Jon Rahm ‘feeling good’, ready to tame Blue Monster
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Legion XIII's Jon Rahm in action during round 3 of LIV Golf Singapore on March 16 at Sentosa Golf Club.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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MIAMI – Jon Rahm tackles the Blue Monster this week as he prepares to chase a second Green Jacket.
The Spaniard spoke to reporters on April 2 ahead of the LIV Golf Miami tournament at Trump National Doral, which earned its colourful nickname for its demanding 7,760-yard length and abundant water hazards.
“Obviously Augusta is a whole different level and so is the Blue Monster, but that’s why I like this week,” Rahm said. “It’s such a good prep for a Major coming up.
“I’m looking forward to this week to hopefully see some of those improvements and come into next week with a clear mind of what to do.”
Rahm, 30, has finished in the top six of the first four events on the LIV Golf calendar, including a T2 at the season-opening tournament in Riyadh.
The Legion XIII captain ranks No. 2 in the individual standings behind Chile’s Joaquin Niemann, while his team are second behind Fireballs GC.
“I’m feeling good, yeah,” he said. “I’ve been able to have a lot of good finishes, but I would say it hasn’t been what I would consider playing my best.
“I think I’ve scored really, really well, but with some level of discomfort in some parts of my game that I kind of need to get over to accomplish bigger things, right, especially talking about major championships.
“I think I’m very close to that, if not over that. I think especially the last few weeks, I’ve been playing really good golf, feeling really comfortable.”
Rahm tied for fourth at Miami in 2024, finishing eight under and three strokes behind winner Dean Burmester, who defeated Sergio Garcia in a play-off.
Rahm heads to Augusta next week for the Masters, where he followed up his 2023 victory with a disappointing tied-45th in 2024.
Meanwhile, American Brooks Koepka admitted on April 2 that he is not entirely thrilled with where LIV Golf stands as the upstart circuit continues its fourth year of existence.
“I think we all hoped it would have been a little bit further along, and that’s no secret,” Koepka said at Trump National Doral.
“No matter where you’re at, you always hope everything is further along.
“But they’re making progress, and it seems to be going in the right direction.”
Koepka’s comments come on the heels of his words in March that caused a stir.
Then, the five-time Major champion did not entirely dismiss comments by Fred Couples that he wants to return to the PGA Tour. REUTERS
