Very special week for the number 3 in the world, playing this week in the Memorial Tournament as defending champion, thanks to his valiant triumph in July last year.
Additionally, that victory catapulted him into number 1 in the world in golf, and it all stemmed from the attentive gaze over the 18th hole from one of the most influential golfers in the world: Jack Nicklaus.
Rahm will go into the tournament after landing a tremendous top 10 in the PGA Championship, and one week’s rest, and therefore, the ambition of revalidating his title, and reconquering second place in the world is at an all-time high. However, the golfer from Barrika will encounter a course that is quite different from last year’s, with re-designed greens, new bunkers and wider fairways, for example. We’ll see how well he adapts to these playing conditions.
And, as is only fitting, Jon will have special televised coverage by being part of the “Featured Groups.” Collin Morikawa and Xander Schauffele will be his partners throughout the first two rounds.
By the way, Rahm will be going after a very ambitious goal, which has only ever been done before by the legendary Tiger Woods: successfully defending the title in the Memorial Tournament. Tiger won three years in a row between 1999 and 2001, which makes it even that much more enticing. Will he pull it off?