PGA Tour Genesis Invitational: Power ranking the top 10 at Riviera

Jon Rahm made his debut at Riviera in 2019. Most 20-somethings seeing a course for the first time would be happy just to make the cut. Maybe post a top-25.

Rahm is a different cat. He finished T-9, posting one of his myriad top-10s. The 25-year-old Spaniard’s got 44 of them, to be exact, since becoming a full-time pro in 2017.

Right now, he’s riding a streak of six in a row dating back to the end of 2019. That includes two European Tour victories (Open de Espana, Dubai) and a pair of runner-ups on the PGA Tour (Hero, Farmers Insurance).

The Arizona State alum’s last missed cut on the PGA Tour was in May at Colonial, a venue that isn’t well suited for his game.

That game would be top-tier ball striking. Rahm is 15th on Tour in strokes gained off the tee (.621) this season and was fifth a season ago (.592). He’s also up from .073 SG around the green to .356.

Every year the winner is bound to pick up an eagle or two. Rahm was eighth last season with 72.

He’s coming off a week of rest after finishing T-9 at the Phoenix Open (67-68-68-70).

Riviera seems like a good course for JR. While it calls for precision at times, there are holes where he can use his length to get on par-5s in two and could make some hay on the famed drivable par-4 10th.

Two of his three PGA Tour wins have come in California.

Rahm can vault up to No. 1 in the Official World Golf Rankings for the first time if things fall his way this week. No Spaniard has been atop the OWGR since Seve Ballesteros in August 1989.