SENTRY TOURNAMENT OF CHAMPIONS

January 6, 2022

Jon Rahm

Plantation Course at Kapalua

Quick Quotes

Q. Talk about the start of the round. Three birdies on the front, three birdies on the back, kind of came in clusters. Were there just moments where you were just kind of finding a groove out there on the course?

JON RAHM: No, I think it's just the holes that are accessible. I'm pretty sure if somebody goes back on my stats, there's very few times I've ever been under par on the first four holes. They're not the easiest. 1, on paper is easy, but it's not. It's hard to hit it close and make a putt.

2 is a hard par-3, and then 3 and 4, you're hitting shots into the wind and cross-wind. They're not the easiest, right?

But then you have 5, par-5, 6, a short hole, right, a couple holes where you can get a couple birdies going if you hit the right shots and that's what happened.

Same on the back nine. Even though I had birdie chances on 10, 11, and 12, right, I just happened to I hit one close on 13 and took advantage of some of the other holes.

Q. How much did you play kind of in the, over the holidays off-season and were you expecting any competitive rust as you got back?

JON RAHM: I mean, you can always expect a little bit of rust. But, again, I took time off, but I wasn't on the couch, right, doing nothing. I was still working out. I was still practicing as if I was still in the season. I took maybe three weeks off of golf, which were very needed. But even though I was home, I was practicing.

And, again, not that I'm surprised that I played good, but it's really good to come out and start the year off the right way.

Q. I wanted to ask you about Juan, who you met up with earlier this week, he's playing in the event this week as the champion. What did it mean to see him again, someone from your hometown; and he said he drew a lot of inspiration from you, like what was it that you think gave him that inspiration?

JON RAHM: I have no idea, that's a question for him. We both come from northern Spain, we grew up an hour apart from each other, very similar weather. I would say, I mean, he might be saying that too and give me a compliment, that he grew up on the same golf course that Seve grew up on. So he's got plenty of inspiration when it comes to golf over there. He's a really remarkable human being, right. I spent some time with him, he always refuses to take a cart or any help, always wants to walk. For his sake I hope he's not walking this place because with crutches and one leg it's a lot harder.

But it's amazing what he's able to do and how good he can play golf on one leg. If people haven't seen him hit the ball they should because it's amazing to see the quality of strike on the quality of ball flight. And if he says he's drawing inspiration from me, I've drawn quite a bit if not more from him as well.

You can always say he had chips stacked up against him and he's made the best of it and even after injuries and having a couple surgeries from what he said working on his game a little bit too hard, which, God who knows what he did, you know, it's really inspiring. It does inspire people like me that there's somebody like him out there. And we met a long time ago and to see how far we've come is pretty impressive.