“Not again …”
One year ago this week, we collectively witnessed the most incalculable moment of professional golf during the pandemic, when Jon Rahm raced out to a six-stroke lead through 54 holes at the Memorial Tournament, walked off the 18th green at Muirfield Village and listened as a PGA Tour executive whispered that he had tested positive for COVID-19. Then, television viewers around the world heard him exclaim those two little words in disbelief at the prospect of his forced withdrawal.
The previous year, in a similar, yet all too different scenario, Rahm had walked off that same green on Sunday afternoon with a five-stroke victory, only to be informed about a violation he didn’t know had occurred, and was forced to take a two-shot penalty and claim a three-stroke victory instead.
That one was a nuisance. The one in 2021 hurt.
In the aftermath, though, Rahm handled the situation beautifully. When he finally spoke publicly a week and a half later at the U.S. Open, he didn’t play the blame game, didn’t whine about the rule, didn’t insist that he should be credited with some unofficial title.
What he did was defuse the situation and handle it like a pro.
“Unfortunately, I had a really good showing and I was pulled out of the tournament right before the final round,” he said. “But, again, the PGA Tour did what they had to do. I’ve heard a lot of different theories: I should have played alone; that’s nonsense. The rules are there and it’s clear.”
It’s not a coincidence that just four days after Rahm essentially ended that story, he was able to focus on golf and win his first major championship.
I’ll get back to Rahm and some unfinished business at the Memorial soon, but first a few notes about Jack Nicklaus’ annual event.
This isn’t one in which you can fake it around the golf course so, as a result, it’s rarely won by a long shot. Sure, there was the David Lingmerth-Will McGirt exacta in 2015 and 2016, but the past quarter-century has included five wins by Tiger Woods, two of Kenny Perry’s three, a pair from Patrick Cantlay and one each from the likes of Fred Couples, Ernie Els, Jim Furyk, Justin Rose, Steve Stricker, Hideki Matsuyama, Bryson DeChambeau and, yes, Rahm.
No surprise, but this is a track on which tee-to-green play is paramount to success. Before his WD, Rahm was lapping the field in that category. Ultimately, five of the top six on the leaderboard were the top five in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-green, which tells us much of what we need to know. With plenty of approach shots from the range of 175-200 yards, it’s the week to play some of our favorite flushers.
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(Also: The most popular play this week is ultimately going to be whomever trails by seven strokes entering the final round, as both Justin Thomas and Sam Burns were down by a touchdown going into each of the past two Sundays, only to come from behind for victories.)
Outright winner
Rahm (11/1): Without a doubt, Rahm exorcised any lingering demons from that Saturday situation last year by winning the U.S. Open two weeks later, but that doesn’t mean it’s completely over.
When he arrives at Muirfield Village this week, he’ll be asked to relive it all over again.
That major championship victory certainly helped soften the blow, but it’s tough to believe this is all water under the proverbial bridge. Not that Rahm has — or should have — any specific beef with what happened other than, perhaps, how it was handled out in the open like that. Any additional motivation can be a scary thing for his fellow competitors.
The world’s No. 2-ranked player owns as much fire and intensity as anyone around. Stoke those flames and he could certainly use it to his advantage.
Rahm ranks first in SG: Off-the-Tee, second in SG: Tee-to-Green and 22nd in SG: Approach. This just in: He’s pretty talented. Sure, the putting stroke has been noticeably suspect this year, but if there’s a week to overcome that, it’s this one.
This is a course where the same players tend to show up on the leaderboard year after year. Rahm coulda/shoulda/woulda had two Memorial wins already, but here’s betting he finishes off that unfinished business this time around.
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