2023 Masters leaderboard, winner: Jon Rahm completes comeback to win green jacket over Brooks Koepka

Rahm becomes the fourth Spaniard in history to win the Masters

AUGUSTA, Ga. -- The standard in golf this year proved to be the standard at Augusta National Golf Club this week. Jon Rahm, making his seventh appearance at the year's first major championship, put together a strong, steady and complete performance Sunday to rally from four strokes down and win the 2023 Masters, capturing his first green jacket.

Now a two-time major champion after previously taking the 2021 U.S. Open, Rahm is the fourth Spanish golfer to win the Masters, joining Sergio Garcia (2017), José María Olazábal (1994, 1999) and the legendary Seve Ballesteros (1980, 1983). Rahm donned the green jacket Sunday night on what would have been Ballesteros' 66th birthday on the 40th anniversary of his second Masters win. This after Rahm played a practice round with Garcia and Olazábal on Tuesday.

"History of the game is a big part of why I play and one of the reasons why I play, and Seve being one of them," Rahm said while being awarded the green jacket in Butler Cabin. "... For me to get it done on the 40th anniversary of his win, his birthday, on Easter Sunday, it's incredibly meaningful. And to finish it off the way that I did -- an unusual par, very much a Seve par -- it was, in a non-purposeful way, a testament to him. I know he was pulling for me today, and it was a great Sunday."

He added later after the round: "Never thought I was going to cry about winning a golf tournament, but I got very close on that 18th hole. And a lot of it because of what it means to me and Spanish golf. Spain's 10th major, fourth player to win the Masters and my second major win. … Lot of pride. Really proud of myself for what I did."

History did not stop there for Rahm, who became just the third golfer to win the Masters by four shots despite not leading entering the final round, joining Ballesteros (1983) and Nick Faldo (1996). He is also the first European player ever to win a Masters and U.S. Open in their career.

"I find it hard to believe that I'm the first one," he said, humbly. "If there's anything better than accomplishing something like this, it's making history." 

The Masters marks the fourth win for the 28-year-old Rahm on the PGA Tour already this year with prior 2023 victories at the Sentry Tournament of Champions, The American Express and the Genesis Invitational. He appeared to take a step back with some uncommon inconsistencies in recent weeks, but Rahm was clearly on his game at Augusta National.

Sitting four strokes back of 42-hole leader Brooks Koepka when the weather-delayed third round resumed early Sunday -- Rahm was on the bad side of the draw all week -- he methodically and unwaveringly chipped away at his deficit, flipping the script on the 18-, 36- and 54-hole leader. Rahm ultimately finished 12 under, four strokes clear of Kopeka (-8), who tied for second place with a resurgent 52-year-old Phil Mickelson.

The Spaniard halved Koepka's lead over the final 12 holes of their third rounds, moved even with the tournament-long leader at the 5th in Round 4, pulled ahead one hole later and took off from there with Koepka falling two strokes behind at the 8th and never getting closer.

"It really doesn't change. Not as much as you should," said Rahm of going from chasing the leader to being chased as the leader. "I like to still stay aggressive [when in the lead]. … The goal is to never come back to the rest of the field -- to have them chase you -- knowing that if I could make a few birdies and pars especially on the back nine, it would be difficult for somebody to catch up."

By the time the final pair completed the 14th -- a birdie for Rahm and bogey for Koepka -- the man affectionately known as Rahmbo held a five-shot lead, completing a nine-stroke swing from where the behemoths began the day. Once the final putts fell, Rahm carded a fourth-round 69 to finish 3 under across the final 30 holes Sunday, while Koepka posted a 75 and finished 5 over across the same span.

Koepka went 23 holes -- from the 8th in Round 3 to the 13th in Round 4 -- without making a single birdie while posting six bogeys. That allowed the unfazed Rahm to choose the spots in which he upped the aggressiveness while climbing into the lead. Though a golfer of his ability and athleticism was likely comfortable among the rigors of Augusta National, Koepka this week completed a 72-hole event for the first time in 10 months (2022 U.S. Open).

Rahm's comeback victory began well before action picked up Sunday morning. Opening the Masters with a four-putt double bogey on his first hole Thursday, Rahm became just the second player to win the Masters despite scoring double or worse to begin the tournament (Sam Snead, 1952).

While he may have appeared calm, cool and collected during his chase early Sunday or while later being chased in the afternoon, Rahm admitted his feet were quickly paddling beneath the surface.

"What was going on on the outside is not always a reflection of the inside. I was calm. I never got frustrated. I never really felt like anything was out of control. But obviously, you're nervous. There's tension out there," he explained. 

"That bogey on nine, timing wise, was bad. … Made those 10-11-12 holes harder. Again, I might have looked calm, but I was definitely nervous out there. I'm glad that's the way it looked. That's what you strive for, right? You don't want to panic.

"I had a plan for my game, and I went out and executed."

Below is additional analysis and highlights of some of the notables on the leaderboard. Check out a more detailed leaderboard.

T2. Phil Mickelson (-8): Returning to Augusta National has proven to be the perfect anecdote for many before, and this week, Mickelson was the patient in need of care. His form on the LIV Golf circuit has been lackluster, but the three-time green jacket winner provided a good argument for throwing out statistics at the year's first major championship. 

Lefty fired a second-nine 31 to claim the early clubhouse lead at 8 under with a final-round 65 -- the lowest by anyone over 50 in Masters history -- and became the oldest player to finish inside the top five at Augusta. His game still riles up something in your belly and makes you ponder, "Holy crap, is he actually going to do it?" This week was a great reminder of that.

"I think it's not so much what I learned [this week], but I certainly have a lot of gratitude to be able to be here, be part of this tournament, play well, play good golf and take advantage of a unique opportunity that I have, which is to play golf at a very high level at a later stage in life," said Mickelson. "... [Competing] against some of the best players in the world on some of the biggest stages, that's really what's driving me, and today was a very encouraging day."

T2. Brooks Koepka (-8): Waking up this morning with a four-stroke lead, Koepka was immediately punched in the mouth in the form of a two-shot swing on the seventh green during the third round. Despite this slight hiccup, the four-time major champion found himself with a two-stroke lead heading into the final 18 holes.

Having previously converted all three 54-hole leads into victories across his major championship career, Koepka's fifth felt in hand. He struggled with the pace of the greens early and often, and before he knew it, was without the lead for the first time since Thursday afternoon by the time he and Rahm walked off the sixth green. He would never recover. 

It is encouraging to see Koepka perform on golf's grandest stage. His presence adds so much to the game, the storylines, the context. However, this performance in Augusta marks yet another disappointing finish to a major championship. He limped to the finish line at the 2019 PGA Championship when he nearly squandered a seven-stroke lead at Bethpage Black, and he has made a habit of underwhelming on Sundays, namely at the PGA Championship in 2020 and 2021. Maybe they are outliers, maybe not.

When "healthy" (a.k.a. not 2020-22), Koepka has lost to only two golfers at Augusta National: Tiger Woods and Rahm.

T4. Jordan Spieth (-7): The golden boy shined around Augusta National on Sunday, but it was too little, too late. Spieth signed for nine birdies in his final-round 66, totaling 23 over the course of the entire week. It was a vintage performance from the 2015 champion as he didn't even strike the ball all too well but was still able to score effectively.

The most encouraging part of Spieth's performance was his ability to hole putts when needed. While birdie bids burned the edges on 12 and 13, the Texan connected on must-make putts from Nos. 14-17. A wayward drive combined with a last-second birdie from Mickelson unraveled his Masters chances. While he didn't claim his second green jacket, Spieth became the first player since Tom Watson in 1983 to have six top-five finishes in his first 10 career starts at the Masters.

Rick Gehman is joined by Kyle Porter, Greg DuCharme to break down Jon Rahm's win at the 87th Masters Tournament. Follow & listen to The First Cut on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

[Apr 9, 2023 at 7:10 pm ET · Patrick McDonald]

Jon Rahm heads to the 18th with a four-stroke lead

Soak it in Jon Rahm! The Spaniard is about to claim the second major championship of his career as his lead returns to four after Brooks Koepka bogeys. From an opening four putt to a four-stroke stroll to the green jacket. Rahm has been the best player this year and is deserving of this honor.

[Apr 9, 2023 at 6:53 pm ET · Patrick McDonald]

Koepka grabs another but is running out of holes

Brooks adds another birdie on 16 to get into solo second at 9 under. Unfortunately, with just two holes left, it may be too little too late as he is now three behind Jon Rahm. The American needs a two-shot swing on either the 17th or 18th for any hope.

[Apr 9, 2023 at 6:40 pm ET · Patrick McDonald]

Rahm with four-stroke lead with three to play

Koepka gets one back on the par-5 15th to get to 8 under but it may be too little too late. Rahm played the 15th beautifully and in the exact manner a leader should. Meanwhile, Patrick Reed just got into the clubhouse at 7 under and in a tie for fourth.

[Apr 9, 2023 at 6:22 pm ET · Patrick McDonald]

Rahm extends his lead; Koepka drops another

Jon Rahm, take a bow. An approach on 14 from the trees settled just 3 feet from the pin and allowed Rahm to get to 12 under. Meanwhile, Brooks Koepka's final round woes continue with a 3-putt bogey. He now trails Rahm by five strokes with four holes to play. If Kyle was here, the Vince Carter gif would be out.