After the storms a wave. After the fears some rest. A brutal fall after the rise of Brooks Koepka. And with that, the majestic elevation of Jon Rahm, Masters champion and owner of a new jacket.
what a drama And at whatever time, however you decide to cut it. If we stick with the sporting context because we know there are others, this was a great study of how to stay cool when your next-door neighbor is going insane.
Just think of Koepka. The poor chap collapsed in a way that rarely seemed possible on the biggest stages for this revived four-time Major winner, but we’ll get back to him.
Because first we have to stick with the big Spaniard who brought him down and then walked away, with 69 consistent strokes in an unspectacular loop that turned a two-stroke deficit early in the round into a four-shot win and a second big title transformed .
His only wobble of that time came last. He started this tournament with a four-putt double bogey and finished with a drive into trees, but he had luck and scope on his side – it came back into play. With par, a total of 12 under and two clenched fists, he celebrated a decisive win on Seve Ballesteros’ 66th birthday and the 40th anniversary of his second title at the ground.
Jon Rahm celebrated a four-shot win at the Masters after securing the win on the 18th
Rahm turned over a shocking first hole on Day 1 to win the 2023 Masters by some margin
Brooks Koepka then congratulated Rahm, with the American Sealing Joint finishing second with -8
On the second place? That was Koepka, but he’d fallen so far in his last 73 that he had eight-under company from one of his LIV colleagues, Phil Mickelson. Predictably, there was tremendous excitement.
There have been dark days for this fallen idol of the sport lately. Dirty days. Humiliating Days. Days when his face looked haggard and haunted. Phil the thrill? Not for a while. Phil the Saudi jerk? He brought it himself and carried it strongly.
But then there are days like Sunday. Remember when he found magic in the darkest parts of a golf course? Remember when he won his sixth major at 51? He always knew how to amaze, and this was one of those days – after tanking so spectacularly in his first year as an LIV Rebel, he shot a 65 and pounced on that second-place share out of nowhere.
It was tremendous entertainment for those of us watching, and neutrals will have rightly enjoyed the sight. But what would the Blazers have thought of a Mickelson win? What about the traditional fronts of a game torn to pieces by the creation of LIV, much of which had been created by Mickelson’s hands and words?
Keep in mind that there had been a suggestion that the 18 LIV golfers could crash the green here if one of their own were victorious and so we should discuss the political context.
Of course, it wasn’t the result that would have stunned the establishment, but it was a triumph for the rogue crew. Also Koepka, Mickelson and Patrick Reed – they all landed in the great heights of the rankings. At a time when her tour was suffering from diminishing relevance, not least with the loss of her arbitration case with the DP World Tour, this tournament was proof that her circuit can keep her players in good competition for the greats. From a PR perspective, it was huge.
Against this backdrop, if the traditional front wanted a hero, who better to call than the man known as Rahbo? He doesn’t swing like Rory McIlroy, or putt like a top-notch Jordan Spieth, or wave like Mickelson. But he has no weaknesses. He’s nine out of ten in all departments, a jack of all trades and now a champion of Augusta, which shows that performance where he dropped just one shot all day and fired at the right moments.
Rahm took advantage of Koepka’s collapse and the loss of Norwegian Viktor Hovland
Rahm turned the screw with birdies on holes 13 and 14 to set a dominant lead that stayed
That was the difference – the ability to ride the opportunity, apart from his adventures at the end. Koepka, with four big wins between 2017 and 2019, was once the king of such matters, but after leading after each of the first three rounds, he broke up. It was a shame in many ways because he’s looked like a broken soul in recent years and this has been a tough road to lose.
He had started the fourth day ahead of Rahm with 11 holes remaining in round three, but by the time of the final round that lead was two, with Koepka at 11 under, Rahm at nine and Viktor Hovland another shot behind.
That three-horse race soon became two as Hovland doubled up on the sixth, and two quickly seemed to be in Rahm’s favor because Koepka was terribly out of step. It manifested itself in such a terrible drive on the opening hole that Koepka played his 215-yard approach from the ninth fairway.
Credit to him, he recovered for par – the drive had been so bad he actually had room to clear the trees and reach the green – before clinching the par 5 second with a missed birdie putt from six foot not used. Those clutch putts, a dominant theme of his first two rounds, would too often be overlooked.
At this point, Rahm had yet to ignite – he also opened with back-to-back pars – but their totals began to converge at three when the Spaniard nailed a snaking downhill putt from 12 feet to birdie. Koepka’s par meant the lead was now one and that then became a tie at 10 under when he failed to save the par from a green bunker on the fourth par 3.
Koepka’s short game was as shaky as his driving, and a blown chip on six led to another bogey, and a par for Rahm allowed a new leader for the first time since Thursday.
Over to Rahm to see how he would handle the heat. A birdie on the par 5 eighth put him down to 11 and a two shot lead, with Koepka driving deep into the trees off the tee and eventually scraping to par. Both men would make nine bogeys, but until then something absolutely compelling was playing out in the groups ahead.
Phil Mickelson’s final round of 65 is the lowest round in Masters history by a player over 50
Rahm marked the moment of his success in August with his father Edorta and son Kepa Cahill
The Spaniard then picked up American Scottie Scheffler’s famous green jacket
In a way, that meant a popular attack from Spieth, who started at one-under one and scorched to eight-under before being the last to drop one to reach the clubhouse at seven. A great performance from the 2015 champion who somehow hasn’t won a Major since his third in 2017.
A bigger threat to Rahm was Mickelson. The three-time champion won seven shots for a 65 on his final day and made it into the clubhouse with an eight-under. Whatever you think of the old scoundrel, golf is a lot more interesting with him, which is probably why so many find his waste so daunting.
His eight-under mark came in handy, especially when the course played soft and long, but it would require a creamy breakdown to be realistic. Not out of the question in this most tense of scenarios, especially with Rahm approaching the Amen corner, but he walked out. Holes 10, 11 and 12 were passed without a shot, and then he turned the screw with birdies on 13 and 14. From there he cantered home, save for a loose shot on 18.
And Koepka? Possibly frustrated by the terribly slow pace of play, largely caused by Patrick Cantlay up front, he eventually got his first birdie of the day at 13 before enduring some sort of late resurgence, but it would never be enough. It wasn’t his day. Not against the Spanish champions.