Not long after Tommy Fleetwood’s repeat victory in the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship, claimed on the same day that Jon Rahm won at the CareerBuilder Challenge and Sergio Garcia emerged triumphant at the Singapore Open, making it a sweep for European around the globe, Rory McIlroy was quick to pay tribute to the hirsute Englishman’s play and future in the game.

“Tommy is a great addition to the world of golf, a great addition to the European Tour and he’ll be a great addition to the Ryder Cup team in September,” said the Irishman in the wake of his own T-3 finish.

That last bit is both significant and telling. Already, less than 250 days before the biennial contest between Europe and the United States reconvenes in France, the Ryder Cup is peeking into the minds of those likely to be charged with winning it back from the Americans. And part of that increased—some might say premature—level of consciousness stems from the often over-the-top cheerleading noises that have been emanating from across the Atlantic.

In the day and weeks that followed the U.S. team’s utterly predictable win over a clearly inferior International squad in last year’s Presidents Cup, it appeared to many in Europe that too much was being read into events at Liberty National. Maybe it was the inspirational presence of the Statue of Liberty. Maybe it was the conclusive manner of the American’s victory over a team that, whisper it, did not come close to playing to its limited capabilities. Maybe it was just the relief of winning. Whatever, the clearly talented but still mostly callow nephews of Uncle Sam were suddenly being touted as maybe the greatest golf team of all time, one the poor old Euros couldn’t possibly hope to defeat.

To those with clearer heads, it sounded a bit much to assume about a group of lads who remain untested in the Ryder Cup’s most demanding arena. Sure many of them performed well at Hazeltine National when the Americans came out on top for the first time since 2008. But until the U.S. team has won away from home—something an American side has not done in a quarter of a century—in a hostile environment on a course the opposing players will know very well, then the likes of Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas, Dustin Johnson and the rest have merely the potential for Ryder Cup greatness. Right this minute, hailing them as better than, say, the 1981 U.S. team that contained 11 past or future major champions, does seem more than a bit fanciful.

All of which has provoked much sniggering in the Old World. While none of Europe’s best have commented publicly (they know better), it is a fact that the waves of hyperbole over the last few months have done nothing but increase the determination of the home players to see off those pesky colonials come September.

Which is probably the last thing American captain Jim Furyk wants to hear. A seasoned campaigner who has suffered more than most in close-run Ryder Cup matches, the former U.S. Open champion will surely be hoping his charges can contain their enthusiasm for trumpeting their own talents over the next few months and, not to put too fine a point on it, shut up and play.

Besides, the European team that will tee-up at Le Golf National is already shaping up to be considerably stronger than the relatively hapless bunch that played in Minnesota in 2016. The numbers do not lie. As of this morning, nine Europeans are ranked amongst the world’s top-20 golfers. Only eight hail from the United States.

A solid core remains in the shape of European major champions McIlroy, Garcia, Henrik Stenson and Justin Rose. Throw in Rahm, Paul Casey, Fleetwood and Tyrrell Hatton, and skipper Thomas Bjorn is right to (privately) feel a bit bullish about his team’s chances of victory.

But not too bullish.

As should be clear from all of the above, the 2018 edition of golf’s most anticipated contest is more than likely to be close. Let’s hope so. In our game there is nothing more exciting than a Ryder Cup that comes down to the last few singles matches on Sunday afternoon.

Now, can we all just stay calm and wait for it all to unfold? Geez …

The post The Americans should be careful what they say about the Ryder Cup. It could come back to haunt them appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Christopher Powers
Even after falling back with a two-under 70 on Saturday at PGA West’s Stadium Course, Jon Rahm was still very much a factor trailing by just two strokes heading into the final round of the CareerBuilder Challenge. On Sunday, he played like he did over his first two rounds, carding a five-under 67 to get to 22-under 266, which was eventually enough to earn a spot in a sudden-death playoff with Andrew Landry, who made birdie on the 72nd hole to force extra holes.

Landry went toe-to-toe with Rahm in the playoff, matching him with pars on the first three holes, but the Spaniard finally rolled in a birdie putt after taking dead aim at the flag on the fourth extra hole, the par-4 18th, for his second career PGA Tour victory.

“It’s an incredible feeling,” Rahm said. “I had a good feeling going into today, and to play the way I did and give myself a chance. Props to Andrew, to birdie 18 from the right rough, having to birdie it, it’s a heck of an accomplishment.”

Landry’s clutch putt at the 18th gave him a final-round four-under 68, which featured five birdies and his only bogey of the week. He continued to impress in sudden death, going shot for shot with Rahm before just missing a 10-foot birdie try of his own as he was gunning for his first PGA Tour title.

“To follow all the shots that I hit, I didn’t miss one fairway, had a make-able birdie putt every single time, it’s amazing that he kept up,” Rahm said. “One of us had to do it, and either one of us would have been a well-deserving champion. Congrats to him, hard to explain what this means right now.”

The victory jumps Rahm over Jordan Spieth to the No. 2 spot in the Official World Golf Ranking. Rahm now heads to Torrey Pines next week where he’ll look to defend his title.

“It’s hard to believe, to be honest, passing Jordan Spieth, three-time major champion, I only have two wins, he’s got 10-plus, right?” Rahm said. “It’s, again, I said it many times, I never thought I was going to be at this point in my life right now, especially the way I won both victories. It couldn’t be anymore different than the other. Incredibly proud of myself, my whole team, my caddie Adam, he does an outstanding job of keeping me calm.”

As for Landry, the solo second finish is the best of his career on the PGA Tour, and his third in the top 10 during the 2017-’18 season.

“Just fun. This is a good atmosphere, obviously, to be in and I made a lot of good putts today and especially the one on the last hole and it’s a tricky pin right here, there’s a lot of putts that just kind of didn’t want to break and just kind of held and it was just a good week,” Landry said.

Finishing two back at 20-under 268 was John Huh, who didn’t appear to be a factor through 36 holes, sitting at seven under after rounds of 68 and 69. But he vaulted up the leader board on the weekend with rounds of 65 and Sunday’s six-under 66 to earn a T-3 finish, his first in the top-five since the 2013 Barracuda Championship, where he also tied for third.

Also finishing at 20 under were Adam Hadwin and Martin Piller. For Hadwin, it’s his second straight top-three finish at the CareerBuilder. It’s Piller’s second top-five in his last four starts.

Kevin Chappell and Scott Piercy finished in a tie for sixth at 19-under 269.

Sam Saunders posted the round of the day, an eight-under 64 to finish T-8 at 18-under 270. It’s his first top-10 finish in six starts this season, and it’s the best result of his career in this event, where he never made the cut prior to this week in his previous six tries.

Austin Cook, the 54-hole leader, struggled on Sunday, carding a three-over 75 to finish in a tie for 14th at 16-under 272.

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By E. Michael Johnson
Jon Rahm, after an up-and-down third round on the Stadium Course at PGA West, where he shot a two-under-par 70 despite four bogeys, played much steadier during a final-round 67. The Sunday showing put him in a playoff at the CareerBuilder Challenge with Andrew Landry, which he would win on the fourth extra hole to claim his second PGA Tour title.

Rahm had chances to close it out in regulation and again on the first playoff hole, but missed makable putts. He then won on the fourth playoff hole by rolling in a 12-footer for birdie. The putt capped a relatively strong day on the greens that saw Rahm post a .990 strokes gained/putting mark on the day with his TaylorMade Spider Tour Red putter.

Jumping to No. 2 in the world with the win, Rahm seemingly took control of the tournament with a 210-yard tee shot on the par-3 13th that settled two feet from the cup. He followed that up with a 68-yard lob wedge to four feet for another birdie at the 14th.

As usual, Rahm used his driver—TaylorMade’s new M4 model—as an effective weapon, averaging 309.8 yards off the tee. The club features the company’s Twist Face technology where the fast is slightly curved so that it is more open in the high toe area and slightly closed in the low heel area to promote better accuracy on mishits.

The shot Rahm hit on the 14th, however, proved critical. He pulled it off using TaylorMade’s new Milled Grind Hi-Toe wedge, a club that boasts more relief on the heel and toe along with weight removed from the back area. It all promotes a higher center of gravity to bring the ball flight down on the high-lofted club. The wedge also features grooves cut all the way across the face for an added spin on shots struck near the heel or toe. For Rahm, on that shot, whatever the spin, it was just the right amount.

What Jon Rahm had in the bag at the CareerBuilder Challenge

Ball: TaylorMade TP5x

Driver: TaylorMade M4 (Aldila Tour Green 75TX), 9.5 degrees

5-wood: TaylorMade M3, 19 degrees

Irons (3): TaylorMade P790; (4-PW): TaylorMade P750

Wedges: TaylorMade Milled Grind (52, 56 degrees); TaylorMade Milled Grind Hi-Toe (60 degrees)

Putter: TaylorMade Spider Tour Red

The post The clubs Jon Rahm used to win the CareerBuilder Challenge appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Christopher Powers
It was going to be a difficult task for Jon Rahm to follow up a career-low round, but he did a good job of it on Friday at the CareerBuilder Challenge despite a rocky start. The Spaniard posted a five-under 67 on the Nicklaus Tournament Course at PGA West, which has him at 15-under 129 through 36 holes, one back of leader Andrew Landry.

Rahm, 23, began his second round just like he did the first, opening with consecutive birdies at the 10th and 11th holes of the Nicklaus Course, but then made his first bogey of the week at the 12th, and sandwiched two birdies between another bogey on the following three holes. After all that he was two under through six holes and was able to settle in, making nine pars and three birdies the rest of the way.

“It wasn’t as pure as yesterday. They were good shots, but just off. Same with the putts. It was very close, very close,” he said. “And I think everything clicked on number, I think it was my 15th hole, number six. I hit a great drive and I started hitting really pure shots.   “I had close birdie putts over the last four holes and made two of them, so I think that kind of clicked. But I just was hanging in there because I knew I was going to have a bad stretch of holes at some point and it’s always great if those bad ones are birdie putts.”

After an impressive opening two rounds, Rahm heads to the Stadium Course at PGA West on Saturday, which will provide the stiffest test of the week for the No. 3 player in the world.

Leading the way at 16-under 128 is Landry, who fired a seven-under 65, also on the Nicklaus Course. Many will remember the University of Arkansas alum from when he earned a spot in the final group on Sunday of the 2016 U.S. Open at Oakmont, but Landry has put together a solid resume since, winning his second Web.com Tour event in 2017 and registering six top-five finishes. His 2018 season on the PGA Tour is off to a promising start, including a T-7 finish at the Safeway Open and a T-4 at the RSM Classic. Landry, who has yet to make a bogey this week, will also face the Stadium Course on Saturday.

At 14-under 130 is Jason Kokrak, who shot a five-under 67 on the Nicklaus Course. Three players are right behind him at 13-under 131, including Zach Johnson thanks to his eight-under 64 on the Nicklaus Course, which tied for the lowest round in the field on Friday.

Among a group four shots back at 12-under 132 is Nick Watney, who posted a five-under 67 at La Quinta Country Club to go with his opening round seven-under 65 on the difficult Stadium Course at PGA West. The five-time PGA Tour winner has had his share of struggles in recent years, mainly due to a back injury that sidelined him for nearly all of 2016. That made it easy to forget that he was once one of the top players in the world, rising to as high as No. 9 in the Official World Golf Ranking during a breakout stretch from 2011 to 2012 that saw him notch three victories, his last coming at the 2012 Barclays. He’ll begin his weekend on the Nicklaus Tournament Course in contention, a spot he hasn’t found himself in in quite some time on tour.

Watney was joined at 12 under by Brandon Harkins and Brian Gay. Austin Cook, Kevin Na, Adam Hadwin, Scott Piercy and Brian Harman sit five back in a tie for 10th at 11-under 133.

Maverick McNealy, who hopes to capitalize in his limited starts on the PGA Tour, is at 10-under 134 after posting a four-under 68 on the Nicklaus Course.

Like most Phil Mickelson rounds, Friday’s second-round four-under 68 on the Nicklaus Tournament Course was an eventful one. The five-time major champion made three birdies and two bogeys on his opening nine to turn in one-under 35, which he followed with a strong final stretch that included four birdies and a bogey on his last six holes. Mickelson, who hopes to make a move on Saturday at the Stadium Course, sits at six-under 138, 10 shots off the lead.

The post Jon Rahm one back of leader Andrew Landry at the CareerBuilder Challenge appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Christopher Powers

Jon Rahm’s rise to No. 3 in the World Ranking was a swift one thanks to his stellar 2017 season internationally, one that included his first PGA Tour victory and his first two European Tour wins. He could have added a second to his PGA Tour resume just two weeks ago if not for Dustin Johnson’s incredible performance at the Sentry Tournament of Champions in Hawaii.

Yet through all that he never shot a score as low as he did on Thursday in the opening round of the CareerBuilder Challenge. The Spaniard posted a bogey-free 10-under 62 at La Quinta Country Club that featured eight birdies and an eagle, giving him the solo lead. Rahm, who opened his round with consecutive birdies, stressed the importance of a fast start.

“It’s all thanks to the start I had. I was six-under through seven holes and with a couple missed putts,” he said. “Any time you have that going for you, you get thoughts come into your head, 60, maybe 59. Adam Hadwin did it last year with worse weather than this.”

After three straight pars following his eagle-birdie-birdie stretch at the fifth, sixth and seventh holes, 59 quickly became out of reach. But he was still able to collect four birdies on the back nine, including one at the par 4 18th to finish on a high note.

“Maybe I relaxed a little too much,” he said. “I missed a couple of iron shots and had to struggle for pars. But I’m just thankful to finish the way I did with a birdie on the 18th hole which is always great for momentum.”

Rahm will take on the more difficult Nicklaus Tournament Course on Friday with a one-stroke lead.

Three players are just one back, including reigning RSM Classic winner Austin Cook, who carded a bogey-free nine-under 63 on the Nicklaus Course. Like Rahm, the University of Arkansas alum got off to a blistering start, getting to six under through seven holes and posting a front-nine 30. When he added birdies at 10 and 11 to get to eight under on the day, the 59 watch was on for him as well, not that he knew.

“Honestly, I had no clue at how low I was. I knew I was playing good golf and just wanted to continue,” Cook said. “It never really crept into my mind all day, luckily, I think I would have probably put a little more pressure on myself, but I was just glad to put a good round in, it’s a first round and hopefully it continues.”

He was joined at nine under by Jason Kokrak and Andrew Landry, who each posted their 63s at La Quinta.

Brandon Harkins, Beau Hossler, Martin Piller and Aaron Wise sit two back after shooting eight-under 64s.

Making his 2018 debut, Phil Mickelson fired a two-under 70 at La Quinta that featured five birdies and three bogeys.

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