Jon Rahm was on top of the golf world a month ago. He's now toward the bottom after posting a terrible first round at the PGA Championship. After securing his second major win at the 2023 Masters, Rahm reclaimed the top spot in the World Golf Rankings.
He had a first-round to forget at the year's second major. Rahm shot a six-over-par 76 during his first round at the PGA Championship. That broke the record for the worst opening round score at the PGA Championship by a world No. 1 golfer. Tiger Woods and Gary Norman shared that distinction at +5.
Rahm did it with style, bogeying the final three holes to drop to +6. He'll start the second round behind the projected cut line with plenty of work to do if he wants to follow his major win with another cut made.
Rahm has had previous success at the PGA Championship. He has two top-10 finishes with a high of fourth in the 2018 tournament. It's hard to imagine a weekend at a major in 2023 without Jon Rahm teeing it up, especially after the performances he's put together recently.
There seems to be an added motivation toward PGA Tour players to perform their very best in the majors to top those who have defected to LIV. The majors are some of the only tournaments where the two leagues will collide, giving players on both sides a chance to one-up the competition.
A LIV player currently leads the PGA Championship, and it looks like Jon Rahm isn't going to be the PGA Tour player that could give Bryson DeChambeau a run for his money.
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