Conversations with Champions: Jon Rahm, winner for the fourth time in six starts, says that he feels like he can improve.

Jon Rahm won four of his nine PGA Tour victories in California.

He is also currently 2-for-2 in 2023. He won the Sentry Tournament of Champions, Hawaii, two weeks ago, and the American Express, La Quinta (California) last week. He has won four of his six previous starts, and is now 54 under in eight rounds.

Rahm, who won in the Southern California desert near Palm Springs the second time, was glowing about how things were going.

“Heck of an idea. He said, “Heck of a start.” “Sentry is a very different course and quite different golf. Both of them require you to play low. The good news is that the mentality remains the same.

Rahm was 27 under in both of his wins, and only three bogeys were recorded over four days at AmEx.

He spoke about his health, his swing, and how rookie Davis Thompson kept the pressure up after his win.

JON RAHM – Body has been feeling amazing. My swing has been feeling great. It shows. Even though I admit that I am not as comfortable as I would prefer, I shoot 64s because everything just fires when it needs. In a strange way, I am happy that today went as it did. Although I have had some great wins, it was difficult today. What was it? One, two, and three of the five birdies that I made were tap-ins, while the other two were 6-footers. This is the end of the story. Today was a slow day. Even though the scenery looked great and many of them could have been in, it wasn’t much of a success. But kept battling. Davis played great golf today, even with some bad swings early on. He persevered and made an amazing 6, on the 5th hole. He gave me a run. This is golf. You never know what could happen if I miss the putt on 14. But the scales were in my favor today, and I won.

Q: You mentioned putting many great rolls on putts which didn’t go in. It seemed like this was the main story today. You then made big putts on 14 & 16. Did you make two big putts on 14 and 16?

JR: There are a few. I mean on 5, 7, 8, 10, 15, 17, and 18. All of those putts were great. They all looked dead center, with only two feet remaining. Then they missed the end. The one on 16 was a success. I did the one-on-14 that I needed in order to keep the lead. That’s golf. Yesterday, I felt as though I could not miss the first 14 holes of the front nine. The hole was as large as it could possibly be. The first 54 holes had putts that were not as good as the ones I made today. It’s golf. It’s what it is. It is what it is. It usually works out in the end. My ball striking improved, but my putting was not as good as I’d like. If I could play at this level every round, then I’d be winning by six to seven. It’s not possible.

This was made easy @TheAmexGolf by the spin @JonRahmPGA pic.twitter.com/PW7EADs2Pd

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR January 22, 2023

Q. You were playing well. You hit the ball well. But you are tied.

JR: In the two previous tournaments, I shot combined 54 under and won by a combined 3 shots. I don’t have anything else to say. It’s not that I’m trying to put bad things in there. They’re just really good rolls, and sometimes they didn’t get in.

After I hit 5 swings with the 5-iron and the tee shot, I thought, “Man, if this continues, today could be a very low day.” I didn’t capitalize on the swings but I kept going. It was an amazing round of golf. That’s all I have to say. Although I was aware that some people would shoot 65s, 64s, and 62s, I didn’t expect to be able to get there, we had a cushion of shots to start with and were able to finish ahead.

Q. After playing in the same group with Davis, what impressions did you have of his manner of handling himself and his poise? It seemed to me, just looking at it that he was a great rookie.

JR: Yeah. However, the reality is that what you see and how he feels may be very different. All of us are nervous. It’s normal to feel it. It is just how you handle it. This was my first time playing in this situation. I was teeing off on Sunday at a PGA Tour event. He did an excellent job. He played good golf. It was two bad swings at the wrong times. That was five and sixteen. It could be said that he was trying to hit the ball a bit harder, trying to gain more distance. He lost at least one shot, and he lost half of his shot on the 16th hole. That was the final difference.

Q. It’s just a reminder that the margin in this game is extremely slim.

JR: Yes. We’re not shooting these scores simply because the courses are simple. The average player’s level keeps getting higher. In years past, I’d like to know if you shot 27 or less and how many of em you won by one. There aren’t many. You win most of the time by a large margin. It’s a great way to see how much everyone is enjoying the game. It’s a great time for both spectators and players. It’s just as much fun to see people make birdies after birdsies, and have an exciting game.

Q: Rory once said that it was almost easier to mentally chase No. It can be easier mentally to chase No. 1 than to stay at No. 1 and the war in your mind of complacency trying sometimes to sneak in at times. How do you react to this? 1?

JR: It’s clear that there is a difference. It’s almost easy to chase when you’re out there. Because there is only one choice, and that’s to make birdies. You want to make birdies when you’re leading but you don’t want make silly mistakes that could cost you a bogey. It’s more challenging. Both of them are enjoyable to me. If I had to pick, I would choose to be the leader. You are always out there, and if your birdies keep coming in, he won’t catch you. It would be great to be there. But comeback wins are great fun. You can go on a heater, get those birdies, and suddenly, the tournament is yours and you are the leader. It’s quite unique. If I had to pick, I would choose to lead. In 18 holes, you learn a lot about your self. It’s four to five hours of intense stress. It’s a great way to learn a lot about yourself.

Q. In terms of the season, the last few months and winning four out of five international starts, how do you frame your comfort level on this course and where it applies to your career?

JR: Today was probably the most comfortable day I have had on the green. I felt very in control of my swing. I made only two errors, the tee shot at 1 and the 13th tee shot. The miss on the one on 13 was very rare. I felt confident in my game. I made a lot of great swings out there. I gave myself many chances. Sometimes you make it, sometimes you don’t. It was as comfortable as it could be. I have won every time I felt this way in the past. It takes pressure off of a lot parts of my game and I know that I will hit the shot I envision. That’s an amazing zone to be in. This doesn’t happen nearly as often as I would like. I wish I could be that way every time I know that I will hit the pin and stripe it in the fairway. It doesn’t always happen. It’s a good thing I had a day like today.

Q. What are your thoughts on celebrating success, managing success, and moving forward?

JR: There are so many. There are so many. It’s a long list. Kobe Bryant was a college friend and a person I adored. Because I saw a lot in our approach to our craft, I spent a lot time listening and watching many of his interviews. Craft is the key word in Kobe. And sharing the same obsessiveness over the game. You can learn a lot from it. Talent is not the only thing that matters. I think I have a hard work ethic, and that I put in a lot of effort. As I mentioned last year, at the end of each year you can see the results of all my hard work. Although I felt like my swing was strong last year, the results weren’t happening. They’re starting to come in a lot right now. Other athletes. Michael Phelps has been a good friend of mine. I have been able to ask him a lot of questions and get his advice. He simplifies things a bit. It seems simple when you are the greatest historian in any field. There have been many I have met personally. Two Cardinals football players are in a group chat. They are total golf nerds. J.J. Watt and Zach Ertz are both going to be able to get a lot of golf time now. It would be great if they could watch a round. It was great to meet them and observe their approach to a game. I haven’t asked them many questions but I am awestruck by what they do. J.J. especially. J.J. especially. To be a leader, a captain, and a force on the field as he has been for so many years. He had to be as committed as ever, and not just how much, but what he had. It’s hard to eat 10 chicken breasts per day. He does it for his recovery and to keep his body healthy. Same for Zach. Both of them. It has been truly, really inspirational. Both of them have taught me a lot.

Q: What is your comfort level in the American southwest? Arizona, California, clearly two wins here, and two major wins at Torrey. Can you talk about, is that just because you went to college in the American Southwest or something else that makes you want to come here?

JR: We played college basketball for Arizona State and played in a lot of our tournaments Arizona and California. Southern California especially. For some reason, I feel so comfortable. Palm Springs, I don’t mean Scottsdale, is my favorite place. It’s almost the same thing. Golf is very similar. But I don’t know the reason. It’s probably because I grew up eating poa annua vegetables. Southern California is where I feel most at home. It feels very familiar. It’s likely that my college success was followed up and led me to the PGA Tour. I won my first event in California. If we count from 2012 to now, my percentage is actually 0%. But, we do know about Torrey Pines. It was probably because I am so comfortable. I like the lifestyle. This area is a favorite of my wife and me. My wife is happy, my children are happy. It’s much easier to play golf.

Q: What do you mean by the thin margins? It seems like you are increasing the margins. You have won four of your six most recent tournaments. You are the best player currently, despite what computers may say. Are you confident that you can keep this up or can you do better?

JR: I believe I could do a lot more. That’s what I feel I should have. I put in a lot of effort to achieve what I do. Every round I have played, I made mistakes. It’s rare that I have played a perfect round. There are many positives to this week, but the biggest one is how great my wedge game was. I have had more tap-ins than I have ever experienced in these four days. I would say that the 56-degree wedges and 52 degree wedges are my MVPs. If I can keep this going and the ball striking at the level I know it can, I know that I can improve. It’s my responsibility to do my best and I feel like I’m doing a good job so far.

Q: With your ninth PGA Tour victory, you tied Seve [Ballesteros] in the race for nine PGA Tour victories from Spain. I know how much Seve means to you. Let me know what you think.

JR: Do you count his five majors as PGA Tour victories?

Q: Yes.

JR: There’s a slight asterisk beside that one. (Laughing.) Seve wasn’t a full-time player on the PGA Tour so it’s quite remarkable that he has nine wins. I have been fortunate enough to tie many of the things Seve has done, and I would love to be able to do some of those feats. Many times I have spoken out that the reason I play golf is not motivation. My dad began playing golf due to the 1997 Ryder Cup and Seve’s captaincy. This is basically what keeps me here. Recently, I asked my dad, “What would you do if your friends weren’t down there to see this?” I don’t know. I don’t know. This is why I take representing Spain’s golf so seriously, and why Seve’s legacy to me is so important. There were probably 30,000 Spaniars with a Spanish golf license when Seve started to play golf. It was more than 350,000 at the time of his death. It was over 350,000 when I first started playing. That’s why I want to increase it. It will be difficult to reach the same level as he did but I would be happy if I could increase the number of Spaniards who play golf.