Another spectacular, amazing, brutal round by Jon Rahm on the third day of the Mexico Open at Vidanta, in Puerto Vallarta: 61 strokes, 10 under par, a new course record, to be tied for second with 196 strokes (-17), after two of the leader Tony Finau (65 for 194, -19) of this tournament where he defends the title.
After the ‘hangover’ of the victory in the Masters and a week off, the Basque, who has four wins this season (Tournament of Champions, Amex, Genesis Invitational and Masters) returned to deploy his entire golf repertoire signing an authentic exhibition ( especially putting, making holes from long, medium and short distance) and leading practically all the statistics at this stage of the tournament.
Six birdies without miss in the first nine and four more birdies into the bag in the seconds (with clear options along the way) for the reviewed 61 shots that adds to the 67 and 68 of the first two days, and all the options this Sunday of revalidate the title with the permission of Tony Finau (he started with a 6-stroke advantage over the Biscayan), who reacted to Rahm’s onslaught but feeling the Spaniard’s breath at all times.
Jon Rahm, results
“I did the job, I played great golf, the truth is that I didn’t think about ’59’ until the 18th hole. I had to make an eagle and the hole was hard. Tony (Finau) is going to be a tough opponent. He was a great day of ‘ball striking and if I keep ‘putting like this I will have my options,'” Rahm told CBS.
Fourteenth tied after the first day, 12th after the second, in the third the one from Barrika, who equaled his best lap on the PGA Tour, took a considerable leap after the demonstration offered, with wind and everything, in this design by the Australian Greg Norman.
The truth is that Jon played some exquisite first nine holes, with six birdies without a miss and 29 shots in this first set of the Vidanta Vallarta course. Birdie at 1 after hitting a ‘knuckle’, birdie at 3 after scoring another ‘knuckle’, again hit the field at 4 after leaving it ‘given’ with the third hit, a spectacle; the fourth birdie of the day at 6, par 5, which was already looming in the top positions.
But there would still be more: at 7, a short par 4, the green of one is reached, and Jon did that, placing the ball on the green and taking two putts. He was the fifth birdie on his card, a result he repeated with a shot at the flag at 8, leaving the ball less than a meter away.
As said, 29 strokes of the book, to set a chair, a free lesson on how to play golf from the tee, in the shots to the green and then finish off with the putt. We explained in the preview that whatever happened this week at the Mexico Open at Vidanta, Rahm would continue as Number One in the world for another week (number 50).
Once the list of participants for the Quail Hollow tournament, another of the ‘designated’ of the PGA Tour in 2023 that will start next Thursday in Charlotte, was made official this Friday, it was confirmed that neither Jon Rahm nor Scottie Scheffler, a small set off for the event.
And as announced by Nosferatu, a Twitter user who manages all the world ranking accounts, Rahm would need to finish in the top 5 at the Mexico Open this Sunday to avoid losing Number One after Wells Fargo because if he finishes sixth or worse, Scheffler, without playing at Quail Hollow either, would pass him in the world rankings.
