TROON, Scotland: Jon Rahm felt like one of the greatest players when he arrived at Royal Troon, even if it had nothing to do with him or his golf.
Spain is going strong at the moment. Carlos Alcaraz won Wimbledon on Sunday for his second Grand Slam title of the year, shortly before Spain defeated England in the European Championship final. The latter caused the Scottish fans to celebrate the Spanish.
No one in these parts likes to see England win anything.
“I played all 18 holes, and I think I got more compliments for what I didn't do than I ever have in my life,” Rahm said Tuesday. “I don't know what they did, but whenever someone plays for the English national team, all the other countries in Europe unite against them.
“I think it's because we've heard 'Homecoming' so many times over the years that nobody wants to see him come home right now.”
Throw in Sergio Garcia winning his first LIV Golf event at Valderrama, and Rahm wants nothing more than to extend Spain's winning streak.
Basically, he wants it for himself.
The major championship season ends at the British Open, and Rahm has been a no-show. He was the Masters champion when he went to LIV Golf last December and has yet to win. His last win was the Masters 15 months ago.
He barely made the cut at the Masters. He missed the cut at the PGA Championship. And he couldn't even play the US Open because of a foot problem.
“I didn't play my best last year at the Masters,” Rahm said. “The Ryder Cup was the only thing that was similar in the first half of the year. But Nashville and last week (LIV event), I felt closer to entering the top level of golf that maybe not. how many thoughts about my steps. Maybe I play more freely and see the flight of the ball that I want to see more often.
“I'm closer to what I could have been at the beginning of last year.”
A leg injury, just before the US Open, summed up a frustrating year. Rahm expected to play Pinehurst No. 2 until a specialist was found, who soaked his leg and injected the infection to clean it.
“When I saw that I was in, I said, 'Well, I'm not playing the Open,'” Rahm said. “When I accepted that I couldn't play, I think it was great. I think, like everyone else, I enjoyed watching some of the best wrestlers in the world. “
He can relate to today's battles, especially the bosses.
Rahm hopes to have fixed some of his driver issues by getting a new set of wheels, which he says have allowed him to move more freely. It was at Valhalla at the PGA Championship that he realized he needed a change.
A leg injury was a setback, but he battled through the next LIV event and then tied for 10th at Valderrama last week. He has top 10s in every LIV event he's played in except Houston, when he pulled out with a leg injury.
Then again, LIV has the same 54 players each week, and only the top half will be considered among the game's elite. Going without a win can be frustrating, let alone the last 15 months.
Now it's down to Royal Troon, a course that usually plays easy on the way in and turns wild – and windy – on the way back.
Rahm planned to play just nine holes on Monday, but the weather could be as glorious as it will be for the rest of the week and he wants to enjoy it. Wind or calm, rain or shine, avoid the vineyards and bushes that are so important in this British Open.
And after this week, golf gets a little blurry. She still has LIV on the calendar, but Rahm says her pregnancy with her third child is not going well and she is taking time off. He does not know if he will be able to play in the Spanish Open this fall.
And it won't be until next April that Rahm can compete with the likes of Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy and Xander Schauffele. Today's best players only meet in the majors four times a year.
“That was my decision,” he said of joining LIV. “Hopefully, at some point golf can figure itself out, and we have a chance to compete more often.”
