Masters 2024: Jon Rahm laments play should have been suspended after 40 mph winds wreak havoc at Augusta: ‘It’s about as hard a golf course as I’ve seen in a very long time’

Jon Rahm criticized Masters organizers for refusing to suspend play as 40 mph winds caused chaos during Friday’s second round.

The defending champion snuck into the weekend – finishing one stroke below the cut line – after a four-over-par 76 on Friday.

Rahm is now 11 shots behind the leaders – Scottie Scheffler, Bryson DeChambeau and Max Homa – after a brutal second day that saw Augusta battered by the elements.

“This is as difficult a golf course as I’ve seen in a long time” Rahm said.

‘Many times I wondered why we were there. Especially when I got to 18 and saw the whole front of the green filled with sand. It rolls a little differently.

“Many times I asked myself why we were there,” said the Spaniard

“I understand they want us to finish. I imagine they were about to announce it a few times, especially when we were on the 11th green and getting these massive gusts every two minutes or so. It was extremely difficult.

No one in the field shot lower than Ludvig Aberg’s 69 on Friday, with only eight players shooting under par.

Rahm’s hopes of retaining the green jacket are now all but over and the Spaniard was frustrated by the speed of play in such difficult conditions.

“Just put the ball down and it’s about to move,” he said. “Not only that, how long did it take us to play?

“Over six hours playing just because they had to blow the greens between groups, and then when you get to a group, people back off and come back. It’s just, again, borderline. C It was very, very tight.

Rahm’s hopes of retaining the green jacket are now all but dashed after the second round