Wearing red, Jon Rahm uses Tiger Woods' winning formula at The Genesis Invitational

PACIFIC PALISADES, Calif. – It wasn’t just the shirt that was reminiscent of the man who hosts The Genesis Invitational.

Jon Rahm’s performance Sunday also was a flashback to what we saw from Tiger Woods on all of those victorious Sundays. Wearing a red shirt that was just a few shades lighter than the blood-red one that Woods made famous, Rahm used Woods’ winning formula to emerge victorious from a tight battle with local favorite Max Homa at The Genesis Invitational.

Dominant driving. Precise irons. Capitalizing on opponents’ mistakes and holing the putts that matter most. That is how Woods won many of his 82 PGA TOUR titles and it is what Rahm did Sunday, as well.

After he and Homa went back and forth trading birdies and bogeys for most of the final round, Rahm clinched the title with two birdies on the final five holes. He holed a 45-footer on 14 and knocked his tee shot on the par-3 16th stiff to secure his third PGA TOUR victory in his past five starts. He extended his lead in the FedExCup and regained the top spot in the world ranking, celebrating with his wife and children on the 18th green before receiving the trophy from Woods himself.

Like every golfer of his generation, Rahm grew up idolizing the man who now hosts The Genesis at the course where his TOUR career began. Growing up in Spain, Rahm watched Woods’ highlights with awe and pored over his stats. Now Rahm is in the midst of a run that can only be compared to Woods at his best.

Rahm has won five of his past nine worldwide starts, dating to last year’s Spanish Open. This one wasn’t easy, however.

Rahm began the final round with a three-shot lead over Homa. It represented a healthy advantage, but Homa is known for his success in his home state and for his Sunday comebacks. In his recent win down the road at the Farmers Insurance Open, Homa started the final round five shots behind leader Sam Ryder (and three back of Rahm, who was in second place). Homa shot 66 and won by two.

Rahm admitted that he was nervous before the final round but playing with his children helped settle him down. The significance of wining in front of Woods on one of the TOUR’s most historic venues was not lost on him. Nor was the opportunity for the first three-win season of his TOUR career.

“Of course we feel nervous,” Rahm said. “I'm a human being after all.”

Homa is a tough man to have pursuing you, as well. He’s trailed entering the final round in five of his six wins. Four of those wins have come in California, including the 2021 Genesis Invitational. But Rahm has had his own success in this state, where the poa annua greens remind him of the courses of his youth. Rahm also owns four wins in California, most recently at this year’s American Express. He has won that tournament twice and has two wins at Torrey Pines (the 2017 Farmers Insurance Open and 2021 U.S. Open).

Rahm and Homa had three two-shot swings in Sunday’s first 10 holes, combining for eight birdies and three bogeys in that span. Homa’s birdie on No. 3 pulled him within a stroke of Rahm, who bogeyed the hole. They matched birdies on 7 and Rahm birdied the next hole, as well, while Homa bogeyed to fall three behind. Homa’s birdie on the ninth hole put him within two shots entering the back nine. That’s when Riviera’s beguiling 10th hole struck. Rahm bogeyed and Homa made birdie to tie the lead.

Rahm three-putted the 12th hole from 27 feet but Homa made bogey on the next hole after his tee shot struck a tree and traveled less than 200 yards. With the two tied once again, Rahm holed his long putt on 14 to regain the lead. He called his tee shot two holes later, on the short par-3 16th, his best swing of the week. He hit an 8-iron to 3 feet, taking a two-shot lead with the birdie.

“I think I'm just more proud of myself (for) resetting when things got difficult,” Rahm said.

Homa’s last gasp came on 18, when his chip shot struck the hole and lipped out. When it missed, Rahm could three-putt for a hard-earned victory.

“I would say other than Tiger and I don't even know, he's the most consistent player I've seen,” Homa said of Rahm. “I've known him since college and he's been like this since then, No. 1 amateur in the world, No. 1 player in the world, all the accolades.”

Rahm had two top-10s in TOUR events while he was still an amateur at Arizona State. He’s won 19 pro titles in 158 starts, a winning percentage of 12%, and has finished in the top 10 in more than half of those events. The win was Rahm’s 10th on the PGA TOUR. He’s now No. 1 in the world for the first time since March.

“I don't need a ranking to … validate anything, right? Having the best season of my life and hopefully I can keep it going,” he said.

Homa compared Rahm to the Avengers character Thanos because he has no weaknesses. His well-rounded game makes him all but unstoppable when he is playing well. His driving this week didn’t meet his high standards but he made up for it with his iron play. He led the field in Strokes Gained: Approach-the-Green (+11.9), was second in greens hit (51 of 72), sixth in driving distance (314.5 yards) and 12th in Strokes Gained: Putting (+4.5).

The question now is how Rahm keeps this run going.

“I guess, just keep doing what I’ve been doing,” he said. He’s using a winning formula. One that we’ve seen before.