Jon Rahm takes his deserved spot atop the golf world at the Memorial

Jon Rahm is now the No. 1 golfer in the world following his win at Muirfield Village.

The No. 1 golfer in the world is expected to rise to the occasion, to plow through adversity, to come through with a great shot when he needs it the most. Jon Rahm checks off all those boxes.

Rahm can be a hothead. He’s prone to smashing his clubs, cursing at himself and the ball, and letting his emotions get the better of him. But he kept himself under control for 64 holes this week at the Memorial Tournament until, on the 11th on Sunday, the old Rahm came out.

The Spaniard held an eight-shot lead at one point in the final round, seemingly cruising towards his fourth PGA Tour title. After a bogey at the 10th, though, Rahm stepped to the par-5 and pulled his drive to the left, into a water hazard. As his ball splashed in the water, his driver came slamming into the ground in a fit of fury. He made double-bogey on the hole as his lead was soon cut to three shots.

Then came the magic that’s fitting for Jack Nicklaus’ tournament. Rahm’s tee shot at the par-3 16th flew over the flagstick and settled into thick rough. With little green to work with, a par seemed like a good result. Rahm, though, had better ideas, holing the chip shot for an unlikely birdie and putting a definitive end to the competitive portion of the Memorial.

But it didn’t end the drama of the tournament. Slow-motion replay appeared to show Rahm’s ball moving slightly when he put his club behind it. Officials looked it over after the round and determined he had caused it to move. He was given a two-stroke penalty, turning a birdie into a bogey. It didn’t affect the outcome of the tournament, but it’s something Rahm could have lost his cool over. He did the opposite on Sunday, showing a maturity that’s developed over the course of his career.

Rahm’s mind was on other, more personal things instead. His grandmother died back home in Spain and her ashes buried in Madrid on Saturday. Rahm couldn’t be there with his family and recognized that the penalty is nothing compared to what happens off the course. “It’s so easy to get caught up on arbitrary things like the penalty stroke,” he said at his post-victory press conference. “And all I can say is, yes, that ball moved. As minimal as it was, that ball moved.

“I accept it. it doesn’t change the outcome of the tournament. It just puts a little bit of an asterisk on it in the sense that, I wish I could just keep that birdie because it was one of the greatest shots of my life.”

The 25-year-old will ascend to No. 1 in the World Golf Rankings with the win, becoming the fifth-youngest player to reach the milestone after Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy, Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas. Only Woods and Spieth did it more quickly than Rahm, who began his professional career just four years and 27 days ago. He joins Seve Ballesteros as the only Spaniards to be No. 1.

To do it he knew he needed to mature, to not let bad shots affect him. Last year at the Players Championship, he took the lead into the final round but got impatient on Sunday, opting for a risky shot from a bunker on the 11th that led to a costly bogey. But he didn’t do that at the Memorial, showing he’s learned something from his past failures.

“I’m a person who, unfortunately, I’m fully aware, I learn from mistakes,” he said. “I act, foolishly or not. I’ll do my action and I’ll learn from it, good or bad.

“Today was a clear example of it. I could’ve completely lost it many times. Maybe in the past I would have. But I didn’t. I just kept fighting.”

Rahm reached the top spot in the rankings without winning a major championship, but Sunday at Muirfield Village felt like one. On what would’ve been the final day of the Open Championship, strong winds, firm and fast fairways, and tucked-away pin locations made for a difficult day for scoring. More players shot in the 80s (nine) than broke par (five). The scoring average for the round was 75.9, the highest at the Memorial in 41 years. Rahm finished with a three-over round of 75 and nine-under for the tournament.

The win was a long time coming for Rahm. He went into the tour’s four-month hiatus as arguably the hottest golfer on the planet. He had either won or been runner-up in seven of his last 17 events worldwide. But that form deserted him when the PGA Tour returned last month; in his last four events, he hadn’t finished better than 27th.

The Memorial is Rahm’s first PGA Tour title since the Zurich Classic of New Orleans last April. He won that team event with Ryan Palmer, and Palmer was there again on Sunday to witness Rahm taste victory. The 43-year-old Texan finished runner-up, a week after ending up third-last at the Workday Charity Open on the same Muirfield Village course.

Jon Rahm was the picture of composure following the win. He went in for a fist pump with tournament host Nicklaus instead of the traditional handshake. He understands that his new status within the game will bring with it renewed responsibility and attention. But he’s ready for it, something he might not have been earlier in his career.