John Rahm under the sign of Severiano Ballesteros

The masters who mark the way, the European rescue, the head of the world ranking. They were the themes of the eve and in the end he won, John Rahmforty years after the triumph of Severiano Ballesteros and just yesterday, Sunday 9 April, on the day when the late Cantabrian champion, one of the most charismatic sportsmen of all time, would have turned sixty-six. It is his second major after the US Open at Torrey Pines in 2021 and the sixth Masters for Spain, more than any other country in the world except America. It is no coincidence that José María Olazábal was waiting for him on the green at 18, a putt pocketed without hesitation, four strokes ahead of the closest contenders.

It wasn’t a simple victory, the unprecedented pressure from LIV Golf was felt. Twelve out of eighteen players on the Saudi circuit passed the cut and Brooks Koepka almost made it, leading from the first to the middle of the fourth round, a solid swing of a man who must never ask, no uncertainty, not even a drool. Malicious say that the habit of playing 54 holes has made itself felt. Koepka effectively melted with four bogeys from 57 to 66. Two minimal errors were decisive at 12 to 14, especially the first, “John played a perfect 9, I went wide with the wedge”. At that moment Rahm took the lead. Everything else went perfectly, with the calm of those who know that you have to wait for the mistakes of the opponents, at which point it’s better to avoid any risk, including a 15 played with caution.

How many titles have we seen sinking into that water, it is normal and completely systematic. The fourth lap is always the most difficult, the second nine have a higher average score than the first and this year Sunday was even more intense. Tournament interrupted several times on Friday and Saturday due to rain, many holes to recover. Yesterday some players played thirty, too many for Tiger Woods who retired at the end of the third round due to the usual excruciating pain in his leg, the game is there but the pain in the heel, after almost three days of walking, is really unbearable. Phil Mickelson’s state of form, gym, intermittent fasting and psychological support is quite different. At 52, his most sensational recovery is his, an amazing 65 with five birdies in the last seven, an almost-eagle at 17 that would have made the Spaniard’s wrists tremble. In the end, Lefty finished as runner-up, the best finish for a player his age and the door to new records in the next decade.

Of the other contenders no one ever really got close to John Rahm save Jordan Spieth with a fantastic last lap, at one point two strokes behind the leader. A 66 that makes you regret his bad third lap. No regrets on the contrary for Sam Bennett, NCAA champion, in the end excellent 16th over the stumbling blocks of the field and his colleagues who were already shouting at the certainty of an amateur with the talent of Ken Venturi, for the first time in a green jacket. Among the Europeans, the Norwegian Victor Hovland disappointed, with a final 67 he would have won, a discreet tournament for Shane Lowry and Justin Rose, in growing form in view of the Ryder Cup and the next Pga Championship which returns to New Jersey in the magnificent field of Oak Hill.

Again this year, as usual, in a magical sunset in front of the Augusta National club house we attended the award ceremony with an excited John Rahm who joked about a message received before the departure of football star and friend Zach Ertz, “Go easy man, you’ll see 1 is like a walk in the park”. Ten minutes later, on that green, Rahm started the Masters with four putts for a double bogey, one of those blows that could knock anyone down. Certainly not someone like him who calmly, one hole after another, recovered 14 strokes, thanks to his solid and at times spectacular game, the stylistic code with which the twenty-eight-year-old Basque could from now on dominate the world golf scene, under the star of Severiano Ballesteros whose records, today more than ever, seem truly within reach.