– Jon Rahm has revealed the details of his negotiation with the DP World Tour to regularise his situation and not jeopardise his membership, or in other words, to keep the doors to the Ryder Cup wide open, which is really the crux of this matter. If the Ryder didn’t exist, Rahm wouldn’t even consider the option of being a member of the European circuit and there would be no case.
– The sticking point: the DPWT requires him to play six tournaments a year, with two of them chosen by the circuit itself; and Jon would sign today if he weren’t obliged to play those two handpicked ones and the number of required tournaments were reduced to four. Apologies for this simplistic reasoning that would embarrass Solomon himself, but sometimes the solution to a problem is grossly simple: all roads lead us to an agreement on five tournaments. Peace here and glory afterwards.
– Jon’s speech in Hong Kong has been very harsh and it could even be understood that negotiations are broken. But that’s not the case. It’s very simple: Jon is still extremely interested in playing the Ryder Cup and the DPWT is extremely interested in the Spaniard being an eligible player.
– Does either party in the negotiation hold the upper hand? Let’s see: Rahm’s position has been weakened since the rest of his LIV colleagues have reached an agreement with the DPWT. In fact, Jon’s words should be interpreted as a jab at the DPWT, but also as a slap without hands to his LIV colleagues. Nonetheless, it doesn’t mean that the position of the man from Barrika isn’t strong.
– Perhaps he has been hasty with this ultimatum-like move, but it was also another way to let the DPWT know that he will fight until the last deadline and breath. Jon believes he has earned on the field the ‘right’ to enjoy at least the same deal that already existed: four tournaments, provided one of them is in your country. And the DPWT feels obliged to maintain a strong position in front of the rest of its members and the other LIV players who have signed the agreement. Again: all roads lead us to an agreement on five tournaments.
