Dave Phillips remembers watching a pudgy Jon Rahm, then 18 years old, hit a ball of golf at the request from the Spanish Golf Federation.
Phillips stated, “I put him through all of our standard testing, including body, swing, and biomechanics, and I was surprised at how poorly he moved. But, man, this kid could hit the ball.” “The ball strike was exceptional.” “I could see the fire and I immediately thought that this player has the potential to be a great athlete.”
Phillips later learned how much Rahm wanted the world number one position. 1. Phillips has been Rahm’s swing and performance trainer ever since Rahm arrived in the U.S.A. to play at Arizona State University. Phillips tells how, when Rahm was 12 years old, his teacher asked them to write what they wanted to become when they grew. Rahm wrote that he would be the world’s No. Rahm wrote that he would be the No.1 golfer in world one day. Rahm was made fun of by a classmate who grabbed the paper, laughed and then threw it back at him. Rahm put the note back in his wallet, carried it around with him, and never stopped daydreaming. He returned to world No. With his win at the Masters earlier this month, Rahm reached the summit of the mountain for the sixth time. Rahm was the fourth Spaniard in history to win the Green Jacket, and Spain won its 10 th major title.
Jon Rahm speaks and gestures after he is presented with a green jacket for winning The Masters Golf Tournament. Mandatory Credit: Michael Madrid – USA TODAY Network
Phillips stated on the “The Son of a Butch”, podcast, with Claude Harmon III: “I am a firm believer in the idea that if you cannot see it, then you will not be it.” If you don’t know where you want to go, it’s unlikely you will get there. I know Jon put the jacket out there and imagined himself wearing it. I think that people should see how powerful it is. It puts you on the correct course. It sets you on the right course.
Rahm set himself a goal at the beginning of the season to win on the PGA Tour multiple times. In his first two starts, he achieved this goal. Rahm had to reset goals after a third win at the Genesis Championship, in February.
Rahm told his pre-tournament press conference ahead of the Mexico Open, at Vidanta, that “it’s amazing because it means you are exceeding your expectations.”
Rahm, 28 years old, will be teeing off this week in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico as the defending champ after he held on to a one stroke victory over Tony Finau Brandon Wu and Kurt Kitayama. The tournament dates back to 1944, and it is considered the national open of the country. It made its FedEx Cup debut last season.
Rahm will be aiming for his fifth victory this week, as he tries to become the fifth golfer to win five times or more in a single season since 2013. Rahm is the heavy favorite at the Mexico Open, where the field is unusually thin. Only two players from the Official World Golf Ranking’s top 50 and eight other players are expected to compete.
Rahm stated, “I have only been able defend the Spanish Open in my professional career so it would not be a bad thing if the Mexico Open was the next one I defend.”
Rahm is also close to breaking Scottie Scheffler’s record for the most money earned in a single season, $14.05m, set only a year earlier. Rahm is only $423,370 away from the record. He is now back to his consistency from the 2020-21 season, when he only had one result outside of the top 10, and that was the withdrawal from the Memorial Tournament after he led the tournament by six strokes at the end of 54 holes. However, he tested positive for the COVID-19. In that year, he won the U.S. Open at Torrey Pines, his first major.
Rahm may have more to offer. Phillips stated that Rahm hadn’t shown his “A game” for more than four rounds.
Phillips told him, “He needs to believe that he is that good.” “I tell him that I hope he’s thinking of winning all the tournaments this year, because he’s swinging better than ever before.”
