Furious Jon Rahm launches his club in anger after another dismal shot in Spaniard’s opening round at the PGA Championship
- The 29-year-old Spaniard showed signs of frustration in the first round of the tournament
- He is confident he will bounce back and score higher after a slow start in the major
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Former No. 1 Jon Rahm poked his 7-iron into the fairway after another shot that didn’t go where he wanted, on a day that never felt quite right.
About a half-hour after that, though, Rahm was all smiles as he closed out Thursday’s opening round at the PGA Championship. A day full of dropped drivers, pointy irons and too many early bogeys ended with a red number on the board – a respectable 1-under 70 that brought a glimmer of hope despite all the frustration.
“How many times have you seen someone start with one, two or three points and then do what they need to do?” Rahm said. “Normally, I think every time someone wins a tournament, there’s always a day where he’s down. But the other rounds are good.’
The two-time major champion endured four bogeys in his first six holes and a putting day that finished 121st in a field of 156, giving Valhalla something to build on.
He even saved par on the approach on No. 16, which landed short and took off, sending his 7-iron windmill into the turf.
Jon Rahm sent his 7-iron windmill into the turf on hole No. 16 of the PGA Championship
He finished with a score of 1-under 70, which brought a glimmer of hope despite all his struggles
Rahm reacts after the first round of the PGA Championship golf tournament in KY
He birdied 17 and 18 and finished the last six holes in 4 under.
He played the front nine in 3-over 38, but the back nine in 4-under 32.
He had as much to celebrate as he had to chew on as he got ready for Friday, when the weather forecast called for rain.
“I have to think about what happened,” he said. “I’ve had mental mistakes.”
Even with the comeback, Rahm finished Day 1 much closer to the finish than leader Xander Schauffele, who had completed a record round of 9-under 62 hours earlier, making it clear there were good scores to be had.
Rahm, 29, withstood four bogeys in his first six holes and a putting day that finished in 121st place
Rahm mentioned his tee shots at Nos. 5 and 12 as two that stood out as exceptionally bad.
He put the drive at 5 deep into the native rough left of the fairway. That led to his third bogey. On 12 he also jerked his tee shot to the left, dropping his driver over his shoulder to the ground before the ball even landed.
He rushed to save a par there, setting up a strong finish that turned what seemed like a ruined round into something better.
“Let’s see if I do anything different tomorrow than the beginning,” Rahm said. ‘I want to start well.’