Rahm tops European showing at The Masters

Jon Rahm was the leading European at the Masters Tournament after finishing in a tie for fifth at the first Major Championship of the season, with Hideki Matsuyama becoming Japan’s first male Major winner.

Another impressive week only solidifies Rahm’s presence in the points race, as he moved up one place into second on the European Points List with 4,823.60 points and occupies the top spot on the World Points List with 350.70 points.

After three consecutive level par rounds of 72, the 2018 Ryder Cup rookie went on to shoot an impressive 66 on the final day to fire himself up the leaderboard.

Rahm has now shot 15 consecutive rounds of par or better at Augusta National, just one short of Tiger Wood’s record of 16.

In fact, since finishing in a tie for 27^th on his debut in Georgia, Rahm – who just days before teeing off became a father for the first time – has never finished outside the top nine, with his best result coming in 2018 when he finished fourth.

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Rahm said: "It’s almost like a shoulda-coulda-woulda, right? Each day I’ve played better golf. First three days I just couldn’t get anything going.

“It’s golf. What am I going to do? I also showed up here Wednesday, haven’t hit a shot in six days, very little sleep. To be honest, I wasn’t expecting to play as good as I did early on.

“It’s still a top ten at a Major with a great round on a Sunday, 15 straight rounds of even par or better here. Clearly I like the place. I play good here. My year is coming up. Let’s hope it’s soon.”

Justin Rose also enjoyed a strong week at Augusta after finishing in solo seventh spot.

The five-time Team Europe player’s opening 65 was the highlight of the week, as he raced into the first round lead.

Despite carding two bogeys and five pars in his opening seven holes, Rose turned his day around by making seven birdies and an eagle in his next 11 holes to finish the day at seven under par and four shots clear of his nearest competitor.

Rounds of 72-72-74 would see Rose end up in solo seventh but the 40-year-old moved up five places on the European Points List into 14^th with 1,758.73 points and up four places and into 13^th on the World Points List with 108.05 points.

Robert MacIntyre also made small move up the World Points List as he posted the best finish by a Scottish golfer on their Masters debut in the modern era when he finished in a tie for 12^th on two-under-par.

The 24-year-old carded rounds of 74-70-70-72 to ensure he will make the drive down Magnolia Lane next year. He jumped two spots on the World Points List into 10^th on 117.04 points – just 50.72 points short of Matthew Fitzpatrick who sits in the final automatic qualification spot.

As it stands Tommy Fleetwood (4,911.26 points), Rahm (4,823.60 points), Tyrrell Hatton (4,726.56 points) and Rory McIlroy (3,885.19 points) fill the automatic qualification places on the European Points List.

Meanwhile, Lee Westwood (218.35 points), Perez (187.37 points), Paul Casey (176.82 points), Viktor Hovland (173.25 points), and Fitzpatrick (167.76 points) currently occupy the World Points List spots.