Jon Rahm: From devastation to jubilation

Caption: Jon Rahm of Spain with his United States Open trophy. Photo credit:  United States Golf Association. — Caption: Jon Rahm of Spain with his United States Open trophy. Photo credit: United States Golf Association.

Karma is a religious word.

In the Buddhist and Hindu religions, karma is the force produced by a person's actions in one life that influences what happens to them in future lives, says the Cambridge dictionary.

And when it comes to karma, Jon Rahm is a believer, especially after his win in the United States Open at San Diego in California last month.

Just a fortnight earlier Rahm was left devastated when advised after the third round of a PGA Tour event that he had tested positive to covid-19. At the time he held a commanding six-shot lead but had to withdraw from the tournament.

``I’m a big believer in karma,’’ Rahm said after the US Open.

``And after what happened a couple of weeks ago I stayed really positive knowing good things were coming.’'

The US Open venue of Torrey Pines already had special meaning for Rahm. It was were he scored his first PGA Tour win in 2017, it was where he proposed to his wife Kelley and Rahm kept thinking it would deliver more.

``I knew we were coming to a special place. I knew I got my breakthrough win here and it’s a very special place for my family. And the fact that my parents were able to come … I just felt like the stars were aligning. I knew my best golf was to come.’'

Rahm started the final day of the US Open three shots behind the leaders but had the equal best final round of four under par. That enabled him to win by one shot from Louis Oosthuizen of South Africa who went into the last round as a co-leader.

Included in Rahm’s round were birdies on the last two holes where he sunk big bending putts. Rahm said if he looked calm coming down the stretch, that was not the case.

``I might have looked calm. I was not calm,’’ he said.

``I wish people could see our heart rate when we’re playing in those moments because that was tense. But you practice to let your body basically take over, right? That’s what I did.

``I think the fact that I stayed patient and hopeful, and I believed that something good was coming my way, is what helped. I never lost hope for a second. I kept hitting good shots. I kept giving myself chances.’'

Rahm has sometimes vented his frustration on the golf course but he believes because he became a father just a few months earlier it had helped improve his attitude.

``I still had that grit but almost each miss bothered me less. I believe it’s because I really set out myself to be an example for my son that he would be proud of.

``I’ve done some stuff in the past on the golf course that I’m not proud of and I wish I could eliminate it.”

Rahm, 26, becomes the first Spaniard to win the US Open and he did not forget the fact that the tournament eluded Spanish star Seve Ballesteros who racked up 90 international wins and five majors — three British Opens and two US Masters.

``This was definitely for Seve,’’ Rahm said.

``I know he tried a lot and usually we think a lot about him as the Masters but I know he wanted to win this one most of all.”

Rahm also becomes the fourth Spaniard to win a major. Along with Ballesteros the other two are Jose Maria Olazabal and Sergio Garcia.

The win carried a prize of $US2.25 million ($NZ3.2 million) and took Rahm’s earnings on the PGA Tour to $US28 million. His world ranking returned to No 1, a position he held twice last year each for a period of two weeks.