November 11, 2021 | By Alonso Espeleta
One of the hardest parts of COVID-19 pandemic was adjusting to the new social distancing rules that many nations introduced. It meant for many months we could not get closer than 2 meters to anyone who we didn’t live with, therefore we could not hug family members or friends. It was incredibly challenging, especially for tactile people who enjoy being close to their loved ones.
It also meant that many sports could not be played until proper testing was up and running. Soccer, basketball, rugby, American football, etc. are all team sports that require players of both the same and opposing teams to be up close and personal with each other, so if any one player had COVID, the likelihood would be that they’d pass it on.
Golf is one sport where social distancing is never really an issue. Other than their caddies, the players never have to be close to anyone. The tees and greens are large enough to have players standing around without getting too close, while unless they’d hit their ball into the exact same area of the fairway/rough, each player never has to be anywhere near the other one. It meant that golf was one of the easiest sports to restart, for both the professionals, and for the amateur golfers out there.
There have been some fascinating and thrilling golf tournaments this year; as well as the 4 major tournaments (the Masters, the US Open, the PGA Championship and the Open Championship) we have also had the Ryder Cup. 2021 really has been full of some superb golf action, with people using DraftKings odds boost to achieve some great winnings when betting on the sport. Let’s reap the best of the action, and look ahead to what next year might bring.
Rahm sitting pretty at the top of the rankings
Jon Rahm has been one of the biggest names in golf for the last few years, ever since he recorded his first win on the PGA Tour when he shot -13 to win the Farmers Insurance Open back in 2017. He slowly added other impressive wins, such as an amazing -26 to lift the 219 Zurich Classic of New Orleans, but was still looking for a first victory in one of the 4 majors.
Prior to 2021, his best finish was a 3rd place in the U.S. Open, or in the 2018 Masters when he finished 4th. It was this year’s U.S. Open, held at the Torrey Pines Golf Course in La Jolla, San Diego, where Ramn finally recorded his first major. It is expected to be the first of many for the man from Biscay in Spain.
Rahm achieved world number 1 status for the first time in 2020, but due to his win in the U.S. Open, he has cemented his position as the highest-ranked golfer on the planet. We expect him to hold this position for the rest of the year, and possibly even beyond.
Team Europe still licking their wounds
This year’s Ryder Cup, held in Haven, Wisconsin, was always expected to end up with a Team USA victory. What no one foresaw was just quite how emphatically they would do so, with the final score ending up 19-9. It was the largest margin of victory in the Ryder Cup since 1967.
Many of Team Europe’s players looked absolutely crestfallen when they finished their final rounds on the last day of the competition. Rory Mcllroy was in tears, lamenting his performances, insisting he should have done better. Ian Poulter, a Ryder Cup veteran who so often performs well in these tournaments, looked almost broken. We expect it could be his last Ryder Cup experience, as well as Sergio Garcia’s and Lee Westwood’s.
Team Europe have just under 2 years to regroup and refocus and try to seize back the initiative at the 44th Ryder Cup, which is being held at the Marco Simone Golf and Country Club near Rome.
Who will emerge victorious at this year’s Houston Open?
There are still several PGA Tour events happening between now and the end of the year, with Houston Open the next on the calendar. Held at the Memorial Park Municipal Golf Course, it has seen a number of top golfers win there in the past, such as Phil Mickelson, Paul Cassey and Adam Scott.
Last year saw the Mexican golfer Carlos Ortiz lifting the trophy, as he shot -13, to win by 2 strokes. It was an impressive result, given Ortiz had both Dustin Johnson and Hideki Matsuyama breathing down his neck the whole time. The man from Guadalajara held his nerve and walked away with the $1,350,000 for his efforts. We will be looking forward to seeing who takes away the winner’s prize cheque this time around.
