The purse for the CJ Cup at The Summit Club this week is $10 million. The purse at the Andalucia Masters on the European Tour is $4 million. Where’s Jon Rahm?
Right where he wants to be, in his home country of Spain, for the second straight week.
Some things are bigger than money. Rahm is playing for a smaller paycheck this week, if you put the potential appearance fee aside, but the impact he’s making across the pond is no doubt larger than the one he’d be having in Las Vegas if he was teeing it up in Sin City.
After stumbling to a disappointing 78 in his opening round, the world No. 1 reportedly hung around after his last putt dropped to sign autographs for anyone and everyone who were willing to wait.
World Number 1 @JonRahmpga after his opening round 78 đź‘Ź#EDAM2021 pic.twitter.com/IxCY2CrsnM
— The European Tour (@EuropeanTour) October 14, 2021
Not sure many do that after one of their worst rounds of the year.
The fans at Valderrama aren’t the only ones receiving love from their hometown hero. Last week at the Spanish Open, Rahm did the same thing. Despite opening the week with a 63, the Spaniard flattened off the rest of the way, finishing Sunday in a tie for 17th.
“I’m going to sign all the children, no matter how long it takes.”
"I'm going to sign all the children, no matter how long it takes."@JonRahmpga, a credit to his country, to our Tour and to the game of golf. đź‘Ź#AccionaOpen
— The European Tour (@EuropeanTour) October 10, 2021
Some stars just get it. Rahm, undoubtedly, is on that list.
On Friday, he’ll try to bounce back from his 7-over round, and put on a show for all the fans who made the trip to see their idol.
[mm-video type=playlist id=01es6rjnsp3c84zkm6 player_id=01evcfxp4q8949fs1e image=https://golfweek.usatoday.com/wp-content/plugins/mm-video/images/playlist-icon.png]