The wide world of sports never seems to stop, and there are always big events happening around the globe. Golf is one sport that doesn’t always get a ton of worldwide attention, but the country of Spain was paying close attention on Easter weekend. 

The month of April is when the NBA Finals odds really start to come into play with the start of the postseason, but it’s also the month when the Masters takes place. There are some great golf tournaments throughout the year, but the yearly tournament at Augusta National always tends to be at the top of the list. 

All of the best players in the world tee it up at Augusta National every year, and it creates a terrific international event. Golf has really grown into a worldwide sport, and it was a Spaniard that took home the famous green jacket. 

Jon Rahm entered the final round at Augusta National with a two-stroke deficit, but it wasn’t long before he was at the top of the leaderboard. Rahm cruised to a victory by four strokes over American Brooks Koepka in a crazy weekend of golf. 

The weather caused some major issues throughout the weekend, and the best golfers were forced to play close to 30 holes of golf on the final day of the tournament. Mother Nature was able to provide a much better atmosphere on Sunday, and it was quite the round for Rahm.

This was the second major championship win for Rahm, as he also won the US Open at Torrey Pines back in 2021. Rahm began his professional career with plenty of hype after Phil Mickelson pegged him to be a star when he was a college athlete. 

With the win at Augusta National, Rahm is now the top-ranked golfer in the world. Rahm has also surpassed $13 million in yearly earnings, as this was his fourth win of the season. 

Spain Back on Top

The country of Spain has had some tremendous golfers throughout the years, and some of them have had plenty of success at the Masters. Even though this is a solo event, winning at Augusta National comes with a great sense of national pride, and it’s an accomplishment that is celebrated by the home country. 

This is just the 10th major championship for a Spanish golfer, but Rahm is now the fourth player from that country to win the Masters. Seve Ballesteros is a legend when it comes to professional golf, and Rahm was able to pull off this victory on what would have been the legend’s 66th birthday. 

Ballesteros was a two-time champion at Augusta National, and the second victory happened 40 years ago to the day that Rahm pulled off the win. Rahm spoke about what his win meant for the country of Spain after receiving the green jacket, and noted that Ballesteros was his idol growing up. 

Sergio Garcia had been the most recent golfer from Spain to win the Masters, having done so back in 2017. This win by Rahm moves Spain past South Africa for the country with the second-most wins at Augusta National. 

The United States is still clearly in command, but the field is starting to get filled with more international stars every single year. 

Not Much LIV Drama

The biggest news story surrounding the 2023 Masters wasn’t about the countries that were going to be represented, but instead about the two competing tours. The LIV Golf Series has taken away some of the top golfers from the PGA Tour, but all of those golfers were welcomed back at Augusta National. 

There was plenty of talk about the potential feud between players heading into the event, but that didn’t end up being the case at all. Rahm is still a member of the PGA Tour, and he was able to get past Koepka, who plays for LIV Golf. 

This is going to continue to be a story at the other major golf championships in which the LIV golfers are allowed to attend. It will be interesting to see what takes place if a golfer from the LIV Tour is able to win a major championship. 

This article was provided by Petra Maya