Spaniard Jon Rahm brings his high ranking to Pebble Beach Pro-Am.
Spain gave golf a true artist in Seve Ballesteros and a ballstriking machine in Sergio Garcia, not to mention accomplished tour pros Jose Maria Olazabal (a two-time Masters champion) and Miguel Angel Jimenez.
Jon Rahm might turn out to be the best of them all.
He’s built like a linebacker, learned English only upon attending college in the U.S. and blends power and touch, dare we suggest, in a Tiger-like way.
Rahm, 23, arrives at this week’s AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am as the world’s secondranked player behind Dustin Johnson.
Rahm’s rapid ascent makes sense in many ways, given his wild success at Arizona State — where he was a four-time All-American and two-time Ben Hogan Award winner — and his homeland’s rich golf heritage.
Rahm covets the connection to his Spanish predecessors.
“I think Miguel was a little different than all of us,” Rahm said last week. “But take Sergio, Ollie, Seve, me at my age — we’re all very fiery players. We’re all confident and we go for it. That makes it entertaining to watch.
“And we all have a good short game. I don’t know why, but I believe it’s that inner fire, ambition and belief in ourselves.”
That inner fire sometimes spills into the open. It did for Rahm in Sunday’s final round at the Phoenix Open, where he shot 1-over-par 72, tumbled out of contention and punctuated one wayward shot by angrily slamming his club into the ground.
Rahm clearly needs to control his temper, but he’s the latest in a long line of emotional, stylish Spaniards. Ballesteros is the gold standard, a fivetime major champion and former world No. 1 who captivated fans with his creativity on the course. (Ballesteros died of brain cancer in May 2011 at age 54.)
Rahm watched YouTube videos of Ballesteros while growing up in the small town of Barrika in northern Spain. The most memorable video stretched 45 minutes and showed Ballesteros winning the 1979 British Open at Royal Lytham and St. Annes, including his famous recovery shot from the parking lot.
“On one hole, he putts a ball up the fringe for birdie to get a one- or two-shot lead,” Rahm said. “He walks up to it with his hands up high. It’s cool to watch those images when he was just 22, about the same age I am, and see him get it done the way he did.”
Rahm — officially listed at 6-foot-2 and 220 pounds, likely larger — played several sports as a kid, including goalie in soccer, before devoting himself to golf at 14. He soon blossomed in European junior circles, and eventually connected with then-ASU coach Tim Mickelson, Phil’s brother.
The adjustment to life in the U.S. went about as smoothly as Rahm could have hoped, with an unlikely assist from rapper Kendrick Lamar. Rahm listened to Lamar’s lyrics, and they helped him learn “how to process English” a little faster in his head.
Golf-wise, Rahm played boldly but ultimately became better at course management. He impressed former Cal head coach Steve Desimone when they crossed paths during the 2014 Palmer Cup, a match-play event featuring top college players from the U.S. and Europe.
Desimone asked Rahm, then fresh off his sophomore year, about turning pro. Rahm insisted he would resist the temptation because he wanted to stay in school and earn his degree. And he did, graduating in 2016.
The Palmer Cup also showed Desimone the extent of Rahm’s game. Desimone coached a U.S. team that included Bryson DeChambeau, Ollie Schniederjans and Cal’s Brandon Hagy.
“Our team was loaded, but we didn’t have a guy who could touch Rahm,” Desimone said. “He didn’t lose a match. He was just dominant.”
Rahm’s first 19-plus months as a pro offer ample supporting evidence. He has posted 15 top-10 finishes in 35 starts on the PGA Tour, including victories last year in San Diego and last month near Palm Springs.
Rahm tied for fifth in his AT&T debut last year.
“He’s a fiery competitor,” Desimone said. “He reminds me a lot of Tiger. He has a lot of the same components, and he also has that incredible, fierce intensity Tiger has always had.
“If Jon stays healthy, I think he’s going to be a dominant player for the next 20 years. He’s going to win a major this year, and it wouldn’t surprise me if he won two.” Ron Kroichick is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: rkroichick@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @ronkroichick