Rónán MacNamara in Portrush
It’s always the quiet ones…
Jon Rahm admits he is jealous of Tom McKibbin’s calm demeanour and feels the 22-year-old has the potential to be a silent killer ahead of the 153rd Open Championship in Royal Portrush, just up the road from McKibbin’s hometown of Holywood.
Rahm and McKibbin have become well acquainted since the latter joined his Legion XIII team on LIV Golf, winning three titles this season in the process, and the Spaniard hailed the precocious talent of the youngster and the strength of his mental game.
“Well, Tom McKibbin should be really looking forward to this week, being a member here and being from Northern Ireland,” Rahm said on Tuesday.
“He’s a fantastic young man. For a 22-year-old to be as calm and collected as he is is quite phenomenal.c“He’s quiet by nature, but even in competition when things go wrong, he stays quite calm, and it’s just remarkable and an incredible gift to have for a young player.
“I don’t think I can relate to that whatsoever, so I’m a little bit jealous of that. I think it’s going to serve him very well in the long run.
“Obviously, I think he’s internally processing the same emotions that all of us are processing, but outwardly, he stays really, really calm, and that helps him quite a bit, on top of having a fantastic golf swing.”
Rahm’s jealously of McKibbin extends far beyond the mental game and he also admits that he marvels at the golf swing of Holywood’s two favourite sons.
McKibbin’s quiet nature has seen him stay away from the bright lights of stardom and he has carved out an excellent early career both on the DP World Tour and now LIV Golf. Rahm, who burst on to the scene with a Farmers Insurance Open win in 2017 feels the sky is the limit for his teammate.
“I don’t know what it is about Northern Ireland, but they have two of the most beautiful golf swings ever produced in golf [in McKibbin and McIlroy].
“He’s a fantastic golfer in general. He’s got all the tools he needs to succeed in this game, and so far in his early career, he’s done so.”
McKibbin’s homecoming has gone slightly under the radar with Rory Mania and Shane Lowry’s return to Portrush but Irish golf fans have a lot of love for Rahm after the Bilbao man won two Irish Opens in Portstewart and Lahinch.
“Ireland and Northern Ireland have been very good to me in my golf career. It’s been a lot of fun to be able to play here, have done well in Portrush in the past and have really good memories in Portstewart, so I’m really, really looking forward to this week,” he said.
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