Zimpapers Logo

VIDANTA VALLARTA. — World number two golfer Jon Rahm battled to a two-under-par 69 on Sunday to pull off a one-shot victory in the US PGA Tour Mexico Open at Vidanta Vallarta.

Rahm held or shared the lead after every round, but it was far from easy for the Spaniard, who had to salvage a par at the par-five finishing hole to finish on 17-under 267  —  a stroke in front of Brandon Wu, Tony Finau and Kurt Kitayama.Wu and Finau charged up the leaderboard with outstanding eight-under-par 63s while Kitayama, playing alongside Rahm in the final group, closed with a 68 to join the group on 268. “Pretty stressful weekend all the way to the end,” Rahm said after sealing his seventh US PGA Tour title  — his first since his maiden major victory at the US Open at Torrey Pines last year.

After back-to-back birdies at the sixth and seventh, Rahm bogeyed the 10th, missing a six-foot putt to save par.

He missed a 10-foot birdie attempt at the par-five 12th and both Wu and Finau were in the clubhouse at 16-under before Rahm drained a testing 11-foot birdie to reach 17-under at the 14th.

Rahm rapped in a par-saving five-footer at the 15th and parred the 16th. He looked in control with a tee shot to 11 feet at the par-three 17th, but his birdie attempt came up short. — AFP