Veterans in race against Tokyo time

TIGER WOODS

Woods, who will be 45 in December, would have struggled to make the US team for the Games if they had remained in their 2020 slot. He is currently only the sixth-ranked American with just the top four guaranteed to make the squad.

Woods, the winner of 15 majors, has been fighting a recurrence of a back injury so at least the delay to 2021 for the Olympics gives him renewed hope of a golden swansong.

Organizers would be desperate for Woods to play after he missed the return of golf at Rio 2016 due to injury.