspective on what Olympic golfers experienced.
Le Golf National may not be my favorite course to play rhapsodybut you should definitely try it. Few courses present the same level of challenge and it can be humbling, pushing you to try again and improve your score.
Final thoughts
Watching the results from the Olympics and seeing how the athletes performed was fascinating. The ease with which they navigate these courses brings a new level of respect. Still, watching Viktor Hovland sink his first tee shot into a water hazard on the first hole was incredibly relatable.
Going forward, I plan to make it a tradition to play the courses in me Rhapsodo MLM2Pro before major golf events if they are available. This experience has given me a deeper respect for the athletes and a better understanding of the challenges these courses present.
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