Jon Rahm Wins The American Express, Claiming Second Consecutive PGA Tour Title

Sunday marked the beginning of the Lunar New Year, the Year of the Rabbit, but in the world of golf, it continued to be the year of Jon Rahm.

The Spanish golfer secured a one-shot victory over American rookie Davis Thompson at The American Express in La Quinta, California, following his dramatic comeback win at the Sentry Tournament of Champions earlier in the month.

This victory represents Rahm’s second consecutive PGA Tour win and his fourth win in his last six events, including two victories on the DP World Tour at the end of 2022. Even in the two events he didn’t win, he finished tied for eighth and fourth.

Remarkably, only once in his last 10 starts has he finished outside the top 10, with a tied-16th place finish at the PGA Tour Championship. Rahm is enjoying the best form of his career and is relishing every moment.

“I felt in command of my game … about as comfortable as can be,” Rahm told reporters on Sunday. “Every time I felt like this in the past, I’ve ended up going on to win, just because it takes a lot of pressure off a lot of parts of my game, knowing that basically I’m going to hit the shot that I’m envisioning.

Like I said all year last year … you’re seeing now the fruits of all the hard work that I’ve put in. I felt like I was swinging really well last year, the results were just not happening. And they’re coming in a bunch right now.”

Rahm’s victory in California marked the ninth PGA Tour title of his career. However, the win was not easy as he faced strong competition from 23-year-old rookie Davis Thompson, who was playing in just his 20th PGA Tour event.

Starting the final round tied for the lead, the two golfers remained neck and neck with just three holes left to play. Rahm edged ahead with a birdie on the par-five 16th, while Thompson nearly leveled with a birdie attempt on the next hole, but his 50-foot putt bounced off the flag.

Thompson was visibly devastated, dropping his putter and putting his head in his hands. Despite tapping in for par and repeating the feat on the final hole, Rahm maintained his composure with back-to-back pars to finish the day four-under, totaling 27-under 261 for the tournament, and securing another title.

“I had a great week. Competing against the best in the world is my dream and I did that today and proved that I can hang with them,” said Thompson. “I’ll probably play the ‘what if’ game in my head for a long time, unfortunately … but I’m proud of myself for this week.”

Rahm praised Thompson’s performance, noting, “Davis played amazing golf today. If his ball goes in on 17, you never know what can happen, but luckily, the scales tipped in my favor.”

The victory elevates Rahm to the No. 1 spot in the FedExCup for the first time in his career, solidifying his status as the player to beat heading into the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines on January 25. Torrey Pines is a familiar and favorable venue for Rahm, as it was the site of his first PGA Tour victory in 2017.

Another win there would cap off a remarkable start to the year, although Rahm would still need another four consecutive wins to match Tiger Woods’ record of seven straight PGA Tour victories between July 2006 and January 2007.

Rahm’s current form has made him an early favorite for major titles this season, as he seeks to add to his 2021 US Open victory. Despite his recent success, Rahm draws inspiration from athletes in other sports, including swimming legend Michael Phelps, recently retired NFL defensive end JJ Watt, and NBA icon Kobe Bryant.

“I see a lot of similarities between us in the way we approach our craft, because craft is the key word for Kobe,” Rahm said. “Having that obsessiveness that we both have over the game. It’s somebody to learn from, for sure. Work ethic beats talent every day of the week, period. And I like to think that I have a really hard work ethic and I put a lot of time in.”