Jon Rahm has been one of the first protagonists to speak in the week of the LIV Golf of Hong Kong, the third tournament of the Saudi league that starts next Thursday at the Hong Kong Golf Club. He has described the course as fun, assures that his game is on the right track, is self-critical of his performance on Sunday in Australia, and has made an effort to explain in detail the proposal made to him by the DP World Tour to settle the fines, as well as the reasons why he is not willing to accept the proposal.
Rahm has revealed, as we have been reporting in Ten Golf and in the Provisional Ball, that the agreement the DP World Tour put on the table consisted of eliminating fines and sanctions during 2026 in exchange for playing a minimum of six tournaments, two of which would be at the European circuit’s choice. Jon, for his part, has responded that he is not willing to play more than four, the minimum that the DP World Tour has required in recent years to be a member of the European Circuit.
His reflection has been long, but it is worth knowing it in full:
“My position hasn’t changed in a week. I don’t like what they are doing with the contract they want us to sign. I don’t like the conditions. They ask me to play a minimum of six tournaments and also decide where two of them have to be. That is, among other things, what I disagree with. I have been a dual member my entire career, PGA TOUR and DP World Tour. Now, with LIV Golf accepted in the world ranking as part of the ecosystem, you could almost say I’m a member of three circuits, although I’m suspended from the PGA TOUR. I’ve always been a dual member. Never, not once, have I been asked for a ‘release’ (permission) to play in one circuit or another. We’ve never sent a permission. So why do we have to offer that now and there are all these penalties? I understand why they do it. What’s the problem?
Also, two years ago they asked me to appeal the fines so they could clarify this and sort it out, I did, and now we’re in more trouble. I don’t like the situation. I think we should be able to play freely where we want, have the option to play where we want and not be dictated what we do. Especially me. I can’t speak for others; only for myself.
I have always committed to playing the required minimum and I think I have played four tournaments, including the Spanish Open, every year except one as a professional, and I commit to continue doing so. That is not going to change. I still fully intend to do so. Now, with the LIV schedule and the majors, I don’t think I will be able to do it until we finish our playoffs or our last events. But, looking at the second half, we have the Omega Masters, I think, the Irish Open, Wentworth, the French Open, the Dunhill, Spain…
Of those tournaments, I would love to play my four there. Counting that I’m going to the Spanish Open, I would like to play three of those and I fully intend to play three of those. I would love to.
I don’t know what they are playing at, but it seems that, in some way, they are using us… They use our impact on the tournaments, fine us, and try to benefit from both sides of what we bring, and in a way they are extorting players like me and young players who have nothing to do with golf politics. I don’t like the situation and I am not going to accept that. In fact, I told them: lower it to four tournaments, as the minimum says, and I’ll sign tonight. They haven’t accepted that. I refuse to play six tournaments. I don’t want to and it’s not what the rules say,” he concluded.
Rahm has revealed all the details of the negotiation with the DP World Tour. The difference, as we report in Ten Golf, is minimal, from six to four tournaments. There is no agreement, although it seems difficult to imagine that with the positions so close there will not be an agreement. In any case, Jon’s language is very harsh against the DP World Tour. He talks about extortion, reveals that it was the European Circuit itself that offered them to appeal the sanction in 2024 to remain as members and continue playing the Ryder Cup and claims the freedom to play where and when he wants, although that clashes head-on with the contractual obligation to play all the LIV Golf tournaments. A contract he signed freely, of course, but in exchange for losing freedom of movement.
Finally, speaking plainly, the difference between what Rahm proposes and the DP World Tour is playing 22 or 24 tournaments a year. With Jon’s stance, it would be the 14 LIV tournaments (13 plus the team final), the four Majors (as long as he is qualified), and the four of the DP World Tour. In the years Jon combined the PGA Tour with the DP World Tour, from 2017 to 2023, he played 24 or more tournaments in his first three years. Additionally, he played 23 in 2022 and 22 in 2023. The years 2020 and 2021 don’t count due to the pandemic’s impact, everyone played less. As it stands, while Jon combined PGA Tour and DP World Tour, he only played 22 tournaments once.
Jon was also asked about Rory McIlroy’s words regarding the Ryder Cup, when he said that if Jon had said at the time that he would pay to play the Ryder, now was a good time to prove it. The Basque’s response was as follows: “That phrase would make much more sense if all 12 of us were asked to pay, and not just two. There is more complexity in this whole situation. I understand why he says it, we all understand it, we do it for the love of the game, but it is a different situation from what we usually see. I would gladly pay for my trip to go to a Ryder Cup; what I don’t want is to have to pay to remain a member of the DP World Tour and fulfill a commitment that I am fully willing to commit to.”
Lastly, regarding his teammate Tyrrell Hatton accepting the DP World Tour’s proposal, Rahm did not want to comment: “I respect Tyrrell’s decision. That’s all I’m going to say. He is free to choose, and I fully respect that.”
What is Jon Rahm’s current situation in the DP World Tour? He remains a member because the sanction imposed by the circuit in 2024, fines and suspensions, for playing LIV Golf tournaments without the corresponding permissions, is temporarily suspended pending the decision of the independent tribunal. According to Ten Golf, that ruling will be known within two months. Once it is made public, if Jon loses his lawsuit, he will lose his member status unless he pays the fines and complies with the suspensions or reaches an agreement with the DP World Tour.
Negotiations are not broken, but the tension is more than evident judging by the harsh tone used by Jon today in Hong Kong.
