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Tuesday 9 April 2019 21:52, UK
Jon Rahm will have some advice from Phil Mickelson in the back of his mind when he makes his third appearance at the Masters this week.
The 24-year-old Spaniard tied for 27th on his debut at Augusta National in 2017 before producing an excellent performance to finish fourth behind Patrick Reed last year, carding rounds of 68, 65 and 69 after kicking off with a disappointing 75.
The world No 8, who already has six top-10 finishes to his name this year, now hopes to put his past experience to good use, but he will not get frustrated if he is not quite at his best, after learning from three-time Masters champion Mickelson.
"I think the part that I've learned was a couple of lessons taught by Phil Mickelson," said Rahm, who will tee off alongside Tiger Woods and Haotong Li in the first two rounds.
"I spent a lot time with him here the last few years and he repeatedly said, 'You don't have to play perfect at Augusta National to win'. I always thought you need to play really, really, really quality golf to win a major championship, and he said, 'Yeah, but you don't have to play perfect'.
"Meaning that Augusta National is always going to allow you a chance to come back, and if you're smart and know how to play the course, you're going to have a chance to make pars or even birdies from some situations that you think you wouldn't be able to.
"That's kind of how I took it. Last year, I think I was more forgiving with myself when missing shots. I was able to get more up‑and‑downs, and it's just knowing that mistakes are going to happen.
"Even Tiger, when he shot 18‑under in 1997, he made mistakes. He missed greens, he missed putts and he missed fairways like everybody else.
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"So just knowing that everybody is going to make mistakes and almost everybody is going to three‑putt and everybody is going to miss a green and have a tough up‑and‑down, you just need to minimise those mistakes and be smart and think your way through Augusta."
