Confident, happy Rahm sizing up future green jacket

AUGUSTA, Ga. — Jon Rahm had a great week before even getting to the Masters.

His stay at Augusta National wasn’t bad, either.

Rahm shot a 6-under 66 in the final round of the Masters on Sunday to tie for fifth place at 6 under — four shots behind winner Hideki Matsuyama.

Rahm shot even-par rounds of 72 on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. The 66 on Sunday gave him 15 consecutive rounds of par or better at Augusta National, one shy of matching the record in that category held by Tiger Woods.

“It’s still a top five at a major with a great round on a Sunday,” Rahm said. “What is it, 15 straight rounds of even par or better here? Clearly, I like the place. I play good here. My year is coming up. Let’s hope it’s soon.”

His 2021 is already a banner year, even without a green jacket.

Rahm arrived at the Masters on Wednesday, the last player to get to Augusta National after he and his wife Kelley welcomed a son — Kepa Cahill Rahm — into the world on March 2. Rahm showed up, played nine practice holes and pronounced himself ready to go.

“I’m extremely happy. Let’s say the disappointment after the round lasts a lot less,” Rahm said. “I finish the round and I get a picture from Kelley, and no matter what I do, if I shoot 80 or 65, it’s the same feeling.”

Cink returning: Stewart Cink’s 286th and final shot was a 5-foot putt of importance.

It earned him an invite back to Augusta next year.

There are 19 ways that a player can qualify for the Masters, one of them is finishing 12th or better the preceding year. Cink tied for 12th, after shooting 2 under for the week.

“I think I can definitely compete and win a major right now,” the 47-year-old Cink, a former British Open champ, said. “I’ve never played with the kind of control I’m playing with right now. I never have. I’ve been ranked highly in the world, but right now, I feel like I have a lot of good things going throughout the whole bag, all the way down from driver to putter.”

And one big key: His caddie. Who just happens to be his son.

Reagan Cink is carrying the bag for his father, and Stewart Cink said “he’s the key ingredient in the key lime pie right now.”

Sharing a good week at the Masters only made the father-son/caddy relationship better.

“It was just really fantastic,” Stewart Cink said. “He’s caddied for me this season, so it’s not like him caddying is new, but caddying at the Masters is a whole different ballgame. ... He just did a fabulous job.”

Big struggles: It was a largely unspectacular week for Bryson DeChambeau, who shot 75-75 on the weekend and finished 5 over for the week.

His length has been the talk of golf, but his accuracy was nowhere near the level he needed to contend this week. DeChambeau missed 25 of 56 fairways, his 55% rate of hitting them well below the field average.

“You’ve still got to hit it straight out here,” said Harris English, who played with DeChambeau on Sunday. “You can hit it as far as you want, but if you’re playing out of the trees all day, it’s not going to be good. But his good ones were good, and his off-line shots he got penalized.”