Jon Rahm has just finished his last practice round at Augusta National before the start of the Masters. He walks briskly after briefly chatting with his parents. It’s Wednesday, just after one in the afternoon local time at the old oak tree that adorns the exterior of the clubhouse. He doesn’t want to stop too long because he still has things to do. The par 3 party awaits him, the family appetizer of the Masters, and before that he must eat. “I’m hungry,” he confesses to Ten Golf.
We ask him to at least give us a headline from the champions’ dinner where he acted as host as the defending champion. The champions’ dinner where he has already earned a lifetime seat at the table. “What can I say, it was very good, very pleasant, it was a good dinner,” he assures. And the speech? “Well, others will have to say that, what I do have to confess is that I was nervous… veryyyyyyyyyyyyyy,” he assures.
Rahm kept his promise and spoke about history, tradition, and legacy. He remembered Seve and spoke about Olazábal, present at the dinner, about what they have meant to him, about the importance they had in his formation as a golfer, always as references and icons. He also referred to the special connection that exists between the Masters and Spanish golf, what it represents in our history.
Jon, who acknowledged to everyone before starting the speech that he had never been so nervous in his life, tried to explain the immensity of being in that room, at that moment, and in front of those people. He was impressed and spoke of the privilege and pride of belonging to such an exceptional club as the Masters champions.
The Basque player finished the speech thanking everyone for their attendance and with a phrase that perfectly defines his competitive character: “good luck to everyone, but not too much…”. After all, his only goal this week is to try to defend the title, something that only three players in history have achieved: Jack Nicklaus, Nick Faldo and Tiger Woods. Quite something.
The atmosphere at the dinner was very cordial, there were hardly any references to LIV Golf, although there was a common desire for the parties involved in the conflict, PGA Tour and the Saudi league, to reach an agreement that would lead to a return to unity in world golf. Among those present, the low profile of Phil Mickelson throughout the dinner, despite his great connection with Jon, was particularly noticeable.
During the dinner, a tribute was paid to Jack Burke, a Masters winner who died at the age of 100 last January.
