Jon Rahm: 'Tom McKibbin has all the tools he needs to succeed in this game'

JEALOUS: Jon Rahm says he is jealous of the calmness that Tom McKibbin has which is an incredible gift. Pic: Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile

Jon Rahm is a two-time major winner and, with a pair of Irish Open victories behind him, is the type of player who should come to Northern Ireland for this week’s Open Championship who seems to have it all.

And yet Jon Rahm is jealous of Tom McKibbin.

The two men are teammates on the LIV Tour so the Spaniard has enjoyed a close-up view of the man from Newtownabbey who will play in just his fourth major championship when he tees it up here on Thursday.

“Well, Tom McKibbin should be really looking forward to this week, being a [Royal Portrush] member here and being from Northern Ireland. He's a fantastic young man. For a 24-year-old to be as calm and collected as he is quite phenomenal.

“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. It's going to serve him very well in the long run.

“He’s obviously 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.

“I don't know what it is about Northern Ireland, but they have two of the most beautiful golf swings ever produced in golf. 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 brings some promising recent form on the LIV circuit to his native shores this week. His last outing delivered a fourth-placed finish at the always challenging Valderrama in Spain, courtesy of a final round 66.

“Game feels good,” he explained. “It was very nice at the start of the year, and then sort of towards the middle, things just weren't going my way. I sort of felt like I was playing quite nicely, but I couldn't really get the score together.

“And then the last couple of weeks have been nice. I finished fifth in Dallas, and then fourth last week on two very challenging golf courses, so it's nice to see my game, how it felt like it was playing, translate into some nice scores and post a couple of nice finishes.” McKibbin, still just 22 years of age, has been practising with Darren Clarke and Rory McIlroy here and, having missed the 2019 Open at Portrush, is eager to take in the unique surrounds and sounds of a ‘home’ Championship.

“I've been lucky to play a few Irish Opens now, and that's obviously big in itself. And then this is this sort of up another, another level or so. So it's pretty cool to be involved in it and have those sort of things happen to you.”