Rahm said afterwards that his late demise was a “tough pill to swallow” but the fact he got himself in the mix on the final day will do a lot to dispel the discussion about a drop-off in his results at majors since his switch to LIV at the end of 2023.
His best finish in 2024 was a tie for seventh at The Open but, until this week, he had not been a realistic contender in any of the five majors since leaving the PGA Tour.
On Saturday, he insisted there was no correlation between his major form and LIV move, and at Quail Hollow he demonstrated why he should never be discounted as a challenger for golf’s biggest prizes.
Aiming to become the first Spaniard to win the US PGA Championship in its 107th edition, he started with seven solid pars, before exploding into life with birdies on the eighth, 10th and 11th to tie the lead.
After Scheffler pulled clear again, he narrowly missed chances to re-ascend the top of the leaderboard down the back nine, before his title bid slipped away in dramatic fashion.
“There’s been a lot of good happening this week and a lot of positive feelings to take for the rest of the year,” the 2023 Masters and 2021 US Open winner Rahm added.
“I think it’s the first time I’ve been in position to win a major that close and haven’t done it. The only times I think I’ve been in the lead in a major on a Sunday, I’ve been able to close it out.”
At the start of play, a host of players hoped to shoot low to pressurise the world number one, but their challenges never materialised.
Nowhere more so was that exemplified than on the par-four first. Of the final eight players to head out, Rahm made par but the other seven, including Scheffler, all carded a five.
Perennial major contender DeChambeau played well once again but was unable to build sustained momentum during his one-under 70.
“It’s another top five and I’m always proud to top five in a major,” DeChambeau said.
“I feel like I’m playing good when I’m doing that but it’s disappointing not to get the job done because that’s what I came here to do.”
Starting almost four hours before the final group, English had almost finished his round by the time the leaders set off and his 65 – the lowest round on Sunday – secured his best finish at a major.
