When it comes to golf, the French aren't particularly bothered it would seem, with a survey carried out by the European Golf Course Owners Association in 2018 stating that 10% of French people follow golf. Just over 400,000 of the country's 66 million citizens play the sport and most do it to relax.
Professionally, the country has produced some players of note over the years. Golf historians will know of Arnaud Massy, France's only major winner, who was victorious at Royal Liverpool in 2007. Thomas Levet, who was in a play-off for the Open at Muirfield in 2002, Raphaël Jacquelin, Victor Dubuisson, Grégory Bourdy, Marc Farry, Grégory Havret and Jean van de Velde, are other names that come to mind.
As for the latter, his collapse, when holding a three-shot lead heading to the 18th at the 1999 Open at Carnoustie, evokes painful memories even for the most hardened individuals. Finding the 'Barry Burn', a water hazard that guards the 18th green, he then proceeded to take off his shoes and socks and stepped through shin-deep water to try and hit the ball out.
On commentary, the late Peter Alliss was prompted to say: "Would somebody kindly stop him, give him a large brandy and mop him down? It's beyond a joke. He's gone ga-ga."
Van de Velde saw his lead flitter away, made a play-off, but was a broken man by that stage.
A more pointed view of how golf is perceived in France was uttered by professional Michael Lorenzo-Vera, on the eve of the 2018 Ryder Cup, which was staged at Le Golf National, the venue for Olympic competition.
"Honestly, nobody knows there’s going to be a Ryder Cup in France. Only the golfers know. That’s it. There won’t be many French there. There will be so many more from England or Spain."
On his perception of the sport in is own country, he added: "Golf is a very private thing for people in France. Private courses for only rich families or rich people — that’s it. Golf is not a good thing here. It’s for rich people and spoiled kids. That’s the image we have."
It's day two of the men's Olympic competition at the wonderfully appointed course on the outskirts of Paris. The temperatures are slightly cooler than yesterday and again a decent crowd, paying the not-so-expensive price of €25, are in attendance.
So, I decided to follow one of the Team France players. Victor Perez, a winner of the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship in 2023, is on the first tee. He carded a 70 on Thursday.
A great rendition of 'Le Marseillaise' by French fans as Victor Perez gets his second round underway #Paris2024 #golf pic.twitter.com/ZV6VSKXoEw
— James McMahon (@mcmahon31j) August 2, 2024
A respectable crowd, though not a heaving one, is there to send him on his way. They are certainly vocal, giving the "La Marseillaise" full welly. His drive, to quote the song, goes straight down the middle.
Perez, who is now based in Scotland, won the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship in 2023. He's a tall figure, who strides about with purpose, like a lot of golfers do.
Perez's approach to the green on three is short and his chipped effort at the hole fell short, resulting in his first bogey of the day. And then another dropped shot followed on seven.
Shouts of 'Victor, Victor, Victor' as Victor Perez heads to the fifth green #Paris2024 #golf pic.twitter.com/UTAoYCCX0T
— James McMahon (@mcmahon31j) August 2, 2024
Again, the crowds following Perez aren't huge but they certainly giving him support.
Birdie for Victor Perez at nine #Paris2024 #golf pic.twitter.com/ko4CvmFsk8
— James McMahon (@mcmahon31j) August 2, 2024
And so to the ninth green, more national flags are in view: Irish, English, South African, Danish, German and even Swiss. Perez rolls in one for birdie, the catalyst to firmly kickstart his round.
But is Victor Perez a household name in France? In asking a few of the locals present, Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry would be recognisable in the country, with one fan Arthur, a decent amateur player by his own admission, stating that "golf is more popular in Britain and Ireland and we don't get excited about it in the same way".
He added: "Victor Perez would only be known by those within golf; there are many more bigger names in France."
That said, Victor was still feeding off the crowd and made more birdies came on 10, 16 and 17. He was on a roll. Approaching the 18th, he and his playing partners, Matti Schmid from Germany and CT Pan of Chinese Tapei, had to wait for those ahead of them to finish out.
Another birdie for Victor Perez on 18 on day two #Paris2024 #golf pic.twitter.com/0VHdZfKUzC
— James McMahon (@mcmahon31j) August 2, 2024
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