Her father stood by the golf bag and held back tears when Aditi Ashok teed off in the Olympics. Better yet was watching the 18-year-old from India walk off the 18th green Thursday with another 68 and see her name high on the leaderboard.

"I didn't expect to be there," Ashok told The Associated Press. "I just tried to follow my game plan and do my best every day. And now I'm up there, so I'm really looking forward to the weekend."

And to think none of this would be possible if they had chosen somewhere else to eat breakfast long ago.

Ashok, a single child with an inquisitive mind, was 5 when she went with her parents to a restaurant across from the Karnataka Golf Association course in Bangalore. The family knew nothing about golf.

[ARKANSANS IN RIO: Full coverage of 24 in Olympics]

"We were just having breakfast and we looked at the driving range where people are hitting balls," Gudlamani Ashok said. "We were very intrigued and just walked in. We just wanted to get some family activity, so we all learned. I saw her interest growing and when she played her first round -- 18 holes from normal tees -- I could see red cheeks. But then she said, 'I want to go back.'

"I felt she's very, very passionate about the sport, and she took it on from there."

Ashok is emerging on her biggest stage yet in women's golf. The youngest player in the field, she qualified through the women's world ranking at No. 462 in the world, and her appearance was seen mainly as a chance to spark interest in golf in India.

Jeev Milkha Singh, Arjun Atwal and Anirban Lahiri have earned attention over the last decade in men's golf, from victories on the European Tour or PGA Tour. Lahiri, who also grew up in Bangalore, tied for fifth in the PGA Championship last year and was the first to play in the Presidents Cup.

Ashok's hopes are to inspire the women, and she can only imagine what a medal would mean to her country.

"I think it would be big in India, and also being a golfer -- a woman golfer -- it will definitely boost the popularity of the sport. That's what I'm hoping to do," Ashok said. "Because golf is in the Olympics for the first time, I think it would make golf more public among the general people who watch golf, not just the golf fans who watch it right now. ... We still need to have a lot more golf courses and a lot more juniors playing the sport. I'm hoping that happens soon."

For now, she has four shots to make up against seven-time major champion Inbee Park.

Rough going in Rio

IOC executive Patrick Hickey was discharged Thursday from a hospital and went straight to a Rio de Janeiro police station to be questioned about an Olympics ticket scalping investigation.

The 71-year-old Irishman was arrested in a dawn raid Wednesday in the IOC hotel, but he immediately was hospitalized with chest pains.

The Olympic Council of Ireland told The Associated Press that a member of its Rio Games delegation was allowed to go to Hickey's bedside to be informed of his decision to step aside temporarily from his IOC duties.

A member of the IOC's ruling executive board, Hickey was in charge of the influential umbrella group for Europe's Olympic bodies.

Hickey is facing charges of conspiracy, ticket scalping and ambush marketing after allegations by Brazilian authorities that he was part of a plot to make $3 million by illegally selling Rio Games tickets above face value.

Hickey was filmed Thursday being taken out of the hospital in a wheelchair.

"The Olympic Council of Ireland can confirm that Pat Hickey has been discharged from hospital and has been accompanied to a police station to complete a deposition," the Irish organization said in a statement.

There was no indication from authorities how long Hickey will be held.

Sports quiz

How many total Summer Olympic medals has India won?

Answer

27, including a bronze medal from Sakshi Malik in the women's 58kg freestyle wrestling competition in Rio.

Sports on 08/19/2016