"Make sure you celebrate" - Jon Rahm reflects on Rafael Nadal's valuable advise after winning the Masters
Spanish golfer Jon Rahm won the 2023 Masters, marking his second Major title. While many wishes and opinions must have poured in for the golfer, the best piece he received was from tennis legend Rafael Nadal.
At the 2023 Masters, Jon Rahm won by a four-stroke margin ahead of Brooks Koepka and Phil Mickelson. The third round was delayed due to inclement weather conditions and the Spaniard had to play 30 holes. He had started four strokes behind Koepka but eventually made an incredible comeback in the game.
This monumental victory pushed Rahm to the World No. 1 spot. He held that spot for over a month before Scottie Scheffler overtook him in the rankings.
While the world rejoiced Rahm's victory, tennis icon Rafael Nadal had a valuable advice for him. Rahm's team in LIV Golf, Legion XIII, shared a video of him talking about it in a press conference on X.
"One of the best advice I ever got was from Rafael Nadal. It was after winning the Masters, he told me, 'Make sure, you enjoy this moment. Make sure you celebrate it'. Because you don't really know when it's going to come again," Rahm recounted. (0.00)
When Rahm received Nadal's advice, he was set to take part in another tournament which the latter may not have been aware of. On this, Rahm added:
"Now when he told me that, I don't know if he was aware that I was playing a week after, three days later, (at) Hilton Health. But the week after, we had one or two weeks off then you can let yourself celebrate it, right? So it's almost like you can pick your spots, enjoy what you have accomplished." (0.13)
He further said:
"But what he said, win or lose, the next day you wake up you start all over again. The grind does not really stop." (0.26)
On Friday, the 29-year-old will tee off in the LIV Golf Individual Championship at Bolingbrook Golf Club, Chicago. While 54 golfers from the Saudi-backed tour will be featuring in the event, only Jon Rahm and Chilean golfer Joaquin Niemann are mathematically eligible to become the Individual Champions.
What are the odds of Jon Rahm becoming the Individual Champion?
In his debut year at LIV Golf, Jon Rahm has managed to dominate the tour. He overtook Joaquin Niemann in the standings at the Greenbrier event to top the leaderboard.
Since he is first in the rankings, he has a slight advantage over Niemann in Chicago. While securing the win would be the best way to become Individual Champion, tying or finishing ahead of Niemann would also close the deal for Rahm. If Niemann finishes 16th or 17th, then Rahm would have to be in the top 24 players who receive points. If the Chilean golfer finishes outside of 17th, then it is a guaranteed title win for Jon Rahm.
Although the Spaniard has the advantage given his top rank, tables may turn anytime at the tournament. But the former World No. 1 is prepared for it. According to the official LIV Golf website, he said:
"I'm probably going to need to win. He’s going to be up there. I'm going to need another good week."
Whoever wins, will get to take home a whopping $4 million cash prize. In any case, Rahm and Niemann have already booked their spots on the season-ending podium finish.