NEWTOWN SQUARE, PA — Rory McIlroy and Jon Rahm have had their difference with Rahm opting for the big pay check over legacy when he left the PGA Tour for LIV Golf.
And, yet, they have put aside those difference as two major cogs in the Europeans’ Ryder Cup machine that has defeated the Americans in the last two competitions.
Rahm made it clear where his thinks McIlroy stands when it comes to European golfers.
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“I would put him as the greatest European to ever play already,” Rahm, the Spaniard said about McIlroy, who is from Northern Ireland. Rahm cited McIlroy having the second most majors among Europeans and the first to complete the career Grand Slam.
“When it comes to the grand scheme of things, he’s up there. … He’s not too far away from being an undoubtedly top-10 player of all time. Which I’m sure a lot of people would already put him there, and he still has many, many years to play.”
Rahm was asked after the first round of the PGA Championship about golfers thinking about their place in history and if he ever thinks about where he would stand. He said he needs to “accomplish a lot more to even think about it,” before bringing up McIlroy, who lives in Jupiter.
McIlroy certainly didn’t feel like the best European of all-time after his first round at the PGA Championship. He shot a 4-over 74, closing with four straight bogeys. Rahm shot a 69.
While Harry Vardon holds the record for the most major championships by a European golfer, with seven won between 1896 and 1914, the discussion for the greatest ever typically includes three golfers: McIlroy, Nick Faldo and Seve Ballesteros.
Faldo, from England, has won six majors among his nine PGA Tour wins. He has 30 wins on the DP World Tour (formerly European Tour).
Ballesteros, from Spain, has five majors among his nine PGA Tour wins. His 50 DP World Tour wins is first all-time.
McIlroy has won 30 times on the PGA Tour and 21 times on the DP World Tour.
Rahm, who has two majors among his 11 PGA Tour wins and 10 titles on the DP World Tour (all coming before he joined LIV in December 2023), believes the 37-year-old McIlroy has a lot left to accomplish.
“Thinking that Jack (Nicklaus) won when he was 46 and Phil (Mickelson) winning in his 50s … so at least 10 or 15 (more) years,” Rahm said. “With how good a shape he’s in (he can) accomplish a lot.”
Tom D’Angelo is a senior sports columnist and reporter for The Palm Beach Post. He can be reached at tdangelo@pbpost.com.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Why Jon Rahm thinks Rory McIlroy is the greatest European golfer
Reporting by Tom D’Angelo, Palm Beach Post / Palm Beach Post
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