Jon Rahm turned a long day into a tasty victory on Sunday.
Starting the day four strokes down on a chilly morning, Rahm became the fourth Spaniard in history to win the Masters Tournament.
Rahm turned in a 69 (-3) to distance himself from Brooks Koepka, who made several errors. He had the best by four strokes over Koepka and Phil Mickelson, who at 52 became the oldest golfer to finish second at the tournament.
It was Mickelson who said Rahm would become one of golf’s biggest stars before the Spaniard turned pro in 2016. Rahm now has a green jacket in addition to a U.S. Open title, in 2021.
Rahm closed the gap to Koepka (75) by two strokes in the final 12 holes of round three and entered the final round two strokes behind. The towering Spaniard took advantage of Koepka’s collapse and he got so far away that even Mickelson’s round of 65 — his career-best final round at Augusta National — would fall short.
Nothing was more satisfying than walking to the 18th green to win. The stars were aligned for Rahm, as he triumphed on the day his idol Seve Ballesteros was born and on the 40th anniversary of his second Augusta title.
Rahm hugged his wife and their two children as he walked to the room where he had to confirm his score card. Two-time Masters champion José Maria Olazabal was there to hug him in his green jacket.
Rahm scored a fourth win this year and returned to No. 1 in the world, ahead of Scottie Scheffler, who was the defending champion at Augusta National.
There was a bit of everything at the Masters this year. Heat and humidity at the start, a cold wind that knocked down three trees on Friday, water-filled greens on Saturday and a marathon finish on Sunday. Rahm and Koepka had to play 30 holes on the final day of competition.
Koepka blazed the trail with one mistake after another. He lost the lead for the first time since Thursday afternoon.
On Sunday, Koepka played 22 consecutive holes without birdie–from the eighth hole in the morning in the third round to the 13th flag in the final round. By then he was already three strokes behind Rahm.
Rahm sent his final tee shot into the trees and he didn’t make it to the fairway. He did, however, manage a fine approach to place his ball three feet from the cup before confirming his victory.
The only Canadian to take part in the weekend rounds, Mackenzie Hughes shot 70 on Sunday and finished the tournament tied for 29th.