Jon Rahm is trying to stay eligible for the Ryder Cup next fall. It remains to be seen whether the DP World Tour will allow this.
The LIV Golf member and former top-ranked golfer in the world has signed up for three DP World Tour events this fall, starting with the Spanish Open later this month. Rahm is still barred from participating in this Tour’s events after leaving for LIV Golf.
The DP World Tour imposed an undisclosed amount of fines on Rahm for leaving for LIV Golf without a waiver, and he still refuses to pay. If Rahm doesn’t pay, he will have to appeal and win in order to get back on the DP World Tour – something others have done in the past.
Rahm said Wednesday, ahead of this week’s LIV Golf event in Chicago, that he was in conversations with the DP World Tour about how to move forward.
“I’m registered for the tournament,” Rahm said of the Spanish Open, via ESPN. “We came in a long time ago. Whether they let me play or not is different.
“I’m not a big fan of fines. I think I’ve been upfront about that. I have no plans to pay the fines, and we continue to try to discuss with them how we can do that.
In order to remain eligible for the European Ryder Cup team, Rahm must compete in four non-major championship events on the DP World Tour before the end of the season. The Paris Olympics counted for one, but it is still missing three. After the Spanish Open, Rahm said he intended to compete in the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship at St. Andrews in Scotland in October and then the Andalusia Masters in Spain two weeks later.
If he is allowed to play in these three tournaments, Rahm would be eligible for next year’s Ryder Cup – although European captain Luke Donald will likely have to use a captain’s choice on him, as Rahm will not have Lots of opportunities to earn qualifying points during this time. playing on the LIV Golf circuit.
“I’ve said it many times, I’m not going to the Spanish Open for glory or anything else,” Rahm said. “I think it’s my duty to Spanish golf to be there, and I also want to play [at the Andalucia Masters] in Sotogrande. At this point it would be almost a disservice not only to me, but also to Spanish golf, by not letting me play.
“So yeah, that’s why we’re trying to talk to them and make this happen. I would love to be able to play all these events.”
The Ryder Cup will take place next September at Bethpage Black in New York. The Europeans overthrew the United States last year in Rome.
Even though Donald has plenty of time to assemble his team – and the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund is still in negotiations with the PGA Tour and DP World Tour, so things could change at any time – Donald said he was ready to bring Rahm. in the fold next fall. Rahm just has to follow the rules like everyone else.
“I’ve had many conversations with Jon,” Donald said earlier this month, via Golf Digest. “He absolutely knows what the problem is. When he signed for LIV, he knew what the policies of the DP World Tour were. He must compete in four events during a season to be eligible. And he can pay the fines, or he can appeal like some guys did. It’s really up to him to do that. I really hope he does and becomes eligible. He certainly mentioned during the PGA Championship that he was willing to do whatever it took to commit to me and the team.
