The Action Heats Up in the U.S. Team Rankings as Jon Rahm Wins the Masters

Jon Rahm weathered the storm — literally — to win a marathon Masters and claim his first green jacket.

Inclement weather wreaked havoc at Augusta National Golf Club, causing the suspension of Rounds 2 and 3. The third round, however, resumed Sunday morning with Rahm four strokes back of the lead.

By the start of the final round, Rahm trailed by two. However, the 28-year-old seized the lead on the sixth hole and never relinquished it en route to notching his second major championship and fourth win this year with a four-shot victory.

Rahm became the fourth Spaniard to win a green jacket, joining Jose Maria Olazabal, Sergio Garcia and Seve Ballesteros.

Rahm attended the 1997 Ryder Cup at Valderrama in his home country, where Ballesteros, who passed away in 2011, captained Team Europe to victory. It was there that Rahm's love of golf began.

"This one was for Seve," Rahm said after playing 30 holes Sunday. "He was up there helping ... If it wasn’t for Seve and that Ryder Cup in ’97 — my father and I talk about it all the time — we don't know where I would be."

"For me to get it done on the 40th anniversary of (Ballesteros' 1983 Masters) win, (Ballesteros') birthday, on Easter Sunday, it's incredibly meaningful."

Five strokes below Rahm on the leaderboard was Jordan Spieth at 7 under. The 2015 Masters champion shot a final-round 66 and placed T-4 alongside Russell Henley.

On the U.S. Ryder Cup points list, Spieth went from No. 12 to 10 and Henley jumped 17 spots to No. 21 after posting his best-ever major finish at an event in which the Georgia native attended growing up.

Photo Credit: Getty Images

Sahith Theegala moved up six spots to No. 15 in the U.S. Ryder Cup standings by placing ninth in his Masters debut. With a top-12 finish, he'll be back in Augusta next year, too, thanks to a chip-in birdie on No. 16 that resembled Tiger Woods' iconic shot during the '05 Masters, which Theegala, 25, said was his first Masters memory.

"Oh, my God," Theegala said. "You should have seen how many people said, 'Do it for Tiger, Tiger chip-in,' and all that stuff when I was over there. I just wanted to get it anywhere on the green because I had kind of a muddy lie, it was gross over there. I can't wait to watch the replay because I don't know what I did."

As for movement inside the U.S. Ryder Cup standings' top 6, Collin Morikawa crept inside the automatic qualifying threshold with a T-10 at Augusta National, now sitting sixth.

One spot ahead of Morikawa on the points list is Will Zalatoris, who withdrew before the first round. On the Monday following the Masters, Zalatoris announced that he underwent a successful microdiscectomy on Saturday and will be out for the rest of the season — and likely September's Ryder Cup in Rome, Italy.

Zalatoris was No. 4 on the points list coming into the Masters, but Sam Burns now occupies that spot, moving up one spot with a T-29 in Augusta.

Photo Credit: Getty Images

Scottie Scheffler finished T-10 in his Masters title defense. And though he was dethroned as world No. 1 by Rahm, he's still No. 1 in the U.S. Ryder Cup rankings by a wide margin after his fifth top-10 in his last six events.

But whoever ends up playing for Team USA in the Ryder Cup later this year — likely against a Rahm-led European squad — they'll have a chance to inspire someone, just as Ballesteros did for Rahm 26 years ago.

U.S. Team Captain Zach Johnson first announced the 2023 qualifying structure last year. Points in 2023 are awarded as follows:

- 1 point per $1,000 earned at regular PGA Tour events beginning January 1, including the Zurich Classic and WGC events, through the BMW Championship (August 20)

- 2 points per $1,000 earned for winner of the Masters, PGA Championship, U.S. Open and The Open

- 1.5 points per $1,000 earned for all others that make the cut at the Masters, PGA Championship, U.S. Open and The Open

- No points available at PGA Tour opposite-field events

Points qualification will conclude immediately after the second FedEx Cup Play-Off event (BMW Championship) on August 20, 2023, with the top six eligible players on the points list securing spots on the U.S. Team.

The six remaining slots on the U.S. Team will be Captain’s Selections and will be announced by Johnson following the 2023 Tour Championship.

For a full list of the Top 100 in the U.S. Ryder Cup standings, click here.