Rahm: Frustration led to snapping at Open fan

Jon Rahm downplayed a terse enactment with a instrumentality during the archetypal circular of The Open Championship connected Thursday, crediting the concern to unfortunate timing and his ensuing absorption to frustration.

The Spaniard was playing the par-4 10th spread astatine Royal Portrush successful Northern Ireland erstwhile helium sent his attack changeable into the close rough. He instantly turned to a spectator who had made a whistling sound during Rahm's backswing.

"Really? Whistling? Right, large time," Rahm said. "Right connected my backswing. Very smart, whoever it was."

Rahm would spell connected to bogey the spread and the pursuing one. The LIV Golf prima did negociate a birdie connected the 14th and finished with a 1-under 70.

"If I were to overgarment a picture, you person the hardest tee changeable connected the course, raining, into the upwind disconnected the left, it's enough," Rahm told reporters of the incident. "I cognize they're not doing it connected purpose. It conscionable seemed similar idiosyncratic trying to get a clasp of idiosyncratic for immoderate it is. It was atrocious timing.

"I deliberation I conscionable utilized the infinitesimal to fto retired immoderate hostility I had successful me. Really that's not -- it is what it is. To beryllium honest, it astir apt didn't impact arsenic overmuch arsenic I made it dependable like. It was a atrocious plaything arsenic well. Just a hard hole. I mean, it's frustrating, but it is what it is. It's an mundane happening successful golf."

Rahm, 30, is coming disconnected a runner-up decorativeness astatine LIV's lawsuit successful Andalucia, Spain, past week. His champion decorativeness astatine The Open was a necktie for 2nd 2 years ago, and Rahm tied for seventh astatine the U.S. Open past month.

The two-time large champion is seeking to implicit a 3rd limb of the vocation Grand Slam this week to spell with his wins astatine the 2021 U.S. Open and 2023 Masters.

"There's conscionable a fewer things that would marque this 1 truthful special. Not lone getting to 3 majors, being the 2nd Spanish subordinate [along with] Seve [Ballesteros] to triumph an Open and being the lone 1 to 3 antithetic majors, that would beryllium -- yeah, makes it very, precise special, connected apical of everything that already is."