Fraud & a Sellout’: Jon Rahm Finds Zero Love From Fans as $566.4M Shocker Invites Criticisms Again

Completing a year in your career generally means people congratulating you on covering a milestone. Yes, generally. But Jon Rahm is one of those odd outliers whose one-year anniversary as a LIV golfer isn’t exactly being met with celebrations from golf fans. After a remarkable career, including holding the world number one spot in the Official World Golf Ranking as a PGA Tour pro, Rahm made the bold decision to jump boats. On December 7, 2023, he announced he was joining LIV Golf, and let’s just say, it didn’t exactly go unnoticed in the golf world, with many even labeling him as a traitor…

The recent instance of the same came after Golf Digest posted a photo of the golfer on X on December 7, asking, “What are your thoughts on Jon Rahm a year after his move to LIV Golf?” And, as expected, the focus was soon shifted toward his supposedly “terrible decision”. But before we get to that part..

Rahm reportedly signed with the Saudi-backed tour for a mind-boggling $566.4 million. And thanks to the same, he ranked as the second-highest-paid athlete (behind Cristiano Ronaldo) globally by Forbes this year. “Rahm’s decision to join LIV Golf last December has been enormously lucrative..,” the publication had noted in its report.

But if you ask the former PGA Tour star, it has never been about the money. Well, at least initially. In a conversation with Golf.com in 2022 amid rumors of a LIV Golf inclusion, Rahm had noted, “Money is great, but when [my wife] Kelley and I started talking about it, and we’re like, ‘Will our lifestyle change if I got $400 million?’ No, it will not change one bit. Truth be told, I could retire right now with what I’ve made and live a very happy life and not play golf again. So I’ve never really played the game of golf for monetary reasons. I play for the love of the game, and I want to play against the best in the world.”

However, a few months later (after leaving PGA Tour), there was a slight change in his tone when addressing the move. “I think dynamics started to change and there was a lot of division at that time. And yes, for me to want to change, there had to be reasons beyond the money, right? So when I said that [in June 2022] I fully meant it and it was true.”

“Now, when they slap you with a large amount of money in your face, your feelings do change. I try not to be a materialistic person, but I do owe it to my family as well to set them up for success the best I can, and having kids I think changed that quite a bit. So the money is a part of it; I’m not going to lie. But again, when I said that, I wasn’t fully aware of what I was saying because you don’t really understand.” Rahm made his LIV debut at the Mayakoba event on February 2 this year, leading his Legion VIII team to victory.

However, it wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows. Rahm faced a suspension from the PGA Tour, and his Masters performance was underwhelming, finishing T45 after a challenging weekend. Though he grabbed two victories in LIV events — one in July at LIV Golf UK and another in September at LIV Golf Chicago — neither of these wins set the golf world on fire the way some of his PGA Tour performances had in previous years.

Having said that, Rahm had a pretty big year outside of golf, too. He and his wife welcomed their baby daughter, which led him to cut back on his tournament schedule in the latter part of the year. His focus shifted more toward family and a balanced life, which many fans, even those critical of his LIV move, can likely respect.