A year and nearly four months after his win at the 2023 Augusta Masters, Jon Rahm met again this Sunday with a victory. He was proclaimed champion of the United Kingdom LIV, held in Manchester, after the end of the third round of the tournament.
It was his twenty-first victory as a professional, the first since he donned the green jacket at the Augusta Masters in April of last year. At the end of 2023 he signed for the Saudi league, where the results did not go well for him. At least until now, as this is his first tournament won on this circuit.
With a final score of -13 on a par 71 course created over three rounds of the tournament, Rahm beat Tyrrell Hatton (-12), whose bogey on the final 18th hole signaled a playoff option to whoever aims to play for the title with the Spaniard. Thus, the Englishman ended up tied with Chilean Joaquín Niemann and Australian Cameron Smith, also one stroke behind the Spaniard.
It was hard for Rahm to win LIV, but who knows if he could have done it at the best time. His first victory came just four days before the start of the men’s tournament at the Paris Olympic Games, which will take place next week, from Thursday to Sunday. This will be the premiere of the five rings event for the Barrika player, who missed the Tokyo Games due to the coronavirus.
Rahm will be coming off the back of a great recovery in the last round in Manchester. He started fourth, three shots behind American Andy Ogletree, who claimed the lead after the second round. However, the Spanish player had a day with five birdies and one bogey to come back and take advantage of the concessions of his rivals.
Tyrrell Hatton’s was especially significant, where he was tied with one hole left. Despite the double bogey, the Englishman saw his five birdies go unrewarded with a final bogey. That -12 tied him with Joaquín Niemann (seven birdies and a closing bogey) and Cameron Smith (five birdies and three bogeys).
Ogletree opened the door to victory wide after carding four birdies, one bogey and, crucially, three double-bogeys that kept him from any title option. He ended up tied for sixth and Rahm took advantage of that situation to perfection. The Spanish player showed resilience to rediscover success and get good sensations at the best moment.
Source: La Verdad
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