Victory at The Masters saw Jon Rahm cement his place as one of the sport's present-day elite and put him halfway towards the Grand Slam; he moved back above Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy in the OWGR too; watch the RBC Heritage live on Sky Sports Golf from Thursday
Thursday 13 April 2023 07:08, UK
In the build-up to this year's Masters, much of the talk focused on two of present-day golf's 'big three'. By the time the final putt was sunk on Augusta National's 18th, the one who had been somewhat overlooked was the only name on everybody's lips.
Reigning champion Scottie Scheffler failed to become only the fourth player to secure back-to-back wins in the tournament, finishing eight shots back in a tie for 10th, while Rory McIlroy's quest to put on that elusive Green Jacket ended when he missed the cut.
Instead, Jon Rahm stood tall over the rest of the field, sinking a putt for par to wrap up a maiden Masters triumph by four shots and taking him halfway towards completing the Grand Slam of golf's four majors following his 2018 US Open success.
Only five players - Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods, Ben Hogan, Gary Player and Gene Sarazen - have managed that feat previously, with McIlroy, Phil Mickelson and Jordan Spieth (three majors apiece) currently chasing it as well. Rahm, however, played down the prospects of it happening for him any time soon.
"Let's not get ahead of ourselves," Rahm, who will undoubtedly be considered one of the favourites for next month's PGA Championship at Oak Hill East Course, said. "I mean, it would be amazing. It would be great.
"Not many people have been able to do it, and to be able to finish it out and close out and do a Grand Slam would be absolutely amazing.
"I would like to say that I entered the race when I won the US Open, but, of course, you're so far away, you don't want to think about it, right? But as players, it's on your mind.
"It's something else that would be amazing, but it's a long road ahead to be able to accomplish that. Something that two players like Phil and [Arnold Palmer] weren't able to do, it speaks a lot."
Rahm's victory at Augusta saw him become the first European player to claim the US Open and Masters, and it was no surprise to Mickelson that the Spaniard has further cemented his status as one of the leading golfers in the world today.
Like the 52-year-old, Rahm attended Arizona State University. He had Mickelson's brother Tim as his golf coach while playing for his college team too, and the three-time Masters champion is not surprised to see someone he has known for a long time starting to match his undoubted potential.
"First time I played with him we played Whisper Rock, and he shot 62 and I thought I played pretty good, and he gave me a pretty good beat-down," Mickelson, who finished behind Rahm in a tie for second with Brooks Koepka at Augusta, said.
"So, I am not surprised at his success. I mean, it was obvious to me at a very young age that he was one of the best players in the world even while he was in college. To see him on this stage is not surprising for anybody.
"It's hard not to pull for Jon, too. He's such a good guy, he has such a great heart and treats people so well. I think the world of him as a person and as a player, that's obvious, how good he is."
Rahm has now moved back above Scheffler, who as outgoing champion presented him with his Green Jacket in the traditional post-tournament winner's ceremony, and McIlroy after vaulting from third to No 1 in the Official World Golf Rankings on the back of his Masters win.
It was his fourth title of the year too, having already claimed the Sentry Tournament of Champions, The American Express and Genesis Invitational on the PGA Tour, along with leading the way on the circuit in scoring average (68.792), birdie average (5.15) and strokes gained (2.498).
Rahm and Scheffler are set to battle it out again at another of the PGA Tour's elevated events, the RBC Heritage, this week, with McIlroy having withdrawn, and former PGA Championship winner Rich Beem is in no doubt there is still plenty more to come this year from The Masters champion.
"We've always looked at Jon Rahm as one of these players who's going to be a world-class player," Beem told Sky Sports. "Obviously he's world No 1 and in a very short span of time, but looking at what he's done, he continually gets better each and every year.
"So far [in 2023] he's won four times, all elevated events and now The Masters - the sky right now is the limit for him. I know he was thinking about having a big 2023, but this could be something really special for him.
"On the very first hole of this tournament he four-putts, and how many players can say they've four-putt and come back and shot this unbelievable round? Every single time he could have made a misstep, it never happened.
"It's just like he was biding his time and just outwaited everybody else. He out-patienced everyone else this week and that's why he won."
That recovery, which saw him become only the second player in Masters history after Sam Snead in 1952 to win the tournament despite opening with a double-bogey, underlined another part of Rahm's make-up which has helped elevate him into becoming one of golf's elite players.
"We put in a lot of effort to try to beat the best guys in the world," Rahm said. "So maybe that level of intensity and that determination is what you see and that's why I'm characterised as a fighter.
"I'm also never going to give up. Even if I shoot myself out of contention and I can finish strong to give myself a possibility to finish fourth, it's always going to be better than anything.
"So, I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I didn't try my hardest on every shot, so maybe that's where it comes from."
Watch all four days of the RBC Heritage at Harbour Town Golf Links live on Sky Sports Golf from Thursday April 13. Early coverage starts from 12pm, with main coverage getting under way from 7pm.
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