Jon Rahm’s Ryder Cup future remains in the dark after he was not part of the DP World Tour settlement.
CHRIS TROTMAN, LIV GOLF
The DP World Tour and Europe’s Ryder Cup star Jon Rahm remain locked in dispute despite the tour’s announcement on Saturday of a reconciliation of sorts with members who also play in the LIV Golf league.
Eight DP World Tour members – Tyrrell Hatton, Laurie Canter, Thomas Detry, Tom McKibbin, Adrian Meronk, Victor Perez, David Puig and Elvis Smylie – have been granted permission to play in conflicting LIV Golf tournaments in 2026.
The eight retain their membership status and face no disciplinary action provided they meet a series of conditions, which they accepted.
Key among the stipulations is the payment in full of outstanding fines for breaching the DP World Tour's regulations, the withdrawal of pending appeals, and participation in designated tournaments and media activity.
“The conditions these members have accepted will provide additional value to the DP World Tour and benefit to the entire membership,” a tour statement read. “Provided each member satisfies the conditions of their individual releases, no disciplinary action under the Regulations will be taken against them for playing in conflicting tournaments on LIV Golf in 2026 and they will retain their membership status.”
The tour stated that the releases apply for 2026 only and are not “precedent setting.” Requests for further releases will be considered on an individual basis and disciplinary action will continue to be taken against members who play in conflicting LIV events without a release.
Rahm apparently rejected this offer, and so his future in the Ryder Cup remains mired in mystery.
The 31-year-old Spaniard has previously stated that he has “no intention” of paying fines (which have reached about $3 million, he has said). It appears he will wait on the result of his appeal against those fines, which currently sits with Sport Resolutions, an independent arbitration body based in London.
While one might perceive Rahm’s rejection of the tour’s olive branch to LIV Golf as a snub, one man’s snub is another man’s determination to remain true to his principles.
Until Rahm reveals his thoughts, speculation will remain rife and largely guesswork, but the standout of the weekend’s news is that while Hatton now has some sort of route toward the Ryder Cup at Adare Manor in Ireland in 2027, Rahm still hasn’t.
It also calls to mind the words of Rory McIlroy at January’s Dubai Desert Classic. “We went really hard on the Americans about being paid to play in the Ryder Cup and we also said we would pay to play in it,” he said, adding that Rahm and Hatton, “are two guys that can prove it.”
In golf’s fractured world, some might conclude that Hatton has proved that notion and Rahm hasn’t. Others might think that Rahm has refused to pay a ransom and will not be blackmailed.
And the DP World Tour, which surely had a returning Rahm rather than Adrian Meronk in mind when it came up with this plan, still has a mess to deal with.
Matt Cooper
