Zurich Classic format a breath of fresh air on PGA Tour schedule
The 42-year-old Texan Ryan Palmer and 24-year-old Spaniard Jon Rahm formed an unlikely partnership that went on to win the Zurich Classic of New Orleans
PGA Tour veteran Ryan Palmer found himself in a bind. He desperately wanted to play the Zurich Classic of New Orleans but didn’t have anyone to play with.
Since the Zurich Classic switched to a team format in 2017, Palmer has played with fellow Texan Jordan Spieth. But Spieth decided not to play this year, so Palmer and caddie James Edmondson sat down together to try to find a new partner. They settled on an unlikely choice, a player nearly half the age of the 42-year-old Palmer, Jon Rahm. It just so happened that Rahm’s partner from a year ago, Wesley Bryan, was still recovering from shoulder surgery.
Palmer and Rahm went on to win the tournament at TPC Louisiana on Sunday, shooting 26-under for the week to finish three shots ahead of the duo of Sergio Garcia and Tommy Fleetwood.
“It was an easy decision,” Palmer said when explaining what led him to ask Rahm to partner with him this week. “I shot him a text hoping he would bite. You know, when a 42-year-old player is calling him he’s like, ‘Why does he want to play with me?’ But he accepted and what an awesome week. Our games complement each other so much.”
That the veteran Texan and a 24-year-old Spaniard could form such an unexpected, and successful, partnership is something that sets the Zurich Classic apart from every other tournament on the PGA Tour.
The Zurich Classic is the only tournament on the PGA Tour played with a team format. Prior to 2017, the tournament was just another event on the calendar that didn’t often attract the game’s top players. When tournament officials made the decision to switch to a new format it became the first PGA Tour team event since 1981.
So how does it work? The field consists of 80 teams of two players. The first and third rounds are played with a best ball format, with each player using their own ball on each hole and the lowest score being counted. The second and final rounds use alternate shot, where players use the same ball and take turns hitting shots.
The format makes for some interesting pairs. European Ryder Cup heroes Garcia and Fleetwood played together, as did brothers Brooks and Chase Koepka. Sometimes, like Palmer and Rahm, the pairings aren’t as obvious. Canadian Adam Hadwin finished 13th this week despite never having met his partner, Jim Knous, until Thursday.
The win is Palmer’s fourth in his long PGA Tour career and the third for Rahm. Palmer’s last win came 3,388 days ago, at the 2010 Sony Open. Rahm, meanwhile, has now won each of the last three seasons. He admits that this one, though, is special because he had someone to share it with.
“Yeah, mainly because for the most part golf is an individual sport,” Rahm said. “You get to share that win with your caddie on the golf course, and we’ve all been able to do that. But to share that win with a partner you’ve been playing with, you know, it’s both of our scores and know that we both played our best this week to be able to get it done. It’s something special. To win as a team is something you don’t get to feel often in golf.”
Golf has team events like the Ryder Cup and Presidents Cup, but those teams consist of 12 players. The play of one isn’t likely to make or break the entire team. At the Zurich Classic, however, it’s just two players working together for a collective goal. Winning as a team is a rare thing in golf, but thanks to the foresight of Zurich Classic organizers, it’s one that Palmer and Rahm got to experience, for once in their careers at least.