Jon Rahm built his return path to European golf just three months ago. Now that route looks a lot narrower.
The DP World Tour has begun warning LIV Golf players that the special arrangement letting them freely move between tours will not survive past 2026.
The Athletic’s Gabby Herzig reported Aug. 12 that the DP World Tour has started notifying LIV members directly. Conditional releases, the arrangement that let them dodge fines while playing both circuits, will almost certainly disappear after this season.
A source briefed on the matter told The Athletic that players have been told not to plan their 2027 schedules around an extension.
Eight players struck this deal in February. Tyrrell Hatton, Laurie Canter, Thomas Detry, Tom McKibbin, Adrian Meronk, Victor Perez, David Puig and Elvis Smylie. Each agreed to pay outstanding fines and commit to extra DP World Tour starts.
Rahm was not part of that group. He fought his own battle with the tour before finally settling in May. But the tour made clear from the start that none of these deals would set a precedent.
He spent months clashing publicly with the tour before agreeing to terms in May. Now, with conditional releases set to vanish, Rahm’s hard-won arrangement may only last one season.
Jon Rahm Is Considering a LIV Golf Exit
Just a day after Herzig’s story broke, the Telegraph delivered a second blow to LIV Golf. James Corrigan and colleagues reported Aug. 13 that Rahm is increasingly likely to depart the league at season’s end.
LIV sources described themselves as “almost resigned” to the news, according to the Telegraph, with insiders indicating the DP World Tour has already been briefed on his intentions.
The report frames Rahm’s decision as tied directly to LIV’s murky finances. He has two years remaining on his original contract but is reportedly still owed a nine-figure chunk of his $300 million signing package.
Sources told the Telegraph that Rahm has shown little enthusiasm for the “LIV 2.0” format, which would trim the schedule to roughly 10 events with smaller purses.
Jon Rahm’s Exit Could be Damaging to LIV
The Financial Times reported that BC Partners’ commitment to LIV carries a condition. The firm wants assurances that LIV will retain enough marquee talent to remain commercially viable.
Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau top that list of names investors are watching closely. If Rahm walks, it doesn’t just cost LIV its most consistent winner. It potentially jeopardizes the financing needed to keep the league running past 2026.
Further, Flushing It reported that “number of LIV Golf contractors and vendors are owed significant amounts of money and is growing by the day. Multiple sources have indicated that even demand letters from lawyers is being completely ignored.”
This casts major doubts on the upcoming LIV 2.0.
Jon Rahm Dealt Concerning Career News Amid Growing LIV Golf Problems