Jon Rahm outlines "indescribable" desire ahead of The Open

Jon Rahm has laid bare his desire to win The Open and emulate his hero Seve Ballesteros. 

Ballesteros is widely considered one of Europe's finest golfers, if not its greatest ever.

He won five majors and helped Europe to five Ryder Cups, as well as winning a record 50 times on the European Tour. 

Ballesteros, who died at the age of 54 with brain cancer in 2011, is also the only Spaniard to ever win The Open. 

He won the Claret Jug in 1979, 1984 and 1988. 

Victory for Rahm at Royal Birkdale this week would also see him add the third leg of the career grand slam. 

Asked by our Andy Roberts during a pre-Open chat at Callaway Clubhouse LIVE what it would mean to join Ballesteros, Rahm said: "This is always an emotional answer for me. 

"Both Sergio [Garcia] and Jose [Maria Olazabal] did fantastic at The Open and weren't able to win it. I know how bad they both wanted it.

"I've been very fortunate to win majors but to join Seve on that one, to get to three, to get one step closer to a grand slam, it's a lot but anytime I can join Seve in anything he did in golf is incredible. 

"To have my name on the Claret Jug would be indescribable.”

You can watch the chat here:

Elsewhere, Rahm outlined his desire to see more links golf. 

"Yes, I mean we have the Scottish Open, The Open and maybe sometimes the Irish Open," he said. 

“So, I feel like two-and-a-half or three events is not enough for where golf started. 

"It could only be in summer, obviously, and we have other events going on, but if we could have a few more events on links, I think that would be better for everybody."

Rahm will be playing in the first two rounds of 2026 Open alongside American Jordan Spieth and his Ryder Cup teammate Tommy Fleetwood. 

Course conditions are expected to be firm and fiery. 

Asked about the difficulty of Birkdale, Rahm said: "When you get to the first tee, you know it's going to be a long day. That's just how it is.

"I think the character of Birkdale is the weather, so you need the wind. 

"You see the highlights of when Padraig [Harrington, 2008] won and how windy and rainy it was. 

"When Johnny Miller won, I believe it was firm and very windy.

"So, I think if you're an Open champion at the end of this week, and it's a very windy and difficult one, you have that bit extra on top of a great championship. 

"Like, if you win on four-over-par, not many people can say that, so I think it's very special."