"countdown to rio" prepared viewers for golf's return to the olympic games in 2016 for the first time in 112 years. the special details the sport's journey back to becoming an olympic sport, including the reaction from the vote in october 2009 that finalized the sport's reinstatement into the games. the subsequent elements include the events that would follow ahead of the 2016 rio olympics, including: the bidding process for designing the olympic golf course venue and the challenges that the winning architect – gil hanse – would face in preparing the course for competition.