Jon Rahm is happy to be able to fulfil his duty to his homeland as he chases the great Seve Ballesteros' record of three wins at the acciona Open de España presented by Madrid.
The World Number Six won this event on his debut in 2018 and then repeated the feat here at Club de Campo Villa de Madrid 12 months later before finishing in the top 20 a year ago.
He now returns to maintain his 100 per cent playing record at his home open as a professional and is hopeful he can give the local fans something to cheer.
“As a Spanish player it is my duty and if I can only come to one, then I will come to one, I will try what I can to play and to support my country," he said.
"I am aware of the impact a player like me can have and I have seen it every time I come, so I take it upon me as a duty to be able to come and try to perform and give them four days of entertainment and something to look forward to.
"The world has gone through a lot in the past two years and I know a lot of people are looking forward to this, so I am happy I can make it.
“Luckily for me I have been able to put my name on that trophy a couple of times and with something that special, I would love to match Seve’s record of being the Spanish player to win it three times, so it would be a very important Sunday if I was able to do that.
“I really want to get my name on the Open de España trophy for the third time because, among other things, when you call on the Spanish fans, they always turn up."
Spain will always hold a special place in the history of European golf, with the Spanish Open in 1972 being the first DP World Tour event ever staged.
Since Antonio Garrido lifted that trophy 50 years ago, the country has produced some of the greatest names in the history of the game including Major Champions Ballesteros and José María Olazábal.
With a Major to his name and a spell at the top of the Official World Golf Ranking, Rahm has already added his name to Spain's golfing roll of honour, but he hopes he can do even more to inspire the next generation.
"For me, the legacy you leave is very important," he said. "I’ve won cups like this Open de España, one at amateur level, and that will always be there. With the tournament’s ties with the RFEG, being able to win it is very important for me."
“Seve, Chema (Olazábal) and their generation were responsible for changing the elitist image of golf, taking Spain to 300,000 licensed players.
"If you tell me that I’ve contributed somehow to the increase in licenses in Spain, that’s a source of pride, but I try not to let that go to my head. Hopefully they keep going up."
