It will make a good pub quiz question at the end of the season. Who carded the first hole-in-one on the 2016-17 US PGA Tour? And the answer… Spain’s emerging star Jon Rah, who turned pro towards the end of the 2015-16 season, won enough prizemoney to earn a card for the new season without having to go through the arduous qualifying process, and made his “official” debut in the Safeway Open.
And what a debut! On his second hole at the Silverado Resort & Spa in California, the par-three 11th, his fifth shot in the tournament disappeared into the hole. It was the 21-year-old’s first ace on the Tour – he hit a seven-iron from 158 metres – and the quickest of the new season.
Later, rather than invite the press to a traditional beer, he noted that – as the tournament was being played in the renowned Napa Valley wine area – much more appropriate to give them a few bottles of William Hill North Coast Cabernet.
Rahm ended up carding a six-under 66 for the day, slipped back down the field over the next two rounds, then rebounded with a closing 67, a 12-under total of 276 and a share of 15th, six behind winner Brendan Steele.
Fellow Spaniard Gonzalo Fernández Castaño, returning to the Tour as a full member after qualifying through the Webb.com play-offs, was less successful, carding one-under at the halfway stage and missing the cut by two shots.
