Jon Rahm won the 2023 Masters Tournament by four strokes, claiming his second major championship and a first green jacket at Augusta National.
From four back to in front
Rahm sat four strokes behind Brooks Koepka when the weather-delayed third round resumed early Sunday. He halved the deficit across the final 12 holes of that round, then drew level at the 5th in the afternoon’s final session. One hole later he pulled ahead.
By the time the pair walked off the 14th green — Rahm with a birdie, Koepka with a bogey — the lead was five. The swing from the start of the day measured nine strokes. Koepka went 23 holes without a birdie and posted a closing 75, while Rahm carded a 69 to finish at 12 under.
A victory that began with a double bogey
Rahm’s path to the green jacket started inauspiciously. He opened the tournament with a four-putt double bogey on his first hole Thursday, becoming only the second Masters champion to win after a double or worse on the opening hole. The other was Sam Snead in 1952.
Fourth Spaniard, first European double
The victory made Rahm the fourth Spanish golfer to win the Masters, joining Sergio Garcia, José María Olazábal and Seve Ballesteros. He donned the jacket on what would have been Ballesteros’ 66th birthday, on the 40th anniversary of Ballesteros’ second win. Rahm is also the first European player to win both the Masters and the U.S. Open.
The Masters marked his fourth PGA Tour title of 2023, following wins at the Sentry Tournament of Champions, The American Express and the Genesis Invitational.
“Never thought I was going to cry about winning a golf tournament, but I got very close on that 18th hole,” Rahm said afterwards. “Spain’s 10th major, fourth player to win the Masters and my second major win. Lot of pride.”
At 28, Rahm joined Ballesteros and Nick Faldo as the only men to win the Masters by four shots after trailing entering the final round — a comeback completed on Easter Sunday with history heavy in the Georgia air.
