PGA Championship 2026: Jon Rahm was so close to the Wanamaker Trophy for the second consecutive year

NEWTOWN SQUARE, Pa. — For the second year in a row, Jon Rahm got a pinky on the Wanamaker Trophy, which is closer than a lot of players ever get to winning the PGA Championship. For the second year in a row, he climbed into a share of the lead during the final round. But for the second year in a row, getting a firm grip on golf’s largest trophy once again eluded the talented Spaniard.

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Last year at Quail Hollow, it was a stunning collapse that scuttled his bid. On Sunday at Aronimink Golf Club, Rahm just couldn’t get the ball in the hole fast enough. After starting his final round with two birdies, Rahm converted only two more the rest of the round, canceled by a pair of bogeys. His closing 68 left him at six-under 274, tied with Alex Smalley for second place, three shots behind winner Aaron Rai.

The finish was both decidedly heartening and dyspeptic for the two-time major winner who posted his 16th top-10 finish in a major championship and ninth in the top five. He played well enough to forge a tie atop the leaderboard, but not well enough to keep it.

“I played really good golf. That's the only way to look at it. Just wish I'd have done better with the speed of the greens,” said Rahm, 31, who hit 16 greens on Sunday but needed 33 putts, ranking in the bottom third in that category. “Just couldn't seem to get it to the hole, and that's the reason why I didn't hole any more putts. Even so, what Aaron did today, catching him could have been very difficult. I don't know if it could happen, but I would have liked a better chance playing the last two holes. I feel like I was still close on 16 until he made that long putt [at 17].”

Rahm, who entered the week ranked 20th in the world, assembled a dream start when he converted birdie putts of seven and 11 feet at the first two holes. But he bogeyed three from the middle of the fairway, finding a bunker from just 124 yards out, and another bogey at the seventh after a poor drive left him adrift in a large pack of contenders. His only birdies came on the par-5 holes, Nos. 9 and 16.

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One of the marquee names in the LIV Golf League since he joined the upstart circuit in late 2023, Rahm could certainly look upon his week as one of progress. Which he was inclined to do.

“As far as I'm concerned, to be in the mix again and hit it as good as I did and perform as well as I did this weekend, it's been a great week,” he said after his fourth top-10 major finish as a LIV member. “Four rounds under par, even par, can't really ask too much more of myself.”

Well, actually, he could. Rahm led the field in driving distance with a monster 350-yard average and was fourth in strokes gained/tee to green at plus-2.383. This was a winnable major for him, never mind how well Aaron Rai played. Rahm gave himself plenty of scoring chances, and not just on Sunday. He needed 31 putts or more the final three rounds after leading the field with only 26 on Thursday.

This autopsy seemed easier to digest than the one in Charlotte. But not by much. Last year he was in shock. This year, he was befuddled.

“I still need to give myself some time to think about what I could have done better this week,” Rahm said. “Right now I'm really still fresh on just today, but I did miss two putts from about four feet yesterday. So that's two shots right there. It's easy to focus on today because I'm sure I can find three shots that in the length of the week could have been better. I still need to assess the entire week to be able to pick and choose what I need to change or what I need to improve on.

“The margin,” he added, “even though it's three shots, it can be so small, honestly. I feel like I'm playing really good golf and definitely played good enough this week to give myself a chance to win. So keep doing what I've been doing well.”

Nope, just do it a little bit better.

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