You may not know this, but Jon Rahm’s team in the LIV Golf series is called Legion XIII. This gives a bit of the impression that he is one of the pioneers of a doom march. Which, in terms of what divides golf, is probably the case.
Anyway, it’s called Legion XIII for the entirely logical reason that Rahm’s defection to the Separatist Tour late last year resulted in the creation of a 13th LIV team, with Rahm at his head. Thirteen. Bad luck for some.
Not unlucky in terms of the money Rahm took to sign for LIV, obviously.
Having spoken out against the Saudi-backed series in the past, he decided to take £450 million. He was planning to secure his family’s future, probably because he had not already earned enough money from the sport.
But there’s also a price for what Rahm did, and as he walked to the first tee at Augusta National just before noon on a gloriously sunny day in Georgia, there was the unmistakable feeling that he was starting to pay it.
Jon Rahm just managed to finish in the top 50 for his defense of the green jacket
Rahm looked lukewarm, bitter and uninspired on his return to Augusta after joining LIV Golf
As Rahm, 29, gazed down the first fairway that dips into a valley then rises up the hillside beyond, he knew it was his last day as the reigning Masters champion and a return to the golden darkness of LIV Golf stretched. before him.
He played his final lap with the air of a man who is beginning to realize that he has made a horrible mistake. He was the king of the world and the whole golf course lay before him, waiting to be conquered. And then he sabotaged everything.
He ruined his legacy by turning his back on traditional golf at the height of his powers and joining a 54-hole format tour, where the lack of intensity appears to have left Rahm singularly unprepared for a return to the demands of golf more competitive. .
His time in LIV also changed the perception of him. This tarnished his image and damaged his popularity.
When he arrived at the first green yesterday, he was confronted with a half-empty stand.
Last year he was on top of the world, but now he looks like a man who knows he made a mistake.
Smaller crowds followed the 2023 champion around Augusta National after his defection
We didn’t feel like we were watching the reigning Masters champion. It felt like we were watching a guy who blew everything while he was at his peak.
These same stands are packed when Rory McIlroy plays in front of them. And Tiger Woods. And Scottie Scheffler.
But not Rahm. No more. His popularity plunged.
“He’s been playing on resort courses in shorts for the last few months and hasn’t really been tested yet,” three-time Masters winner Sir Nick Faldo said on the eve of the tournament.
“Rahm is a hell of a player, but he’s going to have to make a little effort to step up his game and get the right intensity. If he’s just not sharp enough because he hasn’t tested himself as much, we’ll have to wait and see.
Faldo’s fears were quickly confirmed. Not surprisingly, it turns out the highlight of Rahm’s week at Augusta was the Champions Dinner he hosted in the clubhouse Tuesday night.
He chose the menu and served beautiful Basque specialties. The rest of the week he served tripe.
Rahm shakes Nick Dunlap’s hand after completing his second round and making the cut
Rahm (pictured with Greg Norman) has signed a deal worth £450m at the end of 2023
He’s not a demonstrative man at the best of times, but many noticed over the four days of the tournament that his attitude was even more sad and bitter than usual.
He’s not the first to have struggled to win the Masters, but his defense of his title has been particularly lukewarm, bitter and uninspired.
Most of the damage was done by a second-round four-over-par 76 and he raised eyebrows by blaming gusty conditions and implying he thought Augusta National should have stopped play in due to disruptions caused by the weather.
But the truth is Rahm didn’t shoot a single shot below par all week. Even he would have a hard time blaming the weather for all this. On Sunday he shot another 76. The sky was blue and the day was warm and calm.
Maybe it wasn’t the conditions that caused problems in Rahm’s game after all.
Rahm hosted the Masters Champions Dinner on Wednesday, a long-standing tradition at Augusta
He saved his worst round of the week for last. He got off to a reasonable start, but then dropped four shots in the space of four holes around the turn, letting his club slip out of his hands in dismay after a particularly poor tee shot. He made a double bogey at the 10th after a chip-and-run that went up the slope towards the green then back down.
He made a double bogey at the 16th after leaving his tee shot short and seeing it roll onto the bank in front of the green and bounce into the pond.
He finished with two pars and a score of nine overs. It was his worst performance at the Masters.
Before this year, before this title defense, his worst tournament total was 292. This year, it was 297. And now we return to Legion XIII and its march of doom. Next up for LIV Golf is Grange Golf Club in Adelaide at the end of the month.
Rahm thought he was securing his family’s future when he joined LIV, probably because he hadn’t already earned enough from the sport.
Rahm has already admitted that he misses some of the events he used to play on the PGA Tour, but now he’s returning to a series that sells like Golf but stronger.
This doesn’t seem to fit Rahm’s philosophy or personality, but he’s stuck there now. The overwhelming feeling of seeing him retire as Masters champion was sadness that it had come to this. He looked and played like a diminished man. A man who has reduced himself to a paycheck.
Rahm finished with the same total as Jose Maria Olazabal this year. Olazabal is one of three other Spaniards to have won the Masters and is a legend of the game. Nearly 30 years Rahm’s senior, he also enjoys almost universal respect.
One day, perhaps, Rahm will learn that no amount of money can buy you that.
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