Shane Lowry and Rory McIlroy declared themselves happy with their practice rounds after taking the opportunity to reset ahead of the beginning of the Olympics competition on Thursday.
Having spent time together in Portugal last week, McIlroy played the Old Course at St Andrews at the weekend and recharged after some turbulent times.
Lowry, meanwhile, went home to watch the All-Ireland football final in Croke Park given there was some days to fill before they could get ready for Le Golf National on Thursday.
The four-time major winner McIlroy admitted it was something of a relief to take a short break before being unable to resist playing one of the most famous courses in the world.
Speaking to RTÉ Sport, he said: "I got away from it for a little bit. This year's been a bit hectic for me so it was nice to just get away for a little bit and get away from the game.
Rory McIlroy is happy with where his game is, ahead of the start of the Olympic golf event on Thursday and he's pleased to be back on a familiar course at Le Golf National. #RTESport #Paris2024
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"It's nice because every time you do that you come back motivated and rejuvenated and obviously I'm really excited to be back here in Paris at my second Olympic Games. I was so close to a medal last time and hopefully can go a little better this time.
"I played St Andrews yesterday. I was there doing something and thought 'why not go and play the Old Course?'.
"It was nice to go out and play and sort of feel a little more familiar with where my game is and what I need to do over the next couple of days to be ready for Thursday."
McIlroy can draw on his previous experience at the Paris venue and was encouraged by playing nine holes this morning.
Asked where his game is, he said: "It feels pretty good. There's obviously a big difference between practice and putting a card in your hand and having it be the real thing.
"I've always liked this golf course. I've played well here before. I have good memories from the Ryder Cup in 2018. If I put in a decent bit of work over the next couple of days I'll be ready to go on Thursday."
Lowry, meanwhile, happily recalled leading the Irish team at the opening ceremony last Friday along with Sarah Lavin.
Despite the rain, something which the Offaly man said didn’t bother him, he said the day will remain in his mind for a long time.
"It was an amazing experience from the moment I got there, to the unveiling to that evening," Lowry explained.
"Obviously we got pretty wet but I enjoyed every bit of it. It was something I will remember forever.
"I think just the whole experience of being with Sarah and seeing what it meant to her and enjoying it all with the other people and the other athletes [was what made it special].
"Going down past the Eiffel Tower was obviously pretty cool and we've got some great pictures of that.
"They are memories for a lifetime and something that probably, as the years go on and you get older, you look back on stuff like that. It'll probably become more and more special."
Lowry went from Paris to Dublin to watch the dramatic All-Ireland final between Armagh and Galway as he spent time with him family, rather than endure a long build-up to teeing off on Thursday in France.
He said: "I just didn't want to spend the whole weekend here twiddling my thumbs and getting ready for this week so yeah, I got a nice trip to Croke Park on Sunday which was good.
"I was very much neutral, I brought my daughter to the game so it was her first All-Ireland final. We really enjoyed the day out together. It was a great game, a great finish and obviously very exciting. It was very disappointing for Galway but yeah, it was good."
Lowry also began his week in practice in good fashion with his fellow Irishman.
He feels Le Golf National will play to his strengths this week.
"I played pretty nicely so I'm happy where my game is at. The course suits me pretty decently and it's in unbelievable condition.
"It's a really tough test so I’m looking forward to getting out there and competing for a medal.
"It would mean an awful lot to me to be able to bring a medal back to Ireland. You just see what Mona did last night and how much it meant to everyone. It was pretty cool."
McIlroy shares that feeling.
Given the constant debate around his career and the early success he achieved, he believes an Olympic medal would be something he could treasure rather than add to that discussion.
"I think it would mean a lot to anyone," McIlroy stated.
"People say where would it rank. In the grand scheme of things will it make people feel differently about me or my career? I don't know.
"But it'll certainly make me feel differently about me and that's the most important thing."
The public continue to adjust to golf being part of the Games with the Down man keen to see it grow, firstly to gain respect, but also to expand into a team event in the future.
"It is a little bit of an unfair question [about how much the Olympics is being taken seriously in golf] because golf is so much about the history and the tradition of the game and you know golf wasn't an Olympic sport from 1904 until 2016, over 100 years.
"Then all of a sudden it becomes part of the Games again and it just takes time, it'll take time to resonate with golfers and golf fans.
"But I think as the years go on and golf becomes a mainstay in the Olympic Games it'll mean more and more each time.
"Shane and I have teamed up really well in the past, especially at the Zurich Classic this year. I’ve love for that to be part of the Games.
"A mixed team event has been thrown around as well.
"We play so much individual stroke play that it would be nice to come here and do something a little bit different and a little more imaginative.
"Maybe in LA next time there might be something along those lines which I think all of us would really look forward to."
Watch the 2024 Olympic Games with 14 hours of televised action on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player each day. Listen to extensive radio coverage on RTÉ Radio 1 and 2fm's Game On and follow each moment from Paris on RTÉ.ie, the RTÉ News app and all RTÉ digital platforms. Listen to the daily RTÉ Sport Olympics Podcast.
