Stephen Curry has a great reason for not defending his Lake Tahoe celebrity golf title this summer

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Nick Taylor’s Canadian Open bomb asise, one could argue the most dramatic putt of 2023 came from an NBA player. Of course, we’re talking about Stephen Curry’s walk-off eagle to win the American Century Championship at Lake Tahoe.

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Fittingly, the four-time NBA champ drained one from about three-point distance on the final hole to stun former champ Mardy Fish and become the first active athlete to win the event in nearly a quarter century. Here it is in case you don’t remember:

And that came a day after Curry made a hole-in-one. Talk about a magical week. But, sadly, he won’t be back in the event this year. Wait, what?

Curry actually has a great reason for not defending his title. The 36-year-old was chosen to represent Team USA on the basketball court at the Olympics this summer.

“I’m disappointed that I won’t be able to defend my title at the American Century Championship in Tahoe this summer, but the chance to represent my country and, hopefully, win an Olympic gold medal the first time at the 2024 Games in Paris is an opportunity that I simply could not pass up,” Curry said in a statement. “I look forward to returning to the shores of Lake Tahoe and creating more memories next July and in subsequent years. In the interim, I know that Dell and Seth will represent the Curry family well in my absence, but if one of them doesn’t come home with another trophy for our mantel, I will be highly disappointed!”

Makes sense, although the tournament and NBC are certainly disappointed the NBA superstar won’t be back in Lake Tahoe in July. That being said, the network will benefit from his presence in Paris.

“Well, we’ve discovered that the only thing Stephen Curry can’t do is be in two places at once,” said Jon Miller, President, NBC Sports Acquisitions and Partnerships. “Obviously, the tournament and our fans are as disappointed as Steph that he can’t be here, but representing our country at the Olympics and going for gold is a proud priority to support. We wish Team USA and our entire Olympic contingent well and look forward to having Steph defend his American Century title in 2025.”

We look forward to it as well. And we’re sure Steph will keep his golf game sharp. Heck, he’ll probably bring his clubs to Paris.

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This article was originally published on golfdigest.com