Wyndham Clark entered the Olympic golf competition as an outcast on the U.S. team.
Nobody has played better golf this year than Scottie Scheffler and Xander Schauffele, who have combined to win three of the four majors. Then there’s Collin Morikawa, who tied for third at Augusta National, tied for fourth at Valhalla and had top 20 finishes at the U.S. Open and British Open. Morikawa, unlike Clark, has been a solid contender in the majors.
Clark, meanwhile, has missed the cut in three majors and finished tied for 56th at Pinehurst in his second defence of his U.S. Open title. Clark doesn’t boast the same résumé as other Americans, which is why many believe Bryson DeChambeau should have been on the US team instead of Clark.
Still, Clark has five top 10 finishes since mid-March, including two runner-up finishes at The Players and the Arnold Palmer Invitational, plus consecutive top 10 finishes at the Travelers Championship and Genesis Scottish Open. Then, at Royal Troon, Clark took a nosedive, finishing worse than only six players after 36 holes.
But ahead of the Texas Children’s Open in Houston, Clark hurt his back while training and the injury has plagued him throughout the season, causing frustration.
“I’ve been dealing with some injuries that came up right before the Houston tournament before the Masters and I’m not where I was before,” Clark explained Wednesday.
“I feel like I’m finally swinging at the level that I’m capable of swinging, so that’s been an ongoing issue and a frustration for me.”
Clark even admitted that the illness prevented him from swinging at full speed, which reduced his driving distance.
“To be honest with you, I was very unhappy with my play in the majors,” Clark added.
“I don’t think I’ve shown how good I can be, especially at the highest level in a major. But you also have to look at how much I’ve grown in the last two years. I’ve finished fifth in the FedEx two years in a row, I’ve won a lot of times, I’ve finished in the top places a lot, I’ve been to the Olympics. So I’ve grown a lot in the last two years, so I have to try not to put too much pressure on outsiders. I don’t know what I want to be in the future, but I’ve learned a lot from a year like this and hopefully I can use all that I’ve learned to play better in the majors next year.”
Clark, whose only other top 10 finish in a major came at Los Angeles Country Club last year, will have to wait nine months until Augusta for his next chance. Despite the upset, he remains positive heading into the Olympics and would likely forget much of his frustration if he could bring home a gold medal.
Jack Mirko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation Playing Through. Follow For more golf articles, follow us on Twitter Jack Mirko In the same way.
