The 2017 European Tour season finished in Dubai with two young European stars carrying trophies, both of whom had made breath-taking ascents through the ranks in the previous 12 months. While Tommy Fleetwood won the Race to Dubai crown, the rise of Jon Rahm has arguably been one of the most exciting breakthroughs in European golf...
Certainly, when the stocky Spaniard turned professional, there had been murmurings within the golfing fraternity that this was a special talent worth earmarking for the future. But nobody could have predicted the meteoric nature of his surge towards sporting stardom.
In just his second start of the calendar year, following a 2016 campaign that hinted at his potential, Rahm claimed his first professional victory at the Farmers Insurance Open on the US PGA Tour.
Just over a month later, he became an Affiliate Member of the European Tour, speaking openly about his long-held love of the tour and his ambitions to one day star for Europe in a Ryder Cup.
“I have always wanted to play the Ryder Cup and I have always wanted to be a member of the European Tour,” he said at the time.
“I have obviously taken a different approach to tour life than a lot of other Europeans who went to college in the States, but I thought this was my best shot. I’m surprised I have been able to take this opportunity so early but it’s great to be able to join.
“I have so many memories of the European Tour – one that stands out was watching Justin Rose’s hole-in-one on the third hole at the Volvo Masters the year he won the Order of Merit at Valderrama.
“I remember Miguel winning the French Open; Pablo winning the French Open and then Pablo and Sergio’s play-off at the BMW International too. I’m really looking forward to playing some tournaments on the European Tour.”
If there was any doubt that this man from the Basque country - who had studied, settled and found love in the USA - was a proud European, these statements swiftly rebuked that notion. He was ready to turn up, challenge and win on the European Tour. And it did not take him long.
His first regular European Tour appearance came at the second event of the Rolex Series, which marked a new era in the history of the tour. A share of tenth place alongside Alex Noren and Lee Westwood at the HNA Open de France in July proved the change in scenery would do nothing to derail his progress.
A week later, he secured a maiden European Tour - and Rolex Series - victory in the most swashbuckling style, breaking records aplenty en route to a six-stroke triumph in the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open hosted by the Rory Foundation.
The scenes in the pouring rain at Portstewart Golf Club will surely live long in the memory of Irish golf fans, and will no doubt be recalled over and over when telling the story of the rise of one of the game’s most exciting talents as he proved he is willing and able to win on any tour, in any conditions.
A Major challenge would elude Rahm in 2017 and, while his form on the European Tour in the second half of the season took a dip – relatively speaking – his performances in the US PGA Tour’s FedEx Cup Play-offs made for some eye-watering reading; T3, T4, T5, T7.
After a top 15 in the Italian Open, Rahm returned home to play in front of the adoring Spanish fans for the first time as a professional at the Andalucia Valderrama Masters hosted by the Sergio Garcia Foundation.
Perhaps it was fatigue after a busy period, perhaps he put too much pressure upon himself to please the throngs of fans who watched his every move at Real Club Valderrama, but Rahm would miss the cut.
He was visibly devastated to have failed to make the weekend for the first time at a regular European Tour event – indeed, he did not finish lower than tied 15th in any of the others – but he certainly made up for it in the season finale.
The DP World Tour Championship, Dubai almost had its script written before a ball was struck in anger. It would transpire, they said, as an epic dual between Englishmen Tommy Fleetwood and Justin Rose as they battled to win the Race to Dubai.
And so it unfolded for the first three days at Jumeirah Golf Estates - Rose led the field heading into the final day with Fleetwood just two shots back. The potential for one of the great two-way battles was just too mouth-watering for most to even consider any outcome which didn’t see one of those players lifting both trophies.
Yet for the whole week in Dubai, the presence of one of European golf’s foremost talents - who earlier in the week was named the Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year - loomed larger and larger on the leaderboard as the days passed, until he entered the final round just one stroke back from Rose.
As a thrilling battle for the Race to Dubai dominated the final day’s events, Rahm emerged from the shadows with a flawless five under par final round to finish one shot clear and become the first player in European Tour history to claim multiple Rolex Series titles.
That victory elevated him to a career-best fourth in the Official World Golf Ranking, where he will finish a calendar year in which he started at 137th.
The 2017 European Tour produced myriad success stories of note, but the rise of the precocious, gifted and ruthlessly determined Jon Rahm may yet prove to be one of the most important in the context of the history of the sport.
For this 23 year old Spanish sensation is showing potential which suggests he can become one of the greats of his generation, and many more to come.
