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After a dominating opening round 62, Arizona State graduate Jon Rahm battled the rest of the weekend to capture the CareerBuilder Challenge after a four-hole playoff at La Quinta Country Club in California over the weekend.
With this victory, Rahm climbs up to No. 2 in the world rankings, trailing only Dustin Johnson for the top spot.
It took Jon Rahm 577 days to go from his first pro start to No.2 in the world. Insane.
— Jonathan Wall (@jonathanrwall) January 22, 2018
Despite carding the 10-under opening round on Thursday, Rahm found himself one stroke behind Andrew Landry, who was the clubhouse leader heading into the weekend.
Paired together on Saturday, both Rahm and Landry finished the day at just 2-under, leaving Landry with a one stroke advantage going into a crucial final day.
Both competitors rounded out the front nine on Sunday, shooting 34’s. During the final stretch, Rahm played almost flawless as he recorded three birdies and five pars on the back nine. Landry also showed up when he needed to as he found himself trailing heading into the 18th hole.
On the final hole, Rahm came away with par while Landry scrambled for birdie to force the two into a playoff.
Per the rules of the playoff, both golfers played 18 over again in which they both pared. Again, they played 18 in which they both pared for a second time. For the third playoff hole, the pair traveled to 10 where Rahm made birdie less than three hours prior. This time around, for the third consecutive hole, both golfers pared, which sent them back to 18.
Finally, Rahm made a birdie while Landry settled for par, giving the 23-year-old Spaniard his second career PGA Tour victory.
The difference between first and second place? Just a trophy and a mere $424,800. With the victory, Rahm took home just under $1.1 million, while Landry was handed a $637,200 check, which is still a pretty penny for a good weekend’s worth of work.
As Rahm adds nearly $1.1 million to his bank account, he becomes the second former Sun Devil in the top 5 for prize money this season, joining Pat Perez who is currently in second.
Next weekend, Rahm will look to go back-to-back while also trying to defend his first PGA Tour victory at the Farmers Insurance Open, which kicks off Thursday at Torrey Pines in La Jolla, CA.