Spanish pro golfer Jon Rahm is coming to Rory McIlroy’s defense after the latter’s crushing loss at the 2024 U.S. Open.
Rahm, 29, believes the NBC team did not accurately portray the difficulty of McIlroy’s putt on the 18th hole, making his loss seem like more of a collapse than it was.
“One of the things that absolutely burned me, and I think it was Smylie [Kaufman] who said it, he severely underplayed how difficult Rory’s putt on 18 was,” Rahm said in a press conference.
Rahm won the 2021 U.S. Open but withdrew early from the tournament this year with a foot injury. After watching the conclusion of the tournament and Bryson DeChambeau’s ultimate win, Rahm was able to offer a golfer’s perspective on that final hole.
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“When he said it’s a left-center putt, if you hit that putt left-center and miss the hole, you’re off the green because of how much slope there is,” Rahm explained, defending his Ryder Cup teammate. “You could see Rory aiming at least a cup left from three feet. They severely underplayed how difficult that putt was. Severely.”
He also defended the broadcast team, saying that unless you’ve played the course before, it could be tough to tell how difficult that hole really is.
“I think that can happen a few times where, unless you’ve been there on the golf course and you’re playing it or you’ve played it, it’s hard to truly explain how difficult the golf course can be, and a lot of times they only have those five seconds to say something quickly, so I also don’t blame them,” Rahm said.
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Analyst Brandel Chamblee, who was on the call with Kaufman, seemed to understand the challenge McIlroy, 35, was facing in the moment.
“Four feet, down the hill, breaking to the right. That’s not exactly the 4-footer you want. It got above the hole,” he said.
It was an unfortunate end to the Open for McIlroy, who led by two strokes heading into the final five holes. He bogeyed three of the last four, allowing DeChambeau to come back and win.
McIlroy congratulated his opponent in a statement posted via X.
“Firstly, I’d like to congratulate Bryson. He is a worthy champion and exactly what professional golf needs right now. I think we can all agree on that,” he wrote. “As I reflect on my week, I’ll rue a few things over the course of the tournament, mostly the 2 missed putts on 16 and 18 on the final day. But, as I always try to do, I’ll look at the positives of the week that far outweigh the negatives.”
