Jon Rahm ready for FedEx Cup playoffs after second COVID absence

 At least Jon Rahm can't say his summer has been uneventful.

The PGA pro is gearing up for the FedEx Cup playoffs, which kick off this week with the Northern Trust tournament at Liberty National Golf Club. Rahm heads into the event ranked No. 1 in the power rankings after he had to miss the Olympics due to testing positive for COVID-19.

"Still makes me a little sad, I'm not going to lie,'' the Spaniard said, via ESPN. "I'm going to have to wait three more years hopefully to qualify for the Olympics, but I was really ready for this one."

Rahm made headlines earlier in the season when a positive test forced him to withdraw following the third round of the Memorial Cup, where he sat atop the leaderboard with a six-shot lead. The 26-year-old was tested multiple times before he intended on traveling to Tokyo, only testing positive the day before he planned to jet off to the Summer Games.

"This was a little harder to digest than Memorial because I've done everything the system tells me to do,'' he admitted.

Rahm, ever the optimist, sees a benefit in not playing since The Open Championship last month. 

"As unfortunate as it was, it gave me some time to rest," Rahm said. "So I think, maybe not this week but looking into the next few weeks, probably physically, mentally, I've been more rested than everybody else. So that could be my advantage."

Since Rahm won the U.S. Open after his first COVID situation, it's easy to see why he's favored heading into the championship stretch following his second stint.