The incident came at the Spaniard's 16th hole, the par-four seventh, where, frustrated after a poor shot from the rough, he slammed his club into the ground and sent a lump of turf ‌flying into ‌the face ⁠of a nearby volunteer.

"Just out of frustration, I ​tried to make an air swing, just over the grass, and I wasn't looking, took a divot, and unfortunately, I hit a volunteer," the Spaniard told reporters on Thursday.

Rahm said the volunteer was also struck ⁠in the shoulder before the divot ‌hit ​his face, and he wasted little time in going over to ​apologise.

"I need ‌to somehow track him down to give him a present ​because that's inexcusable and for something that could be completely avoidable," Rahm said. "Whether it was my intention or not, ​it ​was just not good."

The incident ​overshadowed a solid recovery from Rahm, ‌who had bogeyed his opening hole, dropped another stroke right after the turn and then bounced back with an eagle at the par-four second.

He then bogeyed the seventh before closing his round ​with two consecutive birdies to finish the day at one ​under, leaving him ⁠firmly in contention.