MADRID, 14 Abr. (EUROPA PRESS) –
Spanish golfer Jon Rahm will end his reign at the Augusta Masters this Sunday by being out of action in the defense of the title of the first major of the season, which is led by world number one, Scottie Scheffler, as the favorite. .
Rahm needed a real ‘moving day’ this Saturday but he couldn’t get below par at Augusta National to stay at a total of +5. Thus, the Basque even saw the American’s lead move away to 12 strokes, after Scheffler signed a -1 on the third day and a -7 in total, solo leader.
The one from Barrika perhaps had his best day but it was not enough, solid from the tee but not so accurate in finding flags. After the wind of the first two days, the legendary course where the Spaniard won his second ‘big’ last year began to harden the ‘greens’, more in the Augusta style, with balls without brakes.
Rahm, who will look for at least a ‘Top 10’ this Sunday, will give the green jacket to his successor and Scheffler leads the table and the pools. The number one has not fallen from the top, second on Thursday, so far in the tournament, and he had the ability to react this Saturday, after a ‘double-bogey’ and a ‘bogey’ on the 10th and 11th.
The American, champion of the Masters in 2022, made ‘eagle’ on 13 and ‘birdies’ on 15 and 18. His compatriot Collin Morikawa was one stroke away and fellow American Max Homa was two away. The Swede Ludvig Aberg holds on to a total of -4, while the Dane Nicolai Hojgaard (-2) went down with two balls in the water.
The American Bryson DeChambeau also made a mess for being too aggressive on the 15th hole, leaving himself with a complicated third shot that sent him into the water. The leader at the beginning of the day lost the north but recovered it with a tremendous ‘birdie’ from the 18th fairway to finish at -3 and a once again positive feeling.
Meanwhile, Tiger Woods’ adventure, still far from the ideal physique or competition rhythm, received a serious corrective with his worst score at Augusta, 82 strokes. After making a record of 24 cuts in a row, the champion of 15 majors showed wear and tear and collapsed hours after still seeing himself as a candidate. Another veteran like José María Olazabal, the other Spaniard in the running, is 47th.