No player gave Scottie Scheffler more of a scare on Sunday at the PGA Championship than Jon Rahm, with the Spaniard moving level with the world number one at one stage at Quail Hollow.
It has been a frustrating 18 months for Jon Rahm in the majors. The 30-year-old went into the PGA Championship having registered just one top 10 in his previous five major appearances.
A brilliant third round put Rahm in the mix at Quail Hollow. Nevertheless, it appeared that Scottie Scheffler was all but out of sight with 18 holes to play.
However, as Scheffler reached the turn on Sunday, it was Rahm who was applying the most pressure, with the pair tied at one stage.
Jon Rahm reacts to disappointing finish at the PGA Championship
Ultimately, Rahm could not sustain his challenge. As Scheffler put his foot on the accelerator, Rahm went backwards. He played his final three holes in five over par as he looked to throw everything he could at securing a third major title.
Despite the disappointment, Rahm admitted that he had missed that feeling.
“It was really close. God, it’s been a while since I had that much fun on a golf course, 15 holes. Even the first seven the day where I was swinging well and things weren’t happening, but I kept myself in and made the pars that I needed and played really good golf from the 8th to the 15th,” he said.
“It’s just mistakes around the green — you know, that bunker shot on 18, I thought I landed it where I needed to. It was just softer bounds and a misread and what to say about 15.
“Yeah, the last three holes, it’s a tough pill to swallow right now. Especially knowing 16 is not the narrowest fairway in the world. That bunker is in play. You’re lucky enough, you have a shot to the pin. Not a terrible swing, but bad enough to put me in a real difficult situation.
“More 16. 16 was tough. Never an easy shot, but it just — you know, have to be firm with that right edge of the green, and if the wind doesn’t move it, you’re still in good position to make par. Even though it was really close to being a good swing, it was just bad enough to end up where it did.
“At that point, 18 was just rough, right. The same mistake I did on 16 was the same mistake on 18, just different clubs. It wasn’t that bad of a swing, not that far off. The result is horrendous, but feeling-wise it’s not that far off.
“A lot of positives to take from this week. Pretty fresh wound right now. But there’s been a lot of good happening this week and a lot of positive feelings to take for the rest of the year.”
Jon Rahm’s comments may say plenty about LIV Golf
Of course, the majors are very different. However, it is not the best look for LIV Golf to have Rahm claim that he has not had that much fun for a while.
He has won tournaments on LIV Golf, and sealed the individual title in his first year. And yet, those achievements perhaps do not give him the same buzz as even contending in the majors.
There were reports in 2024 that Rahm was regretting his decision to join LIV. Obviously, those reports appear to have been wide of the mark, but it does seem that making the jump from the PGA Tour has not helped his form on the biggest stages.
Perhaps it is the very different schedule or the fact that LIV tournaments are played over 54 holes. But something seemed to derail Rahm’s momentum.
It seems that Rahm has potentially now admitted that LIV events do not tend to provide the same joy.
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