Jon Rahm knew the question was coming.
“I figured somebody was going to ask,” he said.
He was right to assume they would. When you miss a 10-inch putt on national television and you’re the No. 1 golfer in the world, you officially have the golf world’s attention.
That’s what Rahm did on Bay Hill’s par-3 7th hole on Thursday during the opening round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational. His 22-foot putt from the fringe meandered its way inside a foot. Then, instead of tapping it in, he made a strange sort of half-stroke at the ball, barely made contact and watched as it rolled just a couple inches in the direction of the hole.
Why does this sort of doink draw our attention? First off, because it’s relatable. Golf is difficult and we’re not particularly good at it. Secondly because it’s weird; pros make these putts at a rate of 100%. Third because it’s especially weird that Jon Rahm missed this particular shortie given he is, at present, the best golfer in the world. And finally because it’s golf, which is all about the little stuff. In sports, there’s nothing littler than a two-inch putt.
So what happened? Why the slip-up? Rahm was ready for the question post-round. But that doesn’t mean he had a simple answer.
“I really couldn’t tell you,” Rahm said. “I wish I could give you all the excuses in the world, but no, it’s as simple as — you know, it just didn’t feel good in my hands, and I tried to stop, and I didn’t.
“I just simply didn’t stop. I don’t know. It was very odd.”
Some viewers expressed surprise at Rahm’s reaction — or lack thereof. But the reaction made sense to me. How can you be mad when you’re in shock? He wiped off the face of his putter and then finished out for bogey. He moved on to the next hole, where he made par. He parred the next three after that, too. He birdied three of six holes after that. And he bogeyed No. 18 to round out an opening even-par 72, good for a share of 51st.
“It’s not like it affected my play the rest of the day because I played really good. But sitting at 1-under I feel like would feel a lot better than even par. It just sucks to give that one away,” Rahm said.
That first reaction — the wipe of the putter face — called to mind Brooks Koepka’s pre-shot routine. He wipes the face every time, right before he putts, just to avoid a doink of his own. But this wasn’t an issue of debris on the putter; Rahm clarified that he had indeed false-started.
“I tried to stop it, yeah. It didn’t sit well in my hands. I was a little sweaty.”
He added that he’s never done anything quite like this before. But he has seen plenty of missed one-footers, even from top pros.
“I’ve seen many things,” he said. “I’ve seen the putter get a little stuck on a blade of grass on the way back and do something funky, hit the ground before because you’re not paying attention. I’ve seen so many things from a foot. I’ve seen some of the best putters in the world miss it because you don’t really take a proper stance. It sucks to give away a shot like that, to be honest.”
Typically when pros talk about “giving away” strokes there’s some sort of exaggeration involved. Not here. According to ShotLink, Rahm’s putt cost him 1.00 strokes. He was expected to make it and he didn’t.
In a strange statistical coincidence Rahm also lost 1.00 strokes putting on the other par-3 on the front nine, when his tee shot left him a 33-footer from above the hole. He sent that putt 13 feet past and missed the comebacker.
Rahm wasn’t fond of where they cut that particular cup.
“Well, it’s just a dicey pin location. I think they missed the mark on that one with the greens,” he said. “I either leave myself four feet like this with the side break or I’m taking 10 to 15 feet long because the ball’s not going to stop. That’s kind of how it is.”
That, too, was matter-of-fact. To hear Rahm tell it, his poor putting day was mostly an anomaly, even though he finished 114th on the day in Strokes Gained: Putting — a noted contrast from Strokes Gained: Approaching the green, where Rahm ranked second. Most of his statistical damage on the greens was done in two holes, after all.
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In truth the most riled up Rahm got was in discussing another discrepancy of inches: the length of his putter, which the broadcast said he’d extended.
“I love when people make up stories,” he said. “I’m going to clarify this right now because I’ve heard it throughout my whole pro career. Since my senior year in college, 2016, the length of my putter hasn’t changed. I’m not going to say who. One particular guy just starts making up the length of my putters. Just over 37 inches, and it’s been like that since my final semester in college, 2016.”
That’s Rahm: Confident, fiesty, plenty of fighting spirit. So how do you bounce back from giving away a stroke in the first round?
“Hopefully get off to a good start, play a couple good holes, get comfortable, and shoot something in the 60s. That will be hopefully mid-60s,” he said.
In other words, be Jon Rahm.