Jon Rahm apologizes after hitting PGA volunteer in face with divot

Jon Rahm was angry, then he was apologetic. 

A while later, he was just annoyed. Rahm had finished his PGA Championship first round, where he shot a one-under 69 at Aronimink Golf Club, and a moment on the par-4 7th hole was sticking with him. From the left rough, he hit his second shot over the green, then, in frustration, he lashed at the grass — and his divot hit a volunteer in the face and shoulder. 

Rahm was seen apologizing, and a reporter had been curious what happened.  

“Thanks for reminding me of that,” Rahm started. “I got a flier on my second shot that went long. It’s not a good spot. Just out of frustration, I tried to make an air swing, just over the grass, and I wasn’t looking, took a divot, and unfortunately, I hit a volunteer.

“Yeah, it hit him, and unfortunately it hit him in the shoulder and then the face. Which I couldn’t feel any worse. That’s why I was there apologizing. I need to somehow track him down to give him a present because that’s inexcusable and for something that could be completely avoidable.”

On the PGA Championship’s website, a video of the sequence showed Rahm hitting over the green, then swiping at the grass. A commentator said: “Oh, and there we go.” Rahn then turned toward the gallery to his left.   

“Whether it was my intention or not,” Rahm said afterward, “it was just not good.”

From there on the 7th, he bogeyed, but played two-under golf over his other 17 holes, which included him holing out from 98 yards on the par-4 2nd for an eagle 2.

“I mean, what can I say? It was a phenomenal shot, really good wedge shot,” Rahm said. “I came off that 1st green kicking myself because it was a wrong choice of shot for such a good drive — 105 yards away downwind, it was the wrong shot choice. Go to the next hole, and I have a very similar number, at least I have to play it the same number into the wind. Obviously a lot more committed with the right decision, and hit a great shot.”

In his session with reporters, Rahm was also asked about Aronimink’s difficulty. A reporter said that there was a thought that scores would be lower, and Rahm and the reporter had this exchange (the reporter’s words are italics): 

“People thought it would be lower?” Rahm said.

People thought the scoring would be lower this morning.

“Have you been out there?” Rahm asked. “Have you seen the golf course?”

Yeah.

“You know what, I can understand because, if you just go by some of the numbers, some of the fairways are wide, the greens aren’t crazy firm,” Rahm said. “But a lot of those fairways are sloped in a way that they play very narrow.

“Like 15 today, I thought I was going to be in the fairway undoubtedly, and I was off the fairway. Same on 10, same on 4. It can easily roll off.

“Then the rough doesn’t look as long as many other majors, but it’s such a thick blade of grass that, even when the lie looks OK, it catches you so bad.

“So I can see how in appearance it might be easier, but it’s not. You need to play really good golf to shoot lower than three-under. And then on top of that, those pin locations today are good ones. I mean, they’re tucked. They’re not easy.

“There was somebody earlier in the week where there was some chatter where people thought 15- to 20-under was going to win. And I think that got to somebody in the PGA, and they did something about it. Because if the golf course stays like this and it keeps firming up, yeah, obviously it’s not going to be anything like that.”

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