Vincent lives up to pre-Olympic Games promise

Ricky Zililo, Senior Sports Reporter
ZIMBABWE’S top golfer Scott Vincent lived up to his pre-Tokyo Olympic Games promise to put up a top-class act.

Vincent went to the Olympics ranked 51st in the world, but managed to end in 16th place at the Games out of a field of 60 after a strong comeback in the final rounds.

A product of the Zimbabwe Golf Association (ZGA)’s development programme, Vincent recovered from a difficult opening round when he carded two-over-par.

Vincent was the best performing Zimbabwean in the Olympics and said perseverance drove him to a strong finish.

“Post my golf performance, it was an incredible week, incredible performance. Japan is amazing and the golf course was incredible. It was very hard and challenging, but a good challenge and a good set up for a championship event like this. I played really well, I had to fight from day one, it was a rough start, but I learnt a lot after day one.

“I managed to make some changes going into day two, three and four. It worked out very well, I played nice and solid for the rest of the tournament. I had a good performance, so I’m really thankful for that. I learnt a lot, I learnt how to persevere and to go back to the routines of how I normally play golf. That made the difference going into day two, three and four,” said Vincent.

He said being at the Olympics was an “incredible experience”, adding that he’ll work hard to qualify for the Paris 2024 Games.

“l loved the experience; I can’t wait to try and make the team for Paris 2024. That’s definitely a goal of mine. It (Tokyo Olympics) was such an awesome experience, to be around all the top athletes in the world and rub shoulders with them.

“So, I’m really thankful for this opportunity, really blessed to be here and thank you to Zimbabwe for giving me this opportunity. Hopefully I’ve done everyone proud and I look forward to another opportunity to represent Zimbabwe in the future,” Vincent said.

He thanked the Minister of Youth, Sport, Arts and Recreation Kirsty Coventry, the country’s delegation at the Games and Zimbabweans around the world for rallying behind him by sending messages wishing him well. — @ZililoR