WATCH: Local hero Matthieu Pavon gets hero’s reception for birdie at 2024 Olympics round 1

French golfer Matthieu Pavon had a great start to the first round of the 2024 Paris Olympics Golf event, shooting a birdie on the par-4 hole to kick off the competition on home soil. A large crowd had gathered to cheer on the home hero, and fans were thrilled to see him play this week.

Notably, Pavon gained attention earlier this year when he won the 2024 Farmers Insurance Open on the PGA Tour. With this victory, Pavon became the first French golfer since 1907 to win an event on the PGA Tour. Following his win, fans have high expectations for the golfer, and he has made a promising start to the tournament in Paris.

The men's individual stroke play competition at the 2024 Paris Olympics began on Thursday, August 1, at Le Golf National. The tournament is currently underway, and at the time of writing, Hideki Matsuyama holds the lead at 7-under. The Japanese golfer has played a bogey-free round so far, carding five birdies on the front nine and two on the back nine. He still has four holes left to play in the first round.

LIV golfer Joaquin Niemann has also had a good start at the Paris Olympics. He shot an eagle on the third hole, followed by two birdies on the front nine and two more on the back nine, placing him in second on the leaderboard.

Meanwhile, Pavon started with a birdie on the first hole and completed four holes. He has played less than half of the holes in the first round. At the time of writing, he is tied for 24th place.

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What are Matthieu Pavon's odds to win gold at the Paris Olympics 2024?

According to CBS Sports, Matthieu Pavon has a fair chance of winning gold at the 2024 Paris Olympics, with odds of +4500 in his favor. Scottie Scheffler and Xander Schauffele are the favorites to win this week.

Interestingly, both Scheffler and Schauffele had smooth starts in the first round of the Paris Olympics. They each shot three birdies on the front nine, securing tenth place on the leaderboard at the time of writing.

Here are the top odds to win gold at the Paris Olympics (via CBS Sports):

• Scottie Scheffler (USA) +300
• Xander Schauffele (USA) +525
• Jon Rahm (ESP) +700
• Rory McIlroy (IRL) +700
• Ludvig Aberg (SWE) +1100
• Collin Morikawa (USA) +1100
• Viktor Hovland (NOR) +1700
• Tommy Fleetwood (GBR) +2000
• Tom Kim (KOR) +2000
• Joaquin Niemann (CHI) +2000
• Hideki Matsuyama (JPN) +2200
• Shane Lowry (IRL) +2400
• Corey Conners (CAN) +3000
• Matthew Fitzpatrick (GBR) +3000
• Alex Noren (SWE) +3500
• Sepp Straka (AUT) +4000
• Matthieu Pavon (FRA) +4500
• Min Woo Lee (AUS) +5000
• Byeong-Hun An (KOR) +5000
• Carlos Ortiz (MEX) +5000

Notably, Pavon has played in 16 events this season on the PGA Tour and recorded four top-10 finishes. He has a good chance of winning a medal on home soil.