What’s in store for Jon Rahm on LIV Golf in 2024? Evin Priest explores the Masters champion’s debut season.
In November 2014, the PGA Tour was a year into its wraparound season when the circuit headed to the Mexico resort town of Playa del Carmen for the OHL Mayakoba Classic. Among those in the field was a star amateur from Arizona State University making his PGA Tour debut. His name was Jon Rahm, a 20-year-old from Spain who many tipped to be a future world No.1.
Rahm, who barely spoke English when he first moved to Tempe, Arizona, stood at almost 190 centimetres and weighed about 90 kilograms. He had a short, powerful backswing and a distinguished sound when he struck the ball. He had an undeniable X-factor.
It was evident at Mayakoba that year that Rahm also had an ideal mixture of confidence – “I compete to win,” he said that week – and an appreciation of golf’s history. He revered the greats who had paved the way before him. Rahm was asked which pro at Mayakoba he was eager to meet. “Padraig Harrington,”
he said. “You don’t get the chance to meet a three-time major winner every day, even if he beat my fellow Spaniard Sergio Garcia in two of them. I would love to tell him, ‘Way to hit a 5-wood on the 17th hole at the British Open,’ and then laugh.”
Tongues were wagging. A foreign player with an encyclopaedic knowledge of golf who seemed destined to write his own history? Subscribe.
Fast forward nine years – which can be considered a long time in pro golf or not a lot at all – and both the Mayakoba resort and Rahm have signed with LIV Golf. One as a venue, now LIV’s season opener each year, and the other as a marquee player. Once again, Rahm will be making his debut at Mayakoba, his maiden event as a LIV player. Only now, he has two majors, more money than God, and 11 PGA Tour wins to his name.
“I’m forever grateful for the PGA Tour; they gave me the opportunity to play the game that I’ve always wanted to play,” he said during his LIV signing announcement in early December. “This is just more about me and what I believe is best for my career.”
WHEN THE NUMBERS ADD UP
Financially, it is indeed the best move for his career. Rahm, now a father of two, signed for a reported $US600 million – a combination of cash and equity in a LIV franchise team. From the standpoint of golf’s majors, Rahm’s jump also makes sense. Thanks to wins in the 2021 US Open and 2023 Masters, Rahm is eligible for all four majors for the next five years. He’s in the Masters for life and the US Open until 2031.
“It was a smart business move from Jon – it’s opportunistic,” Rory McIlroy said on January 4 on Sky Sports’ Stick to Football podcast. “[He] hasn’t got any of the heat for going like the first guys got for going. Jon is a smart guy and I think he sees things coming together at some point so he’s thinking that he’ll take the upfront money, which is his prerogative, and if things come together he’ll play LIV for a year then come back to play on the [PGA] Tour.”
What Rahm will be giving up is the chance to play in events that built the modern-day PGA Tour, having been suspended by the PGA Tour in December after his LIV move. He will miss out on legacy events such as Tiger Woods’ Genesis Invitational at Los Angeles’ famed Riviera, which he won last year, Jack Nicklaus’ Memorial Tournament, which he won in 2020, and the Famers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines, which he claimed in 2017 as his maiden victory on tour. In the end, Rahm’s offer was life-changing enough to make peace with missing out on the handful of non-major events that remain compelling.
“[PGA Tour history] is obviously something that matters, but what’s even better than that, is hopefully being a pioneer and creating a legacy that other people speak of in the future,” Rahm said. “As ambitious as it may be, we have the opportunity to do that right now and that’s something really exciting.”
Rahm’s allegiance to the PGA Tour wasn’t feeble; it just wasn’t strong enough to turn down generational money. For example, the runner-up to Rahm at Riviera last February, Max Homa – a Los Angeleno and proud PGA Tour man – said of the LIV offers he and his management declined: “Money can’t buy my dreams.”
But dreams are often tied to a player’s upbringing. Rahm didn’t grow up necessarily dreaming of playing the 18th at Bay Hill with a chance to win the Arnold Palmer Invitational. Rather, he aspired to win majors and Ryder Cups like his Spanish heroes Seve Ballesteros, Jose Maria Olazabal and Garcia. He can still play in the majors, and in the Ryder Cup he is unlikely to be banned from the European team given he moved to LIV almost two years out from the 2025 edition at Bethpage. There will be time for the DP World Tour, which runs the European side of the Cup, to figure out a way to include LIV players.
“Jon is going to be in Bethpage in 2025 so, because of this decision, the [DP World Tour] are going to have to rewrite the rules for the Ryder Cup eligibility,” McIlroy told Sky Sports in December. “I certainly want Jon Rahm on the next Ryder Cup team.”
Rahm was indeed concerned for his Ryder Cup future, which is on track to earn him one of Europe’s greatest ever records. He has played in only three Cups (2018, 2021 and 2023) but has grabbed 7.5 points from 12 matches. Perhaps what sealed the deal was the gamble that, if the European side was willing to ban one of its best players, then he wouldn’t want to play for that team anyway.
“The biggest [concern], I think I can confidently say it was the Ryder Cup,” Rahm admitted. “I couldn’t talk to anybody about [whether joining LIV would impact his eligibility to play on the European team]. It was a big risk to take, but I’ve had it in consideration and I’m hopeful that I can be part of the team again. I’m a very positive and hopeful person, so I hope for the best. I think it was worth risking the Ryder Cup, although I do believe that we might see some changes on that. Don’t quote me, [because] I don’t know. But I hope we can see that happen.
“My position with the Ryder Cup stands as it always has been: I love the Ryder Cup. I hope I can be in future editions of the Ryder Cup. That’s not up to me right now, but if it was up to me, I’ll be eligible to play so I hope I can keep playing good golf and give him a reason to have me on the team.”
CATALYST FOR CHANGE
Aside from deriving its name from the Roman numerals that spell out the number 54, LIV established an identity and laidback vibe based on having three-round tournaments. On the flipside, that, plus the lack of a 36-hole cut, the teams element and too small a pathway in and out of the league, are what prevented LIV from receiving Official World Golf Ranking points. LIV had an application for points rejected by the OWGR board
in October.
But Rahm carries the gravitas required to sell changes to LIV and its financier, Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund. He has previously stated that, “Shotgun [starts], three days to me is not a golf tournament.”
Despite the attachment to 54 holes, perhaps the most profound change LIV could make would be changing its format to 72 holes and introducing a cut. With the calibre of the top half of its roster – Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson, Cameron Smith, Bryson DeChambeau, Patrick Reed, Louis Oosthuizen and Talor Gooch, to name only a handful – LIV’s events moving to 72 holes would push the quality of its fields past the majority of DP World Tour and even Korn Ferry Tour events, excluding the European circuit’s flagship events of the Rolex Series. It wouldn’t affect the average fan – they get an extra day of watching their favourite LIV players – but it would alter the perception of legitimacy for the fledgling league. It’s not a weak product if it remains 54 holes, but it is a stronger one if it becomes 72 holes. It seems there are more arguments for, than against, 72 holes.
Upon signing with LIV, Rahm hinted he would at least advocate for evolution of its format. Although, he did not detail what those suggested tweaks would be.
“For all those things that I like about this movement, there’s always going to be some things that are not perfect,” he said. “But that’s the situation and everybody’s life, some things I can live with. With that said, it’s an ever-growing and ever-changing machine. I’m hopeful that the leaders of LIV Golf might listen to some of my advice and maybe see some changes in the future for the better of the game.”
The topic is polarising among LIV players. Some would welcome it; some would be against it given shorter tournaments was one of the lures to join. Gooch, LIV’s 2023 individual season-long points winner, told Australian Golf Digest Rahm’s decision to join the upstart league wouldn’t have happened if the appeal wasn’t already there.
“[Rahm] has been vocal about some stuff he didn’t love, but he wouldn’t have come to LIV if he thought he was going to win 10 tournaments a year and have no competition,” Gooch said. “He’s a true competitor. It’s beyond exciting [to have Rahm]. We haven’t had an open-forum discussion with all the players [about 72 holes], but you get both sides… guys who would welcome [moving to 72 holes] and some guys who are opposed to it. Discussions will be had, and it’ll be interesting to see what comes of it. I think LIV Golf was meant to be something different; I think it’s not supposed to be a carbon copy of the rest of professional golf. I lean towards keeping it at 54 holes. Part of it too, from my experience on the PGA Tour, was Thursdays are just irrelevant from a fan perspective [except for] only a couple of times a year.
“I’ve always been an advocate of… I think the majors absolutely should be four rounds, but I don’t necessarily think everything else should be four rounds, almost similar to tennis. We want to do everything we can to make the most entertaining product but [also] the product that’s going to reveal the best golfer.”
In the short term, Rahm will at least focus on balancing LIV’s lighter schedule – which will include venues that will be new to him – with getting the competitive test required to arrive at the majors sharp enough to contend. He won’t be able to play his beloved Torrey Pines for the Farmers Insurance Open, an area of southern California where he also proposed to wife Kelley. He won’t be able to defend his title at the American Express event in the California desert, nor at Riviera Country Club where he took the Genesis Invitational. So, will he be ready to defend his Masters title? He can play the majors, given they are separate from the PGA Tour and haven’t banned LIV golfers.
Rahm will tee it up, amid much publicity, at LIV’s season opener at Mayakoba from February 2-4, before the league heads to Las Vegas the next week (February 8-10) to stage its second event of the season while the NFL’s Super Bowl is going on in the same city. Rahm will then head to Saudi Arabia for the Jeddah event (March 1-3), then Hong Kong for the next tournament (March 8-10). In April, LIV will stage an event in Florida (April 5-7) the week before the Masters and will be Rahm’s final hit-out before Augusta National. He’ll arrive with five LIV events under his belt, and it remains to be seen if he’ll also play Asian Tour events (through LIV’s partnership).
Among the remaining nine events on LIV’s 2024 schedule, two are significant. In late April, Rahm will return to Australia for the first time since 2016, when he teed up for Spain with Rafa Cabrera Bello at the World Cup of Golf at Kingston Heath. LIV Adelaide was the league’s best and most publicised event in 2023. After that, LIV will travel to Rahm’s homeland for its Valderrama event, an Andalucia course that previously hosted a DP World Tour event.
FRAMEWORK AGREEMENT
Rahm’s signature was seen by some as a move by LIV Golf’s financiers, the PIF, to expedite the discussions with the PGA Tour and DP World Tour as it relates to their framework agreement. The three parties announced on June 6 last year that they would try to create a for-profit entity that contains the three tours and has the PIF as a minority investor. The deadline for that deal was December 31, just longer than three weeks after Rahm joined. The parties did not meet it, although the deadline was announced on New Year’s Eve as being extended. Typically, the PGA Tour aims for significant announcements to be unveiled during the week of its flagship event, the Players Championship at
TPC Sawgrass, in mid-March. That would be ideal as it would give discussions an extra 10 weeks to occur, while allowing a month for it to be digested before the Masters.
PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan said in the December 31 update that the parties had “made meaningful progress” in negotiations with Strategic Sports Group (SSG), a private-equity combination of business leaders and the Fenway Sports Group, which would offer considerable funding to the new entity. The tour also stated it was working with SSG “towards finalisation of terms and drafting necessary documents”.
As for Rahm? He said of the framework agreement: “I like the LIV Golf product. I like the business. I like the idea of playing golf in countries we have never played before and being part of something that I really didn’t know was going to be a possibility. Certainly, I hope these agreements end up being whatever is best for golf and everybody, but as far as I’m concerned, this is what I wanted to do.”
LIV Golf’s 2024 schedule
February 2-4: Mayakoba, Mexico
February 8-10: Las Vegas, Nevada
March 1-3: Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
March 8-10: Hong Kong
April 5-7: Florida (TBD)
April 26-28: Adelaide, Australia
May 3-5: Singapore
June 7-9: Houston, Texas
June 21-23: Nashville. Tennessee
July 12-14: Valderrama, Spain
July 26-28: England
August 16-18: The Greenbrier, West Virginia
*September 13-15: Chicago, Illinois
*September 20-22: Dallas, Texas
*not yet official
Instruction: Rahm’s Secret Weapon To Handle Pressure Shots
Golf swings are fast, by nature. But Jon Rahm’s is especially easy to miss. Blink a fraction of a second too long, and you won’t see it.
It’s not just that Rahm has a fast backswing. He also has a short backswing. That’s not a coincidence. The literal speed of his backswing is a key power source for Rahm. It’s gotten faster over time as he’s gotten stronger, and it’s a key component that allows him to hit the ball so far. Here’s what to look out for when the big-hitting Spaniard arrives in Adelaide this April.
Fast backswing, fast downswing
Biomechanist Dr Sasho Mackenzie is one of the smartest men in golf today and the co-founder of The Stack training aid. He’s studied the effects faster and slower backswing speeds have on overall clubhead speed, and found that quite simply, the faster the backswing, the faster the downswing.
Slower backswings have their upsides, especially for players who may lack upper body strength. But as he explains, the reason why is because fast backswings add clubhead speed because they demand more from your muscles. You need to contract more forcefully in order to reverse the direction of the club, which adds more speed than you think.
“The muscles that power the downswing need to produce larger forces to stop a faster backswing,” Mackenzie says. “This means they are producing higher forces at the start of the downswing, which results in more potential for clubhead speed.”
And this could work to his advantage under pressure, says former tour player Brad Faxon. Rahm’s backswing is already so fast, Faxon says, that he’s not prone to getting “quick” under pressure like players with slower backswings.
“It’s always better to have a quick swing under pressure,” he says. “Swings get faster under pressure, but his is already so quick.”
It’s a unique tempo, but one that Rahm has perfected time and again. Under the gun on the back nine on Sundays, it could be just what he needs. – Luke Kerr-Dineen
Getty images: Stuart Franklin; mark brake
