Jon Rahm took the path of Severiano Ballesteros, Jose Maria Olazabal y Sergio Garcia. The Basque put on the green jacket, the most iconic trophy in the world of golf, the one that all professionals in that sport want to show off in his closet. The man from Barrika is the new champion of the Augusta Masters and returns to number one in world golf after beating the North American Brooks Koepka by four strokes on Sunday, signing a final card of 276 strokes, twelve below par for the Augusta National.
The profile: the calm in the storm
Four days ago Jon Rahm opened his Augusta Masters with a double bogey on the first hole. It was the worst possible start, but Barrika’s did not lose his cool at any time, not even during the stormy days that marked the tournament, and this Sunday he placed his name in the history of world golf by donning the iconic green jacket for the first time .
native of barriAt the age of 28, Rahm became the fourth Spaniard capable of winning the Augusta Masters, after Seve Ballesteros, double champion (1980 and 1983), José María Olazábal (1994 and 1999) and Sergio García.
He dressed in green in one of the most glorious settings in the history of golf and already has two grandes to his credit, after the US Open of 2021.
He increased his legacy by becoming the second Spanish golfer capable of winning two different ‘major’ titles, after Ballesteros (Masters and British Open) and he did so on a special day for Spain, Ballesteros’s birthday.
“I don’t know where I would be without him. Winning the Masters on the 40th anniversary of his victory, on his birthday, on Easter Sunday, is incredibly important to me,” Rahm said at the green jacket ceremony for the champion. Masters. “I know Ballesteros was cheering me on today,” he added.
Athletic supporter, he measures 1.88 meters and weighs 99 kilograms
They were four unforgettable days for Rahm, who started the first lap with a double bogey, without it affecting him in the slightest. His reaction was forceful and historic.
He finished the first day as co-leader with a seven under par, the best round in the history of the Masters after starting with a doble error. Asked how he managed to stay calm, Rahm considered that sometimes starting badly “relaxes” you.
“There are times that it does make you relax in quotes. You have already made a mistake and it relaxes you a bit. You have to go back, period. I have always considered that if you are on the street of seven and you are around par, it is a great start of a lap,” Rahm said at a press conference.
“The first holes are not easy holes, birdies can be made but it is not guaranteed. After the birdies on two and three being even on seven I was perfectly happy, I would have signed it, you put me there and I’m fine,” he added.
It is a further example of Rahm’s mental strength, who overcame a very difficult second and third rounds, marked by long interruptions due to rain and wind.
He had to finish the third round this Sunday and faced the fourth two shots behind Koepka. He played some smart and solid golf to gradually come back to take command of the table. He would not make mistakes again and was crowned the new champion.
The first thing he did after being crowned champion was to hug his wife and two children, Kepa (2021) y of mine (2022).
His triumph was accompanied by his faithful caddy Adam Hayes, with whom he has worked since 2016 and with whom he shares an insatiable hunger to succeed.
“The most important thing to understand with Adam is that he wants to win as much as I do and that is the beauty and the importance of the team,” Rahm does not hesitate to assure.
This is how we live on Sunday
Rahm signed a 69-shot card in the final round, with a lone bogey and four birdies on three, eight, thirteen and fourteen. he is the second grande that the Spaniard wins after his triumph in 2021 in the US Open in a future that looks more than brilliant, with the figure of the great Severiano Ballesteros on the horizon to surpass the level of titles.
The Basque played intelligent and practical golf, improving his performance in the third round and ensuring his shots so as not to make mistakes. He improved on the greens and barely left the fairway, something his rivals could not boast of, as they made many inaccuracies that kept them away from title options.
It was a very long day at the Augusta Nationalwith the third round resuming first thing in the morning and the entire final round in the afternoon.
Rahm managed to make up for his bad finish on Saturday, which he arrived with two bogeys in his last three holes played. On Sunday morning he started with birdies on seven and eight, cutting to Koepka a blow thanks to the fact that the American choked on the seventh, leaving the fairway and falling into the bunker.
Two more bogeys by Rahm on 13 and 16 showed problems with his putting, he couldn’t read the greens as well as on previous days.
The news on Sunday morning was the withdrawal of Tiger Woods before facing the eighth hole of the third round, as he could no longer take the pain in his leg.
The third round closed with Koepka leading and Rahm just two shots away. The threat came from behind with names like Hovland himself, Cantlay or Matsuyama, all far away but at a very good time.
the ultimate temperance
Rahm held firm on his way to the green jacket on Sunday afternoon, overcoming a poor close to the third round hours earlier and regaining his confidence. Something that contrasted with a Koepka full of doubts, with three bogeys in the first nine holes.
This is how the one from Barrika reached the first place, which he would never leave again. His birdie at number three, added to Koepka’s bogey at number four, lifted the Spaniard to the top of the table.
Koepka’s first birdie in the final round didn’t come until the thirteenth hole, the American snorted, releasing some frustration. It did not have an immediate effect because in that same hole Rahm also finished with four shots and extended his card to -11.
At 14 there was more distance, another birdie from a Rahm full of confidence who smiled in conversations with his caddy Adam Hayes. The two were already caressing the success they had pursued throughout the weekend.
In the 16th minute Koepka wanted to add emotion with a birdie and with two holes to play Rahm dominated by three shots. It was ephemeral, because at the start of 17 the Spaniard put it on the street with a great drive and the Florida man sent it against the public gathered at the foot of the grass.
Rahm limited himself to ensuring par for the course, not taking risks from 15 to 18, and enjoying his walk as he reached the last green, where he received a well-deserved ovation and was able to hug his wife, his children, and an emotional Chema Olazábal.
Mickelson’s Miracle
At 52, Phil Mickelson impressed in his final round with as many as eight birdies, five of which came on the final seven holes of the tournament.
The last of them to close his participation in the 18th with an applause from the Augusta public and take the road to the locker room wondering if he would be a real threat to a Rahm who was holding on and a Koepka already in free fall.
With -8 on his card he was second, becoming the oldest to finish among the top five, an honor that Jimmy Demaret had until then when he achieved it at 51 years of age.
