Jon Rahm Breaks Silence on Upsetting Augusta National Exit With 6-Word Olive Branch for His PGA Tour Rival

Heading into the Augusta National, Spanish superstar Jon Rahm had discovered a lucky charm. Out of his nine appearances at the event (including this year), on seven occasions he arrived early to practice there beforehand. This year, he did not do that. The only other time he did not arrive early was in 2023, the year he won the event! “If I win this year, then I definitely won’t come again early,” Rahm had said ahead of the Augusta National. His form was not too bad either. He was sitting in the third position in LIV’s individual standings. But the reality panned out differently.

What Rahm showcased at Augusta National was far from the world-beater he has been in the last few years. The 30-year-old failed to execute right from the first round of the major. He recorded eleven bogeys in the 72 holes to finish with a 3-under par 285. While Rahm was disappointed, Rory McIlroy triumphed, and guess what, he took a page from the former champion’s book on this way to the win.

McIlroy came into the final round with a two-shot deficit. Hopes to end his majors drought and win his first-ever green jacket were still alive. But as he hit a double bogey on the first hole on the final day, it seemed that the hope was about to be extinguished. However, instead of sliding into the thoughts of defeat, the Northern Irishman started thinking about Rahm’s 2023 victory. In that, Rahm opened the tournament by four-putting the first hole, but then came back from behind to win it.

Walking to the second tee, the first thing that popped into my head was Jon Rahm a couple years ago making double and going on to win. So, at least my mind was in the right place, and was at least thinking positively about it,” McIlroy said. Did Rahm hear that? While we did not get to hear anything from him about that, he did come out praising the new champion heavily for his accomplishment.

Nearly two days have passed, and the 2024 LIV Golf Player of the Year finally broke the silence. After sorting out his thoughts, the 2x major winner shared an Instagram post giving an overview of everything that happened at Augusta National. Sharing a slideshow of himself from the 2025 Masters, Rahm’s caption read, “What an amazing week. We witnessed history made on Sunday, 6th man and first ever European to accomplish the grand slam! Congrats Rory!!!! This is something we all dream about and he achieved it.” 

Despite his loss, he was excited for his Team Europe colleague as McIlroy achieved one of the biggest milestones in golf. However, the post was not a dedication to Rory McIlroy. Rahmbo also dove into his own performance at Augusta National.

He wrote, “As for myself rough start to the tournament set me back to far to have any change but happy about my play on the weekend. It’s always a pleasure to get to go back to Augusta National! There is nothing like it.” The Spanish swinger did tee off on the wrong foot on the iconic course as he managed a 3-over 75 in the first round. From that point on, it got quite challenging for him to stay motivated and compete for the Green Jacket.