Given Australia's already golden year in golf, Marc Leishman and Cameron Smith figure it would be only fitting to capture the country's first Olympic medal in the sport in Tokyo.
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Leishman and Smith, who combined to win the Zurich Classic of New Orleans on the PGA Tour in April to clinch their Olympic tickets, will vie for men's glory in Japan from Thursday.
Newly-crowned Evian Championship winner Minjee Lee joins fellow WA major champion Hannah Green in the women's event at Kasumigaseki Country Club from August 4.
But the Olympic quartet are just four of Australia's nine victors on golf's biggest global tours in 2021, joining Lee's younger brother Min Woo, Lucas Herbert and Steph Kyriacou, who have all triumphed in Europe over the past month, and PGA Tour stars Matt Jones and Cameron Davis, both winners in America like Leishman and Smith.
"It's been a successful year for Australians," Leishman said on Tuesday.
"A couple of winners on the European Tour very recently, obviously Minjee winning the Evian over the weekend and both myself and Cam having a win.
"So this would be pretty awesome to go home with a medal from here."
While some of golf's biggest names, including Australian former world No.1s Adam Scott and Jason Day, have opted out of the Games in Rio and Tokyo since its reintroduction to the Olympic program after a 112-year absence, there's been no ambivalence from Leishman or Smith.
Inspired especially by Australia's swimmers, from Ian Thorpe and Grant Hackett when Smith was growing up, to newly-crowned gold medallists from Tokyo, the pair said it was an unexpected thrill to be involved.
"Growing up, you never really think you'e going to wear the Olympic uniform, with the coat of arms on it. It's pretty special," Smith said.
"It's just going to be an awesome experience."
Both are former runners-up at major championships but Leishman said winning an Olympic gold might even top winning a Masters or US Open, PGA or British Open.
"I mean, this is only once every four years," he said.
"In my lifetime, there's not going to be too many gold medallists. As a golfer, we didn't think we'd have a chance to win a medal.
"So as time goes on, this is going to get bigger and bigger - but this is a big deal (now).
"If it wasn't equal to a major, it would be a very, very, very close second."
The men's Olympic golf, contested as usual over 72 holes over four rounds, starts on Thursday.
Leishman has the honour of playing alongside Japanese superstar and 2021 Masters champion Hideki Matsuyama for the opening two rounds.
Australian Associated Press
