Jon Rahm arrives at the Open Championship in the best form of the last two years. Does this mean he will definitely win his third Major at Royal Portrush? Well, no, if only sport, and golf in particular, were that simple. What it does mean is that he arrives as one of the main favourites and with confidence at an extraordinary level.
Jon has recorded his best round at Valderrama (65 strokes without bogeys), but most importantly, it’s been a long time since he felt so comfortable with his swing. “If I had to say when was the last time I felt this good, I would probably say the first round of the Masters at Augusta in 2023 (when he donned the Green Jacket on Sunday)… well, and also at the Ryder Cup in Italy,” he confirmed.
Jon finished second, but he enjoyed himself like a child with new shoes this Sunday at the LIV Golf Andalucía. “It was everything. I only hit one bad shot, the drive on the 18th, which was very poor. Beyond that, I played every shot as I wanted. The only delicate par putt was on the 16th. I’m very happy. I don’t want to say I’m at my best because we know how this sport is and it quickly brings you down, but I’m doing well,” he states.
There is a technical key that perfectly explains this tremendous satisfaction of Rahm after Sunday’s round. “This week I practically didn’t have any shot that went left with the idea of opening and ended up left. It did what I wanted, and when it didn’t, it was because I missed the shot and I knew it. In recent times that has been the big problem. Even shots that I had hit exactly as I wanted, started left and ended left, and that threw me off,” he assures.
Rahm felt very comfortable with all the clubs, although there is one with which he particularly shone. “I’ll stick with the driver. Every time I picked it up today to hit from the tee, I knew I was going to hit the fairway. I had that confidence. And if I missed, it was by very little. I’m leaving happy,” he emphasises. There are reasons to expect everything from Jon in the next Open.
“Hopefully we can have a LIV Golf tournament in Bilbao”
He is as elated with his feelings as with the possibility of LIV Golf being held in Bilbao, as reported this week by TenGolf, following the meeting between the Vizcaya Council and the Saudi circuit at Valderrama. “You know as much as I do. If there’s a place I like more than Valderrama, I would have to say it’s Vizcaya. What can I say? Being able to play a LIV tournament with some of the best players in the world and compete in front of a crowd that’s even closer to home, and if it’s in Bilbao, I don’t know what to say. I don’t want to rush because many things can happen in this world with this schedule. But hopefully, if not next year, then in two or three or whatever, it becomes a reality and I have the luck to truly compete at home, being Vizcaya, and I imagine if it’s Vizcaya, it has to be Bilbao.”
Similarly, he was adamant about the possibility of LIV Golf receiving world ranking points. “I knew it, I can’t leave without you asking me the question. Please. I don’t know, you tell me. I consider what you’ve seen this week to be a good level of golf. It deserves points. How many? I don’t know. The excuse or argument many use is that this is an exhibition. For me, that’s false. Whether you like it or not, whether it has a cut or not, whether it has three or four rounds, it’s good competition. It’s competition. And it deserves world ranking points. I hope it happens and doesn’t take long. There are good young players here who deserve to have that opportunity to qualify for Majors.”
Jon was equally very satisfied with the victory of Legion XIII by teams at Valderrama. The coliseum of Sotogrande continues to speak Spanish. First Torque won, then Fireballs, and now Rahm’s team. It’s the third victory of the year and the seventh in total. By the way, Legion XIII is now leading the team standings ahead of Crushers and Fireballs.
