How many players would be furious with themselves at 6 under par after 17 holes? Not many, but Jon Rahm was this morning. “I get angry because I care and it’s good that I care”. It is common to hear the Barrika native say this, and it perfectly defines his character when he is in the heat of competition. Luckily for Jon, and the throng of fans surrounding the 8th green (his 17th), the smile returned to his face when he holed out from off the green. Chipping from a downslope, so severe that he struggled to find his balance, and with the green running away from him, Rahm’s ball found the middle of the cup, which was just as well, or it may have found the rough on the other side of the green. The crowd erupted as Rahm laughed in disbelief.
Playing better golf tee to green than the Spaniard did on his first nine holes today is practically impossible. So much so that, after signing for an impressive 64, the man himself said “I hope I can play golf for the rest of my life like I did on the first nine today”. Rahm found the middle of the fairway every time he took the cover off his driver. This is a short course for him, if he can find the fairway, and he proved it this morning. On the 14th (his 5th hole), Adam Hayes, the Spaniard’s caddie, told him he had 159 yards to the hole. Having 159 yards to the pin on a par 5, is like Christmas come early for Rahm. He found the green with ease, then sunk a sumptuous, curling putt from 33 feet, exactly the type that have been refusing to drop for him all season; eagle.
The grandstand behind the 17th green at Club de Campo is one of the best spots for spectators thanks to its panoramic views of two holes. Spanish golf’s greatest ambassador knows very well that it is a focal point for the fans, and as he reached them, he turned on the style. His spectacular tee shot into the 17th green, the smallest on the course, skidded to a halt a few feet from the hole and the birdie was a formality.
It was more of the same on the 18th. A drive that practically went into orbit, drawing cries of disbelief from the crowd as it flew the bunkers that protect the hole’s fairway, left him with just 50 yards to the pin. He would sink the birdie putt and march to his tenth hole at 5 under par, a score that could have been much lower; many of his birdie putts shaved the hole.
Rahm’s back nine was not so straight forward. His trusty driver began to fail him and he now frequently found himself recovering from the rough. Frustration began to set in as the trees had their wicked way with him. On the 1st (his 10th), for example, his tee shot came to rest against the trunk of an oak. The result was an inevitable bogey and the only blemish on his scorecard. A photographer whose shutter clicked too early felt the brunt of Rahm’s annoyance. The positive side of his ‘bad’ back nine is that he covered it in two under par.
The most curious incident of the round came on Club de Campo’s 6th hole. The Basque’s blood boiled over when a referee approached him to tell him his match was too slow. “You’re joking, right?”, the Spaniard snapped back at the DP World Tour rules man. “There are 10,000 people following us and we lost a ball on the last”. He was not wrong. Adri Arnaus had launched a drive into the trees on the 5th hole and a significant amount of time was lost looking for a ball that never appeared, resulting in a double bogey.
Last month’s round at Wentworth, when he brought one of the most famous courses in England to its knees, seems to have awoken the beast in Rahm. Ladies and gentlemen, make yourselves comfortable because the Barrika Lion is back and ready to roar louder than ever.
Rahm spoke to the media after his first round at the ACCIONA Open de España presented by Madrid:
On his opening round:
“A great score. The reason I had such a good first nine and not such a good back nine is simply golf. The shots I missed, apart from the one on the 1st, weren’t too bad and I played the first nine perfectly. I wish I could play every hole of my life like that. Let’s see if I can continue like that from the tee and take the positives, I was two under on the back nine hitting the ball badly”.
On his confidence after the final round at Wentworth:
“It’s very helpful that my last round there was so good and to have continued in the same vein here today. Today was similar in terms of how I felt with the putter. The ones I missed, I barely missed. If I can continue that way on the greens it’ll be great”.
On his chip on the 8th
“I landed it where I wanted to, but I misread my lie. It looked like it was soft and the ball shot out. But the flag is there for a reason, and luck is too. I was more surprised about the first two shots on that hole. The drive didn’t deserve to finish where it did, and on the second I executed well but the ball flew when I thought it would come out softly”.
On being more relaxed this year
“Last year, the expectations were very high. The way I played, my role in the Ryder Cup and the possibility of winning three tournaments in a row here meant that my body wasn’t doing what my mind asked it to. That’s the difference, this year without the Ryder Cup, mind and body are in synch”.
On the support from the fans
“I don’t really ever notice the fans that much. For so many people to come on a Thursday is amazing. The Spanish fans always make themselves known and that helps. They motivate you when you do well and when things go awry they also cheer you on. Sometimes when you hit a bad shot they want to cheer for you and that is a little frustrating, it helps if you can accept that”.
