Jon Rahm claims second major crown with four-stroke Masters triumph

Jon Rahm held off an unlikely challenge from Phil Mickelson as he powered to his second major title in the 87th Masters.

Forty years after the late Seve Ballesteros won his second Masters title and on what would have been his 66th birthday, Rahm became the fourth Spanish winner at Augusta National after Ballesteros, Jose Maria Olazabal and Sergio Garcia.

The 2021 US Open champion, who had four-putted the first hole on Thursday, carded a closing 69 to finish 12 under par, four shots clear of Mickelson and long-time leader Brooks Koepka.

A sixth Green Jacket for Spain. #themasters pic.twitter.com/aUBOImCcx6

— The Masters (@TheMasters) April 9, 2023

Koepka struggled to a final round of 75 and it was Mickelson who put the most pressure on Rahm with a brilliant 65 to equal his lowest score at Augusta, his other coming in the first round 27 years ago.

Mickelson’s late charge came on the back of just two top-20 finishes from 10 LIV Golf events, which only have a 48-man field.

And it also came a year after he sat out the Masters following the fall-out from his explosive comments about the Saudi-funded breakaway and the PGA Tour, with chairman Fred Ridley forced to deny the 52-year-old had been disinvited.

Rahm began the day four shots behind Koepka, but had cut that gap in half by the time the pair had completed their delayed third rounds on Sunday morning, both men shooting 73.

Reunited almost three hours later for round four, the final pair got off to a nervous start and Koepka’s pulled opening tee shot was so far wide that he played his second from the ninth fairway.

The four-time major winner hit a superb recovery shot over the trees and safely made par as Rahm had to hole from eight feet for his after missing the green and