The 2023 Masters Recap

The 87th Annual Masters Tournament finished earlier this month, and Spaniard John Rahm entered the final round on April 9th trailing Brooks Keopka by two strokes. He finished the day with a total score of 12 under in the tournament, claiming his green jacket. There have only ever been three Spaniards to win the Masters, the others being Seve Ballesteros, José María Olazábal, and Sergio García. Legendary golfer Tiger Woods ended up pulling out of the tournament on Sunday because of an apparent injury. 

During the third round on Saturday, 45 minutes of rain suspended play and led to the play being resumed on Sunday, with the final round being played Sunday afternoon. Phil Mickelson, a three-time Masters winner shot a 65 on Sunday afternoon, leading to him obtaining the record for the lowest round shot for players over 50 in Masters history. During Mickelson’s post-tournament press conference, a reporter brought up how earlier in the year, he left the PGA tour for the Saudi-funded LIV tour. The reporter asked if his fantastic performance in the tournament won back some fans that had left him after he moved to the LIV golf tour. Mickelson ended up cutting off the reporter and answering by saying, “They are separate issues, golf and the professional golf ecosystem and how that’s been handled throughout my career. Two totally separate things.” The LIV tour as a whole sent 18 players to the Masters Tournament and three players recorded high finishes. These three players included Phil Mickelson, Brooks Keopka, and Patrick Reed. 

Winner John Rahm admitted to being motivated by past Spanish golfers such as Seve Ballesteros (who died in 2011) and Jose Maria Olazabal, who won the Masters twice, in 1994 and 1999. Rahm was quoted as saying, “History of the game is a big part of why I play, Seve is one of them. If it hadn’t been for that Ryder Cup win in 1997 … I don’t know where I’d be so for me to get it done on the 40th anniversary of his win, his birthday on Easter Sunday, it’s incredibly meaningful.”

Overall, this Masters Tournament certainly did not disappoint, with John Rahm representing Spain as the third-ever Spaniard to win the Masters. Also, the controversial LIV tour brought 18 competitors to return to the PGA for the Masters making this year’s tournament more than memorable. With new contenders every year, this prestigious tournament continues to entertain its audience, and will continue to do so forever.