‘Anybody Can Beat You’: Jon Rahm Reveals How He Approaches Match Play Events

Published 03/24/2021, 4:03 AM EDT

The WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play Event is right around the corner and golfers are ready to take on the individual battle. This particular tournament stands out from the rest owing to its style of play, and Spainard Jon Rahm is a huge fan of this structure.

Unlike stroke play, where the winner with the lowest aggregate score is crowned champion after four rounds, match play is different. It requires golfers to go head-to-head against their opponents and claim victory in each hole.

There are a lot of factors that change between match play and stroke play. Every professional golfer sees it that way because that is the reality. Jon Rahm is no different and he recently spoke about it at the Austin Country Club ahead of WGC-Dell Match Play.

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“You know, when you step on that first tee, at least what I plan, I treat everybody the same, whether it’s somebody who’s won 15 times, somebody who’s never won, a rookie, not a rookie, an experienced player, it doesn’t matter,” Rahm said.

It is important to stay ahead of your competitors at all times during Match Play events. Every round is unpredictable and Jon Rahm never likes to assume that he is ahead of his opponent at any cost.

Jon Rahm embraces the unpredictability of golf

The reason why golf is one of the greatest sports in the world is because it’s highly unpredictable. The sport is truly unique and no player can come out and deliver an open challenge claiming he’s the best among the pros. No, it doesn’t work that way.

“I don’t see ranking. I don’t see history. All that goes out the window. Like I said earlier, you probably didn’t hear, anybody can beat you on 18 holes, period,” Rahm asserted.

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Jon Rahm reiterated that a player should maintain the pace during Match Play events. There is no margin for error. Rahm finished runner-up to Dustin Jonhson at Austin Country Club in 2017 and he understands the challenge of playing against the very best.

“So it’s all about who the person, what kind of person or what kind of day the person in front of you ends up having. So it’s a tough format in that sense. You got to play good and you got to get lucky sometimes,” Rahm added.

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Jon Rahm is one of the most consistent players on the tour. His approach to Match Play is definitely the right one. The World No. 3 grouped with Ryan Palmer (24), Shane Lowry (38), and Sebastian Munoz (56) at WGC Dell-Match Play 2021, and we’re yet to witness how it is going to unfold.

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Arjun Athreya is a senior writer at Essentially Sports and has been contributing since early 2020. Having developed an avid interest in sports at an early age, he pursued a Journalism degree and graduated from Madras Christian College. Arjun manages the Golf division and its content, and primarily covers news pertaining to the NBA as well.

‘Anybody Can Beat You’: Jon Rahm Reveals How He Approaches Match Play Events

Jon Rahm embraces the unpredictability of golf

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