SAINT-QUENTIN-EN-YVELINES, France – Since golf’s return to the Olympics in 2016 as a 72-hole, individual stroke-play event, there has been a groundswell of support to add a team element, either mixed with men and women players or otherwise, to the competition.

“At the beginning of next year, [the International Olympic Committee] should make the decision as to what events will be in the program for L.A.,” Antony Scanlon, the executive director of the International Golf Federation, told PGATour.com last month. “And we're hoping that the fact that there's no additional athletes and no additional resources required, that the mixed event would be approved by them, especially given the support of the organizing committee.”

A team element appears to be a popular option among players, although how organizers could incorporate the men and women into the same event, remains unknown.

“When golf got back in the Olympics in 2016, I think some people were surprised that it was only individual stroke play, and they didn't try to mix it up with some different formats,” Rory McIlroy said Tuesday at Le Golf National. “If that came to fruition in [2028 at Los Angeles Games] where there was a mixed-team event, another team event that was not mixed and Shane [Lowry] and I could play in it if we qualify, yeah, I'd love that. I think that would be a great format to bring to this competition.”

There would be the issue of adding competition days to both the men’s and women’s events during a busy stretch for everyone in professional golf.

“Watching the tennis and watching the rugby sevens, it's kind of condensed. I think that might have to be a part of golf,” Australia’s Min Woo Lee said. “It will be a pretty long week for us if we had to do four days individuals and I don't know how many days of mixed, two days of mixed. That's a lot of golf for us.

“I would be very excited if there was a team event and that would be very cool. That would make golf grow, which is awesome, and we want to do that.”