FedEx Cup Playoffs Preview: Breaking down the top ten contenders

CHARLOTTE, NC - AUGUST 13: Justin Thomas of the United States shakes hands with Hideki Matsuyama of Japan on the 18th green during the final round of the 2017 PGA Championship at Quail Hollow Club on August 13, 2017 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Stuart Franklin/Getty Images) /

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(Photo by Andrew Redington/Getty Images) /

As wildly entertaining as Jon Rahm can be, it’s easy to forget that he’s still just a rookie on the PGA TOUR. Sure, he played well last year in sporadic action to earn that card, but he started this year with expectations that would rival established major winners.

That’s no small task to handle, but Rahm did so as well as anybody could have under those circumstances. Rahm earned seven top tens in 19 starts this year, and scored his first career victory at the Farmers Insurance Open in January. Call it rookie luck or call it living up to the hype. Either way, you can’t take Rahm’s enormous accomplishments away from him.

One thing that is a bit concerning with Rahm, though, is his recent slowdown in form. Ever since his runner-up finish at the DEAN & DELUCA Invitational, Rahm has struggled just to be competitive. He missed the cut at both the Memorial Tournament and the U.S. Open, and hasn’t finished in the top-25 all summer.

The PGA TOUR season is crazy long, to be sure, and part of this can probably just be assigned to old-fashioned fatigue. With little pressure early in the Playoffs, Rahm can take it a little bit easy on the way to East Lake. Will he? Probably not, but that will just make each event that much better along the way.

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