Life is pretty good for Jon Rahm these days.
Aside from having to withdraw from the LIV Golf Team Championship in Dallas with a case of the flu, Rahm has posted a pair of victories on the Saudi-backed circuit this year and is not even 12 months into a deal that reportedly will earn more than $550 million between his contract and signing bonuses.
Also, his wife Kelly delivered the couple’s third child on Tuesday in Arizona, allowing him the chance to fly to Spain to play in his country’s national open, which he has won thrice.
Rahm did a walk-and-talk on Sky Sports as part of the opening round of the 2024 Spanish Open at Club de Campo Villa de Madrid, and while it didn’t come at an opportune time — he had just pulled a drive and nearly bent his driver in frustration — he said everything is good at home with the family.
“They’re doing perfect. Had anything gone wrong, I wouldn’t be here right now,” Rahm said. “Yeah, it was a fantastic birth.”
@JonRahmOfficial is always in good company in Madrid!#AccionaOpen pic.twitter.com/JmAFhUmuRJ
— ACCIONA Open de España presented by Madrid (@accionaopen) September 26, 2024
Rahm has been a staple at the Spanish Open, and this year it marks his first DP World Tour event since joining LIV Golf nine months ago. It’s the first of three events on the Euro circuit he’s planning to play in order to keep his Ryder Cup eligibility. He’s also appealing sanctions from the DP World Tour for his LIV participation, an appeal that’s on hold for now, allowing him to play this week.
“There’s a reason why it’s marked on my calendar, every year early on,” he told Sky Sports. “It’s a lot of fun and a little bit it’s also I feel I need to do for Spain, right? Obviously, this country gave me the platform and the many greats that made that platform before me and I think it’s up to me and the the rest of the guys who are playing out here to come and they keep growing that platform.”
While Rahm has won the event three times, so did his golfing hero, Seve Ballesteros, who took home the title in 1981, 1985 and 1995. For Rahm, the chance to win a fourth crown would mean something special.
“The history-making moments, you think about them afterward. If I ever get close to the position of getting to fourth, that’ll be incredible,” Rahm said. “But there are many great things that the great Seve did that I’m very far from: 50 DP World Tour wins and five majors. So many other accomplishments. It would be nice to have this little one over him.”