Rahm became the No. 1 player in the world Sunday with a victory in the Memorial in which he watched an eight-shot lead at the turn shrink to three shots with three holes to play, and then hit what he called the greatest shot of his life that turned into a bogey because of a penalty.
All that mattered was that fist-bump — not a handshake — with Jack Nicklaus, and taking his place along his idol Seve Ballesteros as the only Spaniards to reach No. 1 in the world.
With a two-shot penalty for his ball moving the length of a dimple on his chip-in behind the 16th green, Rahm closed with 3-over 75 for a three-shot victory over Ryan Palmer.
Rahm got up-and-down on the final four greens, which made it feel even sweeter.
Jon Rahm won the Memorial Tournament.
With the win, Rahm is now the No. 1 golfer in the Official World Golf Rankings for the first time in his career.
He is the 24th different golfer to be ranked No. 1 in the world across the 34-year history of the OWGR. pic.twitter.com/Kh8vNGMb29
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) July 20, 2020
Jon Rahm was low-am at the ’16 U.S. Open (Top-25!) before turning pro. He finished T-3 the next week. Six months later he won at Torrey. He’s won the Irish Open twice, the DP World Tour Champ twice. He has 3 top-4s in majors, a win at the Memorial & is now No. 1 in just 4 years.
— Shane Bacon (@shanebacon) July 19, 2020
