Jon Rahm will play in January's American Express tournament in La Quinta despite being caught on camera cursing the course set-up last year.
The 2021 US Open champion notched just his second PGA Tour title win at the event in California in 2018, but it's fair to say his enjoyment was somewhat less three years on. Playing the Nicklaus Tournament Course for his second round, the Spaniard was filmed by a spectator stomping away from one of the greens.
And he wasn't discreet about his feelings, loudly shouting: "Piece of s***, f****** setup, putting contest week, Jesus Christ." The 28-year-old wouldn't have been aware his words were being captured, but they inevitably soon went viral on social media.
The @flushingitgolf account noted the irony of Rahm committing to a return, posting the footage with the caption: "It’s hilarious that Rahm has committed to the Am Ex again after his rant last year between holes."
@TheEasyPar replied by referencing Rahm's infamous temper, writing: "He has the most hilarious head off's, right up there with Tyrell Hatton. Would love to see them paired in a Ryder Cup." @LindaRenner11 added: "Golfers are human; they get frustrated."
Rahm ended up 14th in the tournament last season, which was eventually won by Si Woo Kim. And the former world No 1 will be among the favourites to contend again early next year, as he builds towards a tilt at a first ever green jacket at the US Masters.
And there was an irony about his previous outburst at the La Quinta Country Club, given he'd initially said the following in the same week: “It’s always a very enjoyable walk out here. La Quinta Country Club it’s a great golf course, it’s always in pristine shape, one of the best we play all year shape-wise. It’s a golf course where if you play well you can give yourself a lot of birdie chances and that’s what happened today."
Rahm was regularly in the frame in 2022, one of the leading PGA Tour stars to repel the advances of LIV Golf. He also took aim at Phil Mickleson, rubbishing his comments about the Saudi-backed tour.
He was also outspoken about the rankings system after Rory McIlroy climbed to the top again, saying: “I'm going to be as blunt as I can. I think the OWGR [Official World Golf Rankings] right now is laughable. Laughable, laughable, laughable," he said.
