Jon Rahm on Tommy Fleetwood's Home Advantage at The Open Championship

Jon Rahm has lauded the crowds at The Open Championship after playing with Tommy Fleetwood during the third round at Royal Birkdale. The Spaniard admitted that he feared a different story had Spain been set to face England in the World Cup final.

What happened at The Open Championship?

Tommy Fleetwood has received incredible ovations all week at Royal Birkdale, with the Englishman growing up just minutes away from the venue in Southport. Fleetwood posted a third round of 69 on Saturday, leaving him five shots off the lead.

How did Jon Rahm find the experience of playing with Tommy Fleetwood?

Speaking after playing alongside Fleetwood on Saturday, Jon Rahm explained how impressed he was by the way the spectators behaved. He did admit that England going out of the World Cup on Wednesday ended up doing him a favour.

“The best way I can explain it, it was so intense that, without meaning any disrespect to England, I’m glad England didn’t win that game because I would have been having a heck of a three days with the fans if they played Spain in the final,” he said.

How is Tommy Fleetwood handling the support at Royal Birkdale?

Sam Burns’ impressive round has made the American the heavy favourite to go on and win his first major title. But you would imagine that someone is going to emerge from the pack and put the pressure on. Rory McIlroy has suggested that he will be supporting Fleetwood once his hopes are dashed.

“Well, he’s doing it for himself. It’s just the added energy and emotion that comes from the crowd. You can use it to play better, or it can at times actually be a bit of a challenge. There’s just so much energy going on, and Tommy is a rather calm person,” Rahm said.

“He’s done a fantastic job at managing it. Yeah, it’s just a lot more to deal with the whole week, not just today. It’s something he needs to be aware of constantly.

“For the most part, when things are going good, it’s very easy to ride that wave. Tomorrow if he gets going early, makes two, three birdies the first four or five holes,