On what would have been Seve Ballesteros’ 66th birthday, and on the 40th anniversary of his second Masters triumph, it was becoming that fellow Spaniard Jon Rahm laid declare to the inexperienced jacket at Augusta Nationwide. The poignancy and significance of the achievement, and its timing, is not going to be misplaced on Rahm, a participant guided by the sunshine of Spain’s {golfing} heroes of the previous.
“Historical past of the sport is a giant cause why I play and Seve is a giant a part of that historical past,” Rahm mirrored. “For me to get it performed on the fortieth anniversary of his second Masters win and on his birthday was extremely significant.”
Setting apart the historic significance of Rahm’s victory, it’s a seminal second in his {golfing} profession. His triumph on the US Open again in 2021 received the monkey off his again so far as successful a serious championship was involved, and this Masters triumph is one other bucket-list merchandise for Rahm to tick off. He follows within the footsteps of compatriots Ballesteros and Jose Maria Olazabal in donning the well-known inexperienced jacket.
Rahm can now name himself a a number of main champion, and given his type this season you wouldn’t be shocked if he added one other main or two to his document this yr. The PGA Championship, US Open and British Open are all nonetheless to return in 2023, and Rahm can be amongst the favourites within the sports activities bets for all of these tournaments.
There was a nervy second for Rahm on the very first gap of the match, the place he four-putted to document a worrying double bogey. Nonetheless, the Spaniard barely put a foot fallacious for the remainder of the match, carding rounds of 65, 69, 73 and 69 once more to say a formidable triumph, reeling in Brooks Koepka to win by 4 clear strokes in the long run.
At one level, it seemed as if the match was Koepka’s to lose. A sensational opening two rounds of 65 and 67 set him effectively on the right track, however the American’s type abandoned him over the weekend, with a 75 on Sunday the ultimate nail within the coffin. Fellow LIV golfer Phil Mickelson loved a sensational surge up the leaderboard on the ultimate day, carding a sensational 65 to earn a tie for second with Koepka.
With Patrick Reed ending tied for fourth, it was week for these representing LIV Golf, and proof maybe that the alternate format featured on the Saudi-backed tour is not going to forestall its greatest gamers from competing when push involves shove on the main championships.
However this Masters Match was all about Rahm. The win brings him again to the summit of the world rankings, and he would be the man to beat for the remainder of the season. Rahm now has 4 wins to his title in 2023, and the Spaniard is displaying no indicators of slowing down.
There may be nonetheless a lot to play for this season, and whereas Rahm was visibly emotional as he donned the inexperienced jacket, there was very a lot a sense that this was solely a stepping stone on his journey in direction of changing into one among golf’s all-time greats.
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