CHARLOTTE, N.C. – News late Wednesday that Marc Leishman had withdrawn his name from Olympic consideration was not exactly a surprise given his wife’s ongoing health issues, but it’s been something that Matt Jones has been thinking about for some time.
“I’ve known for a little while about Leishman. It was something he was contemplating and I knew I was very close and something that I researched and looked into as well,” Jones said on Thursday at the Wells Fargo Championship.
Adam Scott withdrew from the Olympics last month and Leishman’s announcement moved Marcus Fraser, who is 63rd in the World Golf Ranking, onto the qualified list; but Jones, at 71st in the world, trails his countryman by just .206 average ranking points with three months left in the qualifying process.
“It shouldn’t be [a race] if I play half decent,” said Jones when asked about his chances to qualify for the Olympics. “I haven’t been playing well this year, but that can turn around this week, next week.”
Fraser is splitting his time between the European Tour, Japan Golf Tour and Asian PGA this year; while Jones is a PGA Tour member and will get more opportunities in the next few weeks at big events that offer more World Ranking points, like next week’s Players Championship.
Unlike Scott and Leishman, who cited concerns over the Zika virus as his wife continues her recovery from toxic shock syndrome, Jones said it won’t be a difficult decision to play the Olympics.
“I’ve decided that if I do have the chance to play I will play. Right now I would play,” he said.