Jon Rahm was pipped to the PGA Tour’s Player of The Year award for 2023 by world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, despite winning four titles, including last April’s Masters
Jon Rahm has broken his silence after missing out on the PGA Tour’s Player of The Year award for 2023 to world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler.
After winning Player of the Year earlier this month, Scheffler became the first player since Tiger Woods to win the title consecutively. With two victories at the Hero World Challenge and Waste Management Phoenix Open, Scheffler concluded the year as the best golfer in the world.
Despite ending the campaign in the world No. 1 spot, Scheffler’s win came as a surprise to some, with Rahm backed by many to land the award after winning four times in 2023.
Rahm’s first-ever Masters victory occurred at Augusta National in April of last year, making it one of those four events as well. In a memorable year, the Spaniard also won the American Express, the Genesis Invitational, and The Sentry Tournament of Champions.
However, his peers felt that this was insufficient because rival Scheffler received the majority of the vote. Even though Scheffler seems to have received praise from Rahm for his efforts, it seems that the Spaniard feels let down by his greater number of victories in 2023.
He told the Jim Rome Show, “Oh man, listen, Scottie had a fantastic year.” “I don’t mean to diminish what he accomplished, but in the past, hardware has essentially won player of the year.” I was basically the more reliable player the year Patrick Cantlay won.
“I had a major in 2021; I believe I had 16 top-10s, and I understood why Patrick had won it.” Perhaps because of his exceptional ball-striking this year, [the voters] chose to vote in a different way, but ultimately, it’s a well-deserved victory.
The choice was made after Rahm, who had reportedly signed a £450 million contract with the breakaway league last month, chose to join LIV Golf, one of the Tour’s fiercest rivals. Following in the footsteps of his fellow LIV teammates, he was suspended by the PGA Tour as a result of his decision to switch to Saudi Arabia.
Of course, LIV wins here and the other players on the breakaway circuit appear to be content with the Masters champion competing with them. Bryson DeChambeau welcomed the Spaniard and said to LIVGolf.com, “It’s great to have Jon Rahm here.
“I am eager for him to go through what we have been going through for the last few years. He will see how awesome this product is once he settles in. Not to mention how amazing the product is, but also how fierce the competition is, how much we all want to win, and how competitive we are. As soon as he steps outside, he will sense that competitive spirit.”
