THE new Seve. The new Olly. The new Sergio. Jon Rahm has heard them all. The rush to label burgeoning talent, to compare them with venerable and established compatriots, can often be an unseemly one.

And a burdensome business for any athlete just trying to take the first few wobbly steps in their career without having to also try to match up to established superstars.

Rahm, mercifully, does not seem hugely fazed by the accolades. At just 22 years old, he is already the seventh-best player in the world and bounds into this week’s Open championship at Royal Birkdale bolstered by his recent triumph at the Irish Open. He will deservedly start among the favourites come Thursday morning.

Read more: The Eagle: An Open Diary

Rahm, then, is his own man but the comparisons with Seve Ballesteros, in particular, continue to build during what has already been a stellar summer for Spanish sport and golf, in particular.

It would be easier to ascend the Pyrenees in a pair of slippers than try to overhaul the achievements of Ballesteros, whose legacy as a European golf pioneer has only grown in the years since his premature passing at the age of just 54.

Rahm is not even going to try. He is flattered by those drawing a likeness to the man whose involvement in bringing the Ryder Cup to Valderrama in 1997 was indirectly responsible for him first picking up a club as a young lad growing up in Spain’s Basque Country, but also instantly dismisses talk of any similarities.

Instead, his only wish is to one day become the role model to others that Ballesteros was for him.

“To whoever compares me to him, I’m never going to be Seve,” he said. “He was so unique and so special. To be honest, if we ever see someone like him again, it is going to be someone very, very special. I have to try to be the best Jon Rahm I can be. Seve was Seve and I will try to make a name for myself.

Read more: The Eagle: An Open Diary

“He opened so many doors. And he is part of the reason why I play golf - because of that Ryder Cup at Valderrama in 1997.

“I’m pretty sure he had some influence in getting the Ryder Cup there, he was the captain and brought the game of golf to Spain and the Spanish community. Directly because of that my dad and some friends tried golf and that’s how I started playing.

“So if I can make just one kid play golf, I’ll be extremely happy. When I’m compared to him it’s really beautiful to hear those words. I try to take it as a positive and embrace it.

“He’s a great idol of mine and I try to emulate a lot of things he used to, and a lot of that is the inspirational power he had, the way he brought masses together and people together.

“If I could do a quarter of whatever he did, I’d probably be satisfied with my career.”

Rahm has a long way to go. This is only his fifth appearance at a major championship, only his second Open following a low-key debut at Royal Troon last year where he finished tied for 59th.

That recent success at Portstewart– as well as a Stateside triumph at the Farmers Insurance Open – mean there will be a greater spotlight trained on him this week.

Read more: The Eagle: An Open Diary

“This is only my fifth major that I’ve ever played,” he added. “And each one’s been a very different feeling, right? At Oakmont I was an amateur, and finished 23rd.

“At the Open last year at Troon I was a pro for the first time but my game wasn’t there yet. This year at the Masters I started great and I was already up in the rankings.

“And after a win in Ireland and being top 10 in the world, it certainly is a different experience which I’m enjoying a lot.

“It feels great to actually have the people support and helping me. I like to put that in a positive place. I know why there’s some confidence in me from people who think I’m going to play good this week.

“And I like to think if they have the faith in me, I should have faith in myself that I’m going to do it properly. So I try to feed positively off of that.”

Read more: The Eagle: An Open Diary

Links golf is a capricious business at the best of times and the unsettled weather expected to arrive in this part of north-west England over the next few days will also add to any feeling of uncertainty.

Rahm is still adjusting to it all but hoped his win at Portstewart will stand him in good stead this week.

“It was really close to my best that week in Ireland. To shoot the score that I did, especially in the final round, it does give me a little bit of confidence.

“I can read the greens. I interpreted the wind properly. I’m hitting it properly to have my ball perform in the wind. So obviously I take a lot of positives from that week that I’m going to be able to apply this week.

“I’ve had problems before in the past with spinning the ball too much, not being able to control the distances, not being able to control my trajectory properly, but in Ireland my iron play was superb.

“I haven’t hit the ball that good in a long time. And on top of that I was able to roll the ball in a good line and read the breaks properly. So that obviously gives a lot of confidence into a week like this.”