PGA Pro Jon Rahm Raises a Glass to San Diego

When pro golfer Jon Rahm arrived in La Jolla for the 2023 Farmers Insurance Open in January, before he even took a practice swing, he had more than one reason to celebrate. Coming off back-to-back wins at the Sentry Tournament of Champions and The American Express, he walked onto Torrey Pines — by his own account one of his favorite stops on the PGA tour — with a win of a different kind already locked in. The day before the first round began, Rahm announced a multi-year partnership with Maestro Dobel Tequila, the Official Tequila of the PGA Tour and PGA Tour Champions. 

The announcement came at a time that some might have questioned considering Rahm’s record at Torrey Pines (he’s won twice on the course, first at the 2017 Farmers Insurance Open and at the 2021 US Open) and his momentum coming into the tournament. But at an intimate Q&A with Maestro Dobel founder Juan Dobel after a pre-tournament practice round, the extracurricular pressure of becoming the face of Maestro Dobel didn’t seem to faze Rahm, who instead viewed the location as an obvious choice for the lucrative endorsement announcement given his well-known affinity for the course and the San Diego area.

 “Obviously it’s a very emotional place for me and my family, with my dad being here in my first round, [my] engagement here, we got married in San Diego, [I won a] major here. It’s only fitting that the opportunity to do something this special, something that I really cared about, was in a place this special,” he said. “So, to launch this partnership with Maestro Dobel and with the man himself here present is very unique. I’m just hoping that I can back it up on the golf course one more week after something like this happening because it’s very meaningful to me as well.”

Though a third win in a row for the year wasn’t meant to be for Rahm, who tied for 7th at -8, it was still an impressive finish by any account at a course known as one of the toughest of the tour. And the World No. 3 (as of February 15) will likely have plenty more opportunities to prevail again at Torrey Pines, as he revealed is his goal. “A lot of great players have been able to make a tournament their own,” he said. “Obviously Tiger won here eight different times, Arnold [Palmer] did it in Palm Springs, Sam Snead at Wyndham. They always have one place that they love and really competed well in…so I’m hoping I can make this one of those places where year after year I show up and I keep getting wins.”

On that note (and lest any locals forget how truly fortunate we are to live in San Diego), the world-class international sports star offered a reminder that wasn’t unlike a love letter to the city. “There are so many things that make it so amazing,” he said. “I think the most important thing is, when my wife and I met, for both of us, our favorite city in the world was San Diego, and I think that started the connection. Before we had kids, before we got married, anytime we could get a weekend away, we would come here, and the second we got into San Diego, it was like we relaxed. It’s basically our happy place. That’s what makes it so special to me.”

If the name Maestro Dobel sounds familiar, it may be because the premium spirit has made its way behind a growing number of bars in San Diego as of late, meaning that if you missed the signature Ace Paloma crafted with Dobel Diamante cristalino tequila at the Dobel Tequila Lounge at the Farmers, opportunity is not lost — it’s on the menu up and down the coast from Pendry San Diego and Mister A’s to Estancia La Jolla and Javier’s to Park Hyatt Aviara. Coincidentally, Maestro Dobel is also the Official Tequila of the BNP Paribas Open kicking off on March 6 in Indian Wells, where the Ace Paloma is sure to be enjoyed in abundance.