JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Multiple media outlets including NBC Sports, are now reporting that the No. 3 ranked golfer in the world, Jon Rahm, is leaving the PGA Tour. They say he’ll be signing with the LIV Tour, for somewhere between $300 and $600 million.
A deal is supposed to be announced later this week, assuming talks between the golfer and LIV don’t fall apart.
It was announced back in June that there was a “framework agreement” for a potential merger between the PGA Tour and LIV, and is something PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan celebrated earlier this year.
“We’ve recognized that together, we can have a far greater impact on this game than working apart,” Monahan said during a televised interview alongside Yasir Aal-Rumayyan, the governor of the Saudi Public Investment Fund.
Part of that framework agreement was that LIV wouldn’t poach PGA Tour players. That end of the deal clearly isn’t happening.
This also proves that anything still is possible. It was in February 2022 that Rahm pledged “fealty” to the PGA Tour.
So, what does this mean for the PGA Tour, headquartered here on the First Coast? We, after all, are the home of The Players, which Rahm would no longer be a part of if precedent holds.
“It’s unfortunate but it’s the current landscape of professional golf which is so fragmented, and John Rahm would be a huge loss to the tour,” said Travis Fulton.
Fulton is a Jacksonville area teaching professional, and follows the game closely. He hosts his own show about pro golf called The Stipe Show Podcast.
He notes that the upstart LIV golf tour, backed by the Saudi Public Investment Fund, is going to have some of the biggest names in golf on its roster now.
“I think at some point things have got to come together,” Fulton said “The fragmentation isn’t good for golf. How do I watch it, where do I watch it?” he asked wondering about the visibility of LIV.
“They have some big names, Cam Smith, Bryson DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka and now John Rahm.”
“It’s a lot to keep up for someone who is in the business let alone the causal fan.”