Jon Rahm Rallies To Win The Masters As Spanish Stars Align

Jon Rahm kept hearing how he was destined to win this Masters because so many Spanish stars were aligned in his favour. (More Golf News)

Sunday was the birthdate of Seve Ballesteros, his idol and inspiration for playing. This year was the 40-year anniversary of the second Masters title Ballesteros won. If that wasn바카라�t enough, caddie Adam Hayes was assigned white coveralls with No. 49 바카라� April 9.

바카라�I was told a lot of things about why this could be the year,바카라� Rahm said, looking smart as ever in his new green jacket. 바카라�And I just didn바카라�t want to buy into it too much.바카라�

His golf was far more valuable than any historical coincidence.

Rahm turned the longest day into his sweetest victory on Sunday. The 30-hole marathon finish started with him trailing by four 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.

바카라�We all dream of things like this as players, and you try to visualize what it바카라�s going to be like and what it바카라�s going to feel like,바카라� Rahm said. 바카라�Never thought I was going to cry by winning a golf tournament, but I got very close on that 18th hole.

바카라�And a lot of it because of what it means to me, and to Spanish golf,바카라� he said. 바카라�It바카라�s Spain바카라�s 10th major, fourth player to win the Masters. It바카라�s pretty incredible.바카라�

It was Mickelson who declared Rahm would be among golf바카라�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.

바카라�It was obvious to me at a very young age that he was one of the best players in the world even while he was in college,바카라� said Mickelson, whose younger brother was Rahm바카라�s college coach at Arizona State. 바카라�To see him on this stage is not surprising for anybody.바카라�

Rahm made up two shots on Koepka over the final 12 holes of the rain-delayed third round and started the final round two shots behind. He seized on Koepka바카라�s collapse and then surged so far ahead that Mickelson바카라�s amazing closing round 바카라� it matched the three-time Masters champion바카라�s best final round ever at Augusta National 바카라� was never going to be enough.

The finish was vintage Rahm. He pulled his drive into the pine trees and it ricocheted out, short of where the fairway starts. No problem. He hit 4-iron toward the green and lofted a pitch to 3 feet to end his round with only one bogey.

바카라�An unusual par, very much a Seve par, a testament to him, and I know he was pulling for me today,바카라� said Rahm, who finished at 12-under 276. 바카라�And it was a great Sunday.바카라�

Rahm embraced his wife and two children, and as he walked toward the scoring room, there was two-time Masters champion José María Olazábal in his green jacket for the strongest hug of all and a few words that included Ballesteros.

바카라�He said he hopes it바카라�s the first of many more,바카라� Rahm said in Butler Cabin. 바카라�We both mentioned something about Seve, and if he had given us 10 more seconds, I think we would have both ended up crying.바카라�

Sergio Garcia was the low amateur in 1999 when Olazábal won his second green jacket, and then Garcia won in 2017, the year Rahm made his Masters debut.

Stars aligned, and Rahm played some world-class golf. And to think he began the tournament with a four-putt double bogey on the opening hole.

Rahm won for the fourth time this year 바카라� just as Scottie Scheffler did a year ago when he won the Masters 바카라� and reclaimed the No. 1 world ranking from Scheffler.

This Masters had a little bit of everything 바카라� hot and humid at the start, a cold front with wind that toppled three trees on Friday, putting surfaces saturated from rain on Saturday and a marathon finish Sunday as Rahm and Koepka went 30 holes.

Koepka had one miscue after another, losing the lead for the first time since Thursday afternoon when he chipped 20 feet past the hole from behind the par-3 sixth and made his second bogey. More would follow.

바카라�Just some days you have it, some days you don바카라�t, and today wasn바카라�t one of those,바카라� Koepka said. 바카라�But I feel good, and I expect to be there the other three (majors).바카라�

Koepka went 22 consecutive holes Sunday without a birdie 바카라� from the par-5 eighth hole in the morning of the third round until the par-5 13th in final round. By then, he was three shots behind and Rahm all but sealed it with his next shot.

He hit a low cut with an 8-iron from 141 yards around a tree from right of the 14th fairway, and it caught a slope on the green at just the right spot to feed down to 3 feet for birdie. When Koepka three-putted for bogey, it was a matter of finishing.

The leaderboard was littered with major champions and a tinge of Saudi-funded LIV Golf. Mickelson and Koepka both are part of the rival circuit. Former Masters champion Patrick Reed, another player who defected to LIV, closed with a 68 and tied for fourth with Jordan Spieth (66) and Russell Henley.

Tiger Woods wasn바카라�t around for the finish. He withdrew Sunday morning before the third round resumed, saying plantar fasciitis in his foot was aggravating him. Woods also withdrew after three rounds of the PGA Championship last year in similarly cold, windy conditions at Southern Hills in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Mickelson barely contends over 54 holes in the 48-man LIV Golf league. And then he played like the six-time major champion who two years ago became the oldest major champion at age 50 when he won the PGA Championship.

He stuffed his tee shot on the par-3 sixth, birdied the seventh and then finished in style. His approach to the 17th came within inches of going in for an eagle, and he pumped his fist when his 12-foot birdie putt on the 18th dropped for a 65.

It matched his lowest score ever at Augusta National 바카라� he shot 65 in the opening round in the 1996 Masters and was at his Sunday best.

바카라�Unfortunately it wasn바카라�t enough, but it was really a lot of fun for me to play at this level again, and it바카라�s encouraging for me going forward the rest of the year,바카라� Mickelson said.

Rahm called it an incredible day, especially with his father coming over from Spain. He concluded his remarks at the trophy presentation on the 18th green by saying, 바카라�Happy Easter. And rest in peace, Seve.바카라�

He then made the sign of the cross, kissed his finger and pointed to the sky, the clearest it had been all week.