Jon Rahm has become the latest big name to be linked with a move to LIV Golf, and one fellow professional believes there is cause for concern for the PGA Tour
After Jon Rahm, the winner of the Masters, was connected to an unexpected transfer to their LIV Golf competitors, Eddie Pepperell issued a warning to the PGA Tour, saying they might be “in trouble.”
Rahm is the most recent well-known player to be linked to Saudi Arabia switching to the LIV configuration. Throughout the previous 18 months, a wide range of celebrities, including Dustin Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka, Phil Mickelson, and Cam Smith, have already chosen to sign a contract with Greg Norman and company.
And with the world No. 3 ranking, one of the biggest names in the game, the defending Masters champion, and a star for Europe at the most recent Ryder Cup, Rahm’s departure would be yet another devastating blow for PGA Tour executives.
Amid the rumors, Pepperell, a star of the DP World Tour, issued a dire warning to the circuit in the United States. Regarding the rumored £300 million signing-on fee that Rahm is reportedly considering, the Englishman posted on X, saying: “This notion that ‘everyone has a price’ is absurd and false.
Furthermore, it denigrates people’s ability to form and uphold moral convictions. Having said that, Rahm seems like a loyal guy, so if he leaves, the PGAT [PGA Tour] leadership may have some trouble, and probably for good reason.”
Though he has stayed largely impartial in the rivalry between the PGA Tour and LIV, it is still unclear if Rahm will take the action, and it would be shocking nonetheless. Speaking in December of last year, Rahm stated that he was not motivated by money to compete on the course and that he would not choose to join the Saudi-backed league.
The Spaniard reportedly told Golf Channel, “If you play well, you’re going to end up making money and be able to take care of yourself.” It’s not the reason I play, and it’s not the reason I started playing. Therefore, money is not really on my mind when I’m practicing, making my schedule, and finishing my tasks.
If so, I might have visited LIV, am I right? That’s definitely the way to go if making money is your main objective. My goal in life is to improve as a golfer, and that guides every decision I make. Rahm recently said that he would “laugh” at rumors that connected him to the LIV setup.
When someone associates me with LIV Golf, I chuckle. In August, he said on the Golf Sin Etiquetas podcast, “I never liked the format.” Sergio Garcia and Mickelson, two of Rahm’s closest friends in the game, chose to be part of the first group of defectors last summer.
But even his friends who were loyal to LIV had warned him against going the same way. Rahm continued, “I always have a good time in the practice rounds of majors with Phil Mickelson and Sergio Garcia.” Both Phil [Mickelson] and I honor our respective decisions. Mickelson has repeatedly told me that there is no reason for me to travel to play for LIV.
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