Jon Rahm is the new No. 1 player in the world after winning the Memorial on Sunday at the home that Jack Nicklaus built.
He secured that win with one of the best hole outs you’ll see from just off the green on the par-3 16th hole, the same hole where Tiger Woods had one of his legendary hole outs enroute to a victory way back in 2012.
Rahm once led by eight strokes during Sunday’s final round but on the 16th hole his lead was just three and his tee shot landed in the rough behind the green. With very little room to work with, he hit this incredible shot that basically secured his win:
There was only one problem, his ball moved a little before the shot, which is a two-stroke penalty:
— No Laying Up (@NoLayingUp) July 19, 2020
Jon Rahm was assessed a General Penalty (two strokes) for a violation of Rule 9.4 after a ball at rest moved.
His score on the par-3 16th has been adjusted to a 4 instead of a 2.
— PGA TOUR Communications (@PGATOURComms) July 20, 2020
Rahm agreed with the ruling:
Jon Rahm watched the video and agreed the ball moved and should be a penalty on 16. “It’s unfortunate to have an asterisk on an unbelievable shot.”
— Ryan Lavner (@RyanLavnerGC) July 20, 2020
Rahm won by five strokes, which was changed to three strokes after the penalty was assessed following his round.
He learned about the penalty during his post-round interview on the CBS broadcast and he had the perfect response:
Jon Rahm addresses the possibility of his ball moving prior to chipping it in on 16. pic.twitter.com/y5KNRUlzBx
— CBS Sports HQ (@CBSSportsHQ) July 19, 2020
Twitter loved it:
Rahm when asked about his ball moving pic.twitter.com/d3MVNXNihO
— No Laying Up (@NoLayingUp) July 19, 2020
Rahm's reaction to being told his ball moved on 16 was incredible. pic.twitter.com/rS8F7X1Sjw
— Kyle Porter (@KylePorterCBS) July 19, 2020