A 64-stroke card without bogeys is the best way to leave behind the immense pain that the outcome of the Olympic Games in Paris caused Jon Rahm. The wound will take time to heal. Maybe four years. But at least, rounds like today’s help to soothe, to cope with the disappointment. It was the first round of competition for the golfer from Barrika after the fateful Sunday at the Golf National and his response has been sensational. From start to finish. He started with a birdie, making it clear that he had turned the page. And he ended with another one to get into the fight for victory from the beginning and to put the number one in the ranking that Joaco Niemann holds in his sights.
Rahm, with a round of six under par, with four birdies and an eagle, once again displaying great golf from tee to green and with perhaps the only downside of not being able to control a little more in some shots the recoil effect, has placed himself in fourth position, just one stroke behind the trio of leaders formed by Sebastián Muñoz (-7), Talor Gooch (-7) and Jason Kokrak (-7). Nothing surprising. From the start, it was known that a ton of birdies had to be made this week to fight for the win, even more so after the rains that fell, which forced the game to be delayed a little over an hour, left the field ready for candy. For example, -4 is not enough to get into the top 10 with 54 players in contention.
The equality is more than evident. Very tight classification. There are twelve players separated by only two strokes and in that group have entered Brooks Koepka (-6), Richard Bland (-6), Tyrrell Hatton (-5) or Caleb Surratt (-5). Another great team performance from Jon’s Legion XIII, only surpassed in this first round by Koepka’s Smash.
Rahm has the opportunity to catch the number one of LIV Golf this very week. To do this, he needs to win or finish second alone and some help from Niemann. The Chilean has started with three under par, so he has picked up the gauntlet and is ready to fight, although the advantage right now is Rahm’s.
As for the rest of the Spaniards, Sergio García (-3) is in 20th place tied precisely with Niemann, while David Puig (-2) and Eugenio Chacarra (-2) are in 24th place, with a lot of work still ahead to be able to give themselves a chance of victory on Sunday.
