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Jon Rahm was one of the favorites to walk away with the green jacket heading into The Masters this year, but it looked like he was going to be facing quite an uphill battle thanks to what unfolded on the opening hole of his first round at Augusta National.
The Spaniard quickly found himself sitting at +2 thanks to the double bogey he recorded with the help of the four putts he needed to put the ball in the hole.
However, he quickly bounced back from that misstep to complete an otherwise bogey-free round that included an eagle and seven birdies for a grand total of 65. He ultimately headed into Sunday sitting two strokes behind leader Brooks Koepka, where he was able to cruise to a four-stroke victory to win The Masters for the first time in his career.
Rahm was able to laugh about his unenviable start to the tournament after donning the green jacket and opted to pin some of the blame on Cardinals tight end Zach Ertz for sending him a text that read “First hole green looks like a walk in the park.”
Ertz quickly absolved himself from any blame, and on Tuesday, he took things one step further while jokingly suggesting he actually deserves some of the credit for Rahm’s win while speaking with Arizona Sports.
Here’s what he had to say:
“I think I deserve a piece of the green jacket.
I texted him prior to teeing off trying to gas a friend up. He proceeds to double bogey No. 1.… Then he said he’s never smiled/laughed more after a double bogey in his life.
So, really if it wasn’t for me, he would have been in the dumps, in the tank, and then he went on to shoot nine-under through the next 17 holes. I think I played a big part in Sunday’s victory.”
Something tells me Ertz won’t be getting a swatch of that hallowed fabric, but you have to respect the hustle.