Jon Rahm played in the first FexEX Cup playoff of his career in New York, and he couldn’t have got off to a better start. The golfer from Barrika finished third in the Northern Trust Open, held on the Glen Oaks Golf Club course in Long Island, after making it through to the fight for the win with Jordan Spieth and Dustin Johnson in the last round of the tournament. He made it to the 15th hole before he lost some ground after a bogey that put him at one shot away from the leader.
Rahm had a big week on a course that was new to all golfers, and which generated lots of positive feedback among them. It was a demanding design, well-presented, with narrow fairways and a very penalizing rough. In short, a course that rewards good golf nicely and punishes bad shots harshly. And that it is exactly what it did.
Rahm maintained a top position in the rankings throughout all four rounds, with a smooth, consistent game of golf, reminiscent of his best golf of the season. He shot a 68 in three rounds and a 67. Solid. All aspects of the game were working at a very high level, from the drive to the putt, getting by with irons, where he was only a bit off on the first 18 holes. A great demonstration of strength and power at the start of the Playoffs.
One of Rahm’s goals before starting the Playoffs was to reach the FedEX Finals, the Tour Championship in Atlanta, positioned at fifth place in the rankings, seeing as how they are the only golfers that solely depend on themselves to win the FedEX. In other words, any of the top five who win in Atlanta will get a direct shot at the cup and a $10 million bonus, granted by this post-season PGA Tour event. That being said, he went into the FedEX in New York in sixth place and he is now in fifth. At the first opportunity, he reached his first goal. “It’s been awhile since I’ve had a good one in the PGA Tour and it feels great to be back. After making birdies on the 11th, 12th and 13th holes, my goal was to reach -13 and to see would happen, but I made errors where I shouldn’t have on both par 3s (15th and 17th)”, he said after the tournament.
Rahm will play in the second FexEX Cup Playoff this week, the Dell Technologies Championship, tournament held on TPC Boston course in Norton, Massachusetts. To start, the sponsor brings back great memories, also the same sponsor of the second World Championship, the Dell Match Play held in Austin, Texas, and where Jon finished second after playing in the finals against Dustin Johnson.