LOS ANGELES — Jon Rahm used two late birdies to power past Max Homa for a victory in the Genesis Invitational that moved the Spaniard back to number one in the world.
Rahm grabbed his third US PGA Tour title of 2023 after wins at the Tournament of Champions and the American Express in La Quinta, California.
It was his fifth win in his last nine worldwide starts, a run that included his third Spanish Open triumph in October and victory in the World Tour Championship in November.
He won on a course like Riviera, at a tournament hosted by Tiger Woods and after a tense battle with Max Homa that required Rahm’s best golf.
And now he’s officially number one. “I don’t need a ranking to validate anything,” Rahm said according to AP. “Having the best season of my life, and hopefully, I can keep it going.”
In a back-and-forth final round – Rahm went from a three-shot lead to a one-shot deficit at one point – the Spaniard pulled away with a pivotal recovery for par, a 45-foot birdie putt and an eight-iron to two feet on the par-three 16th.
That carried him to two-under 69 and a two-shot victory over Homa (68), with Patrick Cantlay (67) another shot behind.
Woods could claim a small consolation. He finished a 72-hole event for the first time since the Masters last April, though he was quick to joke, “Unfortunately, my streak continues.” He now has played 12 times as a pro at Riviera without winning.
Under the circumstances, this wasn’t a bad week.
Woods played only three times last year because of a fused back and battered legs from surgeries (left) and a car crash (right). This was a rare appearance, and Woods doesn’t know if he’ll play again before the Masters.
He still had the largest gallery to the end, thousands of fans packed on the hill over the 18th green to watch him close out with a par in the familiar red shirt under black vest.
And then the spectators turned their attention to a terrific duel between Rahm and Homa that wasn’t really decided until Homa tried to chip in for birdie on the 18th and fell to his knees when the ball banged off the pin.
Rahm has not finished out of the top 10 in his last 10 tournaments. It was his third win in five starts on the PGA Tour this year, and he already has earned more than USD9 million the last two months.
This wasn’t as easy as it looked at the end, when all he had to do was tap in for par and scoop up his two young sons.
Homa, who won at Riviera two years ago, began the final round three shots back.
He quickly closed to within one shot, only for the Spaniard to come within inches of holing out from the fairway at number eight for a tap-in birdie, while Homa made bogey from behind the green to slip three shot behind again.
