West News Wire: Because so many Spanish stars were aligned in his favor, Jon Rahm kept hearing that he was destined to win this Masters.
Rahm’s hero and musical inspiration, the late Seve Ballesteros, would have celebrated his 66th birthday on Sunday. This year marked the 40th anniversary of Ballesteros’ second Masters victory. Even worse, caddy Adam Hayes was given white coveralls and the number 49 on April 9.
Rahm added, looking as sharp as ever in his brand-new green jacket, “I was told a lot of stuff about why this could be the year. Additionally, I didn’t want to believe it too much.
His golf was far more valuable than any historical coincidence.
Rahm turned the longest day into his sweetest victory Sunday. The 30-hole marathon finish started with him trailing by 4 and ended with a walk up to the 18th green that nearly reduced him to tears, and gave him another major that affirmed him as No. 1 in the world.
He closed with a 3-under 69 to pull away from mistake-prone Brooks Koepka. He won by four shots over Koepka and 52-year-old Phil Mickelson, who matched the low score of the tournament with a 65 and became the oldest runner-up in Masters history.
“We all dream of things like this as players, and you try to visualize what it’s going to be like and what it’s going to feel like,” Rahm said. “Never thought I was going to cry by winning a golf tournament, but I got very close on that 18th hole.
“And a lot of it because of what it means to me, and to Spanish golf,” he said. “It’s Spain’s 10th major, fourth player to win the Masters. It’s pretty incredible.”
It was Mickelson who declared Rahm would be among golf’s biggest stars even before the Spaniard turned pro in 2016. Rahm now has a green jacket to go along with his U.S. Open title he won in 2021 at Torrey Pines.
