Jon Rahm does not usually sugarcoat defeat. He is not one of those who look for excuses. He looks adversity in the eye, assumes it and tries to use it to his advantage to keep growing. Today, however, after finishing fifth in the Paris Olympic Games after wasting a four-stroke lead with eight holes to go, he was broken. Speechless. Devastated.
Still with bright eyes and while the United States anthem was playing in the background in honor of Scottie Scheffler, Jon faced the situation with as much composure as possible. “I can’t remember the last time I played a tournament and felt this way at the end. I can’t find the words… I have not only let myself down, but an entire country, Spain. This is much more painful than I could have imagined. I have been asked many times what place this tournament would occupy in my opinion compared to the Majors or what I would feel if I won it, and I think that by losing today, I really realize more what the Games mean to me than if I had won a medal. I realize how much it matters. I have had the honor of representing Spain in many events, and not getting a medal hurts me quite a bit,” he stated.
Regarding the last round, Rahm focuses on holes 11 and 12, the two consecutive bogeys when he had a four-stroke lead. “These are things that can happen in golf. They were not terrible shots. On the 11th there was more wind than you could feel and it went ten meters long. I made a good putt, but it went long. The three-putts have cost me a lot this week. I made three putts almost every day and it’s not something I’m used to. It was too much,” he explained.
However, in his opinion, the worst shot of the day, the one he least forgives himself for, is the third one on the 14th. “Once I missed the fairway, I can’t make a mistake like that. I can’t go to the left of the green. I had an 8 iron, 162 meters, I think. I knew that short to the right was fine. You can’t go to the left on that green. I paid the price for making many mistakes,” he pointed out, dismayed.
Rahm tried to recover from the blow. He spoke with his caddie Adam Hayes and they went all out. “I went into attack mode. We told ourselves that four threes had a chance. I was close on the 15th, I made it on the 16th and saw that I needed two more to tie Scottie. I don’t feel like I made such bad swings. It’s a golf course that’s that difficult. It’s that simple. On the 18th it was a shame that I couldn’t give myself a better chance to take Hideki to the playoff. The mistake is mine. On the 11th. The most painful thing is what this could have represented for Spain”.
“The mistake is mine. On the 11th. The most painful thing is what this represented for Spain”
Jon assures that the feeling while competing is not different from a Major, but the aftertaste is. “What I’m going to have to learn from what happened today is that if I had made the putt on the 17th for par, I could still have left myself a silver option on the 18th. Who knows. But I didn’t play as orderly as I should have,” he pointed out.
About Scheffler’s nine under par round, Rahm does not hide his admiration. “To make nine under here is almost a joke. Seeing two this week is quite impressive. There was wind and as soon as you miss a shot, you pay for it. You have to play very well to do it”.
Jon returned to the pain he feels about what happened this Sunday at the Games. “Two of the most significant weeks of my career are two tournaments where we don’t make money. And I’ve said it a million times, and I’ll say it again, because the Ryder Cup and this one are up there. It’s different from the Ryder Cup. It’s not a Major either. But I feel like it’s almost the ultimate prize if you represent your country. And yes, that’s what makes it so special”.
At least, with a cool head, he takes the positive, how well he played. That’s what he puts in his suitcase on his way back from Paris.
