They said it was golf, but at times what Jon Rahm (-4) has been doing with Le Golf National in Paris has been more like boxing or judo. What a battle the golfer from Barrika has fought on the first day of the Olympic Games tournament. He signed a round trip card of 67 strokes. Blow goes, blow comes. A lot of accuracy, a lot of magic strokes, and also some mistakes. That’s what has prevented him from being a little closer to the leader, the Japanese Hideki Matsuyama (-8).
Be that as it may, it is a good start in the Games, gaining positions, already placing himself in the noble part of the classification with a view to the 54 holes that remain. He is sixth. He does not leave with the feeling of being behind, of having to do more than necessary in the coming days to opt for a medal, but with the conviction that he is in the fight for everything.
His exercise in resilience has been outstanding. The golf day has turned out perfect in Versailles, where Le Golf National is located, a few kilometers west of Paris. Zero wind at the start, very slight breeze as the minutes passed and a very receptive field due to the fallen rains. Each street taken was an option to leave the ball very close, as Matsuyama himself has shown with his 63 strokes.
Rahm got going on hole 3 with an eagle from outside the green. First touch of magic. It wouldn’t be the last. From there, he got stuck. From the tee he has been notable, but the irons were not absolutely fine. They were not a disaster, but his birdie putt radius was too far to discount strokes. In those, two consecutive bogeys arrived. Down. He was at par, far from the head.
On the 7th he paid the toll of playing from the rough after a bad exit to the left. That’s what this field has. It’s not the drama of the 2018 Ryder Cup, but it’s still penalizing, especially in some areas. Immediately afterwards, another bogey occurred, now on the 8th, due to a three-putt. It was time to row. And that’s what Rahm did.
He made a birdie on the 9th, by the book, catching the antegreen of two on this par 5. There began an enormous streak. He started with another magic stroke. Putting from the rough on the right of the green of hole 12 for birdie. We said that things were not going well for Jon this year, that he lacked those extra moments of brilliance, those bonuses, and it seems that everything changed with that ball that he putted for birdie from about 40 meters on hole 7 of Royal Troon. Now good things happen to him, like that birdie from a situation that smelled more like a bogey.
He signed another birdie on the 13th and finished with a fabulous stroke on the 14th, a sidereal wood from the street about two meters from the flag for eagle. Ding, dong. Inside. One more. Suddenly, especially suddenly, he was at -5, in third position, in the absolute pomade.
But we already said that today was more boxing than golf. Le Golf National was waiting for him around the bell to give him another slap. It was on the 16th, par 3. Bad stroke by Rahm from the tee, water and double bogey. Back to -3, somewhat far and, above all, emotional stick.
Jon recovered in the best way he knows and as champions do. He pulled out a sensational birdie on the 17th, with a great start and a fantastic shot a meter and a half from the flag. On the 18th they decided to take a truce to end as friends. Simple par, although he still had to put a commitment of just over a meter for par.
Jon is fully involved in the fight to win. He asked in Valderrama to start the tournaments well so as not to have to go behind. This 67 guarantees it.
For his part, David Puig (-2) has finished his Olympic debut with a bittersweet feeling. He started the tournament like a motorcycle. He bit into Le Golf National and by hole 11 he had placed himself at -5, at the top of the table, looking into the eyes of the leadership. It was a stretch of great golf, where he had the virtue of overcoming errors from the tee with some spectacular recovery shots and, at the same time, take advantage of the good starts to leave birdie options and finish with the putt.
The round was more than on track, but the job had to be finished. This is where things got complicated. On the 13th he sent his start to the water and, even so, he got a good bogey, but the most painful thing came at the end. Two bogeys with two three-putts on holes 17 and 18 made him sign a card of 69 strokes. It’s not a bad start, not at all, but the bittersweet taste is inevitable because of the way it ended, especially being on the greens, specialty of the house. A pity, although David has to take all the positive, which is a lot. Today he has shown that he can do little to the French course.
Both Rahm and Puig have not yet won a medal, but they have not lost it either. Good start in the Olympic Games. The top 10 is at -4 and the bronze medal at -5. Everything is still very close.
