Historic flop: Jon Rahm’s opening round plunges to new lows at PGA championship

A disappointing start: Jon Rahm's record-breaking performance at the PGA Championship

Historic flop: Jon Rahm’s opening round plunges to new lows at PGA championship

Jon Rahm ( Image via Golf Digest )

In a surprising turn of events at the PGA Championship, Jon Rahm, the reigning Masters champion and World No. 1 golfer, suffered a setback in his pursuit of a second major title this season.

Rahm’s opening-round performance left much to be desired, as he posted a disappointing score of 6-over-par 76 at the prestigious tournament. This marked the worst opening-round score to par by a World No. 1 in the history of the PGA Championship, surpassing the previous record shared by Greg Norman in 1990 and Tiger Woods in 2005.

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From the onset of his round, Rahm encountered difficulties that hindered his progress. Starting with a par on the first hole, he quickly stumbled with consecutive bogeys on Holes 2 and 3, pushing his score to 2-over.

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Unfortunately, the challenges continued throughout the front nine as Rahm endured further bogeys and even a double-bogey on the 6th and 7th holes, respectively, resulting in a score of 5-over. Despite a brief glimmer of hope with a birdie on the 8th hole and a par on the 9th, Rahm entered the back nine at 4-over.

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Defending Masters champions curse? Rahm battles historical trend at PGA Championship

Jon Rahm
Jon Rahm ( Image via Golf Digest )

Regrettably, Jon Rahm failed to gather any momentum in his round as he managed only five consecutive pars on the back nine, including the par-5 13th. The hopes of a remarkable comeback were further diminished when he suffered three consecutive bogeys towards the end of his round.

This lackluster performance was a stark contrast to Rahm’s triumph at the Masters in April, where he secured a resounding victory with a remarkable 12-under score. With a significantly better second-round imperative, Rahm faces the possibility of missing the cut in Rochester, New York, if he fails to rise to the occasion.

Despite the challenging circumstances, Rahm has the skill and determination to turn the tide. However, he must overcome a historical trend that suggests defending Masters champions tend to struggle in the subsequent major tournaments.

According to sportingnews, To have a shot at claiming the Wanamaker Trophy in 2023, Rahm needs a remarkable turnaround in the second round. As the cut line looms, he finds himself tied for 130th place and must make up considerable ground to secure a place in the weekend play.

With the pressure mounting, all eyes will be on Rahm as he seeks to defy the odds and reassert his dominance on the golf course.

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