Jon Rahm, along with his teammates from the Legion XIII, was in the spotlight this Wednesday, ahead of the LIV Golf tournament in Riyadh, which marks the start of the 2025 season for the Saudi-funded tour. The golfer from Barrika, during the official press conference, revealed the stress and intensity of the off-season due to his role as captain in team formation, discussed the new regulations in the circuit’s team rankings, the signing of Tom McKibben, the major new addition among his partners… and the night-time schedule of this week’s event, where his main challenge will be getting used to playing under the lights at a time when he would usually be asleep.
The work in the off-season: “I’ve quickly realised that the off-season is possibly the most stressful time when you’re involved with a team in this way. All decisions must be made and you’re aware of everything that’s happening, something that perhaps the league or the general manager doesn’t tell me when I’m playing. It’s very stressful. We all have the habit of waiting until the end for different reasons to sign, so my resting heart rate keeps going up every week. But it’s been incredible to bring Tom on board. Securing such a young player, with his experience, already established and a winner as a professional on multiple occasions is difficult. I’m thrilled he’s decided to join the team or join the Legion. I’m really looking forward to seeing what he can do because he’s so talented, and I think the sky’s the limit.”
Four team victories in their debut season: “Well, I think we saw in the Team Championship that any team can win, with the Iron Heads making it to the end. You can’t rule anyone out, but I think there are teams like the Crushers, who have been playing really well over the last few seasons, obviously the Rippers, and a couple more, Torque and the Aces, who might be ahead of that list, but anyone can win at any time. If I start giving reasons, I’d give you one for each of them. As for us, I’m very excited because not only do we have a fantastic player in Tom, but Caleb, as I believe and I’m sure he would tell you too, didn’t have his best year of golf last year, is capable of much more and has the talent for much more. I think we could repeat last year’s performance, but my feeling is that this year we’ll be more consistent because in 2024 we had some ups and downs. This year we could have an even better year. That is certainly the hope.”
“Securing such a young player like Tom, with his experience, already established and a winner as a professional on multiple occasions is difficult”
His preparation for this week: “From the moment I knew we were going to play under the lights, I’ve been very excited. This is what LIV Golf is about. It’s about innovating and creating a new product for the consumer. It reminds me a bit of the early days, on a different scale, when Formula 1 decided to race at night. On TV it looks very, very cool and I hope golf comes across the same way. In my personal experience, it’s a lot of fun to participate. It’s so different, so unique that I think we could have a very special week. Obviously, we’re all going to have our flaws because we’re not used to it. We’ve never done it. At home, there’s a par 3 course lit up at night where you can go play, but there’s a difference between trying to hit with a pitching wedge and with a driver. It’s a totally different feeling. But I think it’s going to be very special. What worries me the most is the tee time. We’re so used to being home by 6:00 PM, almost thinking about dinner and going to bed if you haven’t had dinner. Trying to change that time mindset has been the most interesting part. But I think it’s a lot of fun. It’s probably the closest we’re going to get in a week to what athletes in other sports have, having those start times at six, seven, and eight in the evening, and I’m all for it. I think it will be something special, maybe we’ll see it more.”
It’s go time Under the Lights 🌃#LIVGolfRiyadh pic.twitter.com/VMY6sIQoO9
— LIV Golf (@livgolf_league) February 5, 2025
The ‘Watering Hole’ next week in Adelaide: “I’m ready for the week. I’m looking forward to a different time of year. It will be a bit warmer. I hope the golf course is a bit firmer and plays a bit more like some of those Australian courses are supposed to play. I’m trying to prepare Tom for what it’s going to be like, but I don’t think you can explain what Australian fans are like and how close they are to the fairways. When you’re on some of those tees, you only see fairways, heads, and trees. There’s nothing in between. It’s something unique. It’s very hard to find a better atmosphere. It’s a lot of fun, and the Australian fans, who haven’t had a field as big and strong as this very often in their lives in general, I think they embrace it very well. They also know how to have fun and they have fun with us. That makes it much more interesting and entertaining for all of us.”
“I think the change in the team format benefits us, we have four very strong and consistent players”
The change in team scoring: “I like it. I like it. I think it benefits a team like ours. I think we have four very strong players who are very consistent. So I think it’s better for the league overall that everyone matters every day because Sundays are usually very, very fun. At least last year it was incredibly fun in that sense. But I also think it’s better for the teams and for player development that every day counts. I’m very much in favour of it.”
Change in routines for the night-time schedule in Riyadh: “Yes, I think it’s been an experience in all that. I think the only time two of us, I think Tyrrell and Caleb are going to play today in the pro-am, we’ve played all the practice rounds at night because we’re going to play at night, so we’re trying to get used to it. It’s a change because when we finish the tournament rounds it will be ten-thirty or eleven at night. By the time you get back late, the physio… I’m usually in bed, when I’m home I go to bed at nine-thirty and get up early. So these days I’ve been trying to stay up and go to bed around one in the morning so I don’t have such a long day ahead when I get up and can get used to this schedule. It’s certainly been interesting, especially when you travel far, having to stay up so late. But it’s part of the appeal of a special week like this.”
