Jon Rahm kicked off the season with the US Open Championship, another atypical event in this strange year 2020, marked by the pandemic. The postponement of the tournament from its habitual date in June to September, due to Covid-19, is why the tournament is taking place at such an unusual time.
The spotlight this week was on Winged Foot, the New York course that hosted this year’s Major, which gave the golfers a run for their money. So much so, that the winner, Bryson DeChambeau, managed to finish under par after all four days.
It was a dicey week of ups and downs for Rahm. He was off to a great start, with a round of 69 shots, which put him first in line for the top spots, exactly four shots from the leader. The second day, he resisted the course’s wrath, which grew more and more fierce. He shot a 72 on a day in which only three players shot under par. In reality, he was holding his ground well, with his sights still set on the top positions. In fact, at that point in time, he was only four shots away from the tournament leader.
In the third round was where he lost the most ground. It was not a good day. He only made one birdie, and shot a 76, which made things very tight, not much room to work with. He was practically left without options to win. Even so, loyal to his warrior instinct, Rahm went all in on the last round. He shot a 73, and moved up a few spots. A double bogey on the 18th hole kept him from finishing higher up in the rankings. He ended up in 23rd place, four shots from the top ten. It wasn’t his dream week, but by no means a bad one, up against a very narrow course, with a horrific rough, and firm, fast greens.