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BMW PGA CHAMPIONSHIP

September 18, 2019

Jon Rahm

Surrey, England

BRIONY CARLYON: Thank you, everyone for your time here today. Delighted to be joined by Jon Rahm here for your debut here at the BMW PGA Championship. You've just come off the course after a Pro-Am on a lovely day. Your thoughts on Wentworth itself.

JON RAHM: Great now. It was cold in the morning. Great golf course. Yesterday was the first time I was ever on the ground and first time I ever played on the course, and I like it. I've heard so many things over the years people telling me about the redesigns: People that like it, people didn't like it. Really, I didn't know what to expect.

This time of year, I know it plays different to what it's played in the past. I've seen replays of other years and it usually plays quite soft. Greens are not soft at all, so it makes it really, really difficult if you're not in the fairway. It's tough to hit it close, and especially on the par 5s.

If you can get it to the green, it's really difficult to stop it on the green, or at least close to the pin. You need to hit the ball really, really well around here, and hopefully I'm one of the lucky few who does it.

BRIONY CARLYON: You already have three Rolex Series titles to your name. Obviously the win in Ireland earlier this year was something special, but what is it about these events where you're able to just perform and keep that form running?

JON RAHM: I think it's just coincidence, honestly. It's not like I go to any tournament thinking, this is Rolex Series and I have to win or I'm going to win. I think it's been coincidence that three of the four I've won on The European Tour have been Rolex Series Events, luckily for me.

Obviously, hopefully I can make it No. 4 this week.

Q. Seve, Ollie and Miguel are three of the Spaniards to win this event. What would it mean to add your name to that list?
JON RAHM: It would mean a lot. Any time I can join or I can have my name join Spanish golf history, it would be great. I've been fortunate enough to do it in The Irish Open, which meant a lot to me, my first win on the European Tour; Sergio's first win on the European Tour; Seve winning it three times, and other Spanish players who have won it.

So to do it here, the Flagship Event, a tournament that a lot of people look forward to, and I've looked forward to and I'm glad I can be here. It would be nice to be the fourth one to get there and add it for Spanish golf.

Again, anytime I can join the likes of two major champions and arguably the Most Interesting Man in Golf, I'd be really happy and really humbled by it.

Q. The Irish Open is scheduled to move to May next season. Will you be there to defend your title?
JON RAHM: Yes. Yes. I'll be there, don't worry.

Q. Following up on that, given obviously your schedules on both sides of the Atlantic, how easy a decision was that to make?
JON RAHM: It was really easy honestly. I've won the event two-out-of-three years I've played. I love coming back to Europe and I'm defending champion and I feel like as defending champion, there's a responsibility to come back and defends your title. I didn't even think about it twice. I knew -- I was aware that the WGC in Memphis could have been the same week, but even if that was the case, I would have gone to Ireland.

Q. But it does come in that sort of spell, the majors?
JON RAHM: Well, it's between the U.S. Open and the PGA, right, I think? I believe.

Yeah, so there is a tournament I like playing, the Colonial, I've played the last three years but just because I'm defending in Ireland, that's a priority, so I most likely won't play that. I will be in Ireland. It's just depending if I play the week before or not after.

Q. There's been a lot of talk this season about the schedule being condensed, all the majors being quite close together. How did you find that? Did you find that difficult to sort of perform at your best in the majors?
JON RAHM: No, not really, but I find it difficult towards the end. I basically ran out of energy at East Lake. Played a lot of golf coming in that summer. So it's just a step to learn. It was only my third year on Tour, and when I thought I had it figured out, the schedule changed, and now when I'm trying to figure out next year, we have a completely different schedule with the Olympics and The Ryder Cup.

It's something, it's a work-in-progress in that sense. I think next year I'm going to focus on obviously trying to be rested for those big events of the year. But it's tough. There's a lot of golf to be played. There's a lot of good tournaments, and I don't see my year changing much. But there will be, you know, subtle changes from January till the FedExCup is over, basically.

After that, it's a little more free. It's a little more relaxed in that sense. There's more options to be able to play and come here and Asia. So it's a little bit easier to choose.

Q. Can you recall when you were young, growing up, watching Seve, his wins here, particularly when he used to say that he had Seve's Soldiers, not Arnie's Army, Seve's Soldiers; was that a key for you wanting to play the game?
JON RAHM: You mean here at Wentworth or European Tour? Wasn't his last win in '91? I was born in '94, so I don't remember watching it. (Laughter).

But you know, I didn't know much about Seve up until I was older and I started learning about the game. Nobody in my family played golf until my dad started at the age of 40, basically. He started when I was already a couple years old, so no, I don't really have much recollection of Seve until after the fact.

But the more I learn, the more I saw and watched about him, the more inspired I got and the more I wanted to be like him in that sense of having the support that he had and having the impact he had in golf.

So it is really important for me, at least in Spanish golf, to try to elevate it and try to get more people to play it and hopefully in the future, just get more and more golf fans and hopefully more events, better events like it was when Seve was playing. I mean, he was able to get a Ryder Cup there. I don't know if I'll get to that point, but just trying to create a better golf base in Spain.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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