A Struggling Champion
Jon Rahm, the Spaniard known for his fierce competitiveness and occasional outbursts, has found himself in a challenging position. When he’s frustrated with his performance, he often swears in English, which might seem odd given his Spanish roots. However, this behavior reflects the internal conflict he’s facing as he tries to reconcile his current form with the peak he once achieved.
Is Rahm still one of the top players in the game? Most would agree that he is, but the question remains whether he’s close to his former self or what he could have become. This uncertainty is highlighted by his recent performances at the Masters, where his scorecards have been underwhelming.
During his third round at Augusta National, Rahm was not among the early starters, a polite way of saying he was an also-ran. While others were thrilled to make the cut, Rahm, who was the pre-tournament favorite and 2023 champion, struggled to find his rhythm again on Saturday.
After his first-round 78, Rahm spoke about needing a “miracle” to turn his week around. A day later, he admitted only a “heck of a round” might save his week. He finished an hour before Rory McIlroy even began, carding a 73, which meant he went backwards. This decline raises questions about his career trajectory since joining LIV in late 2023.
The £400 million deal he signed with LIV is a subject of debate. Some argue it was a strategic move, while others see it as a mistake. At 31, Rahm’s prime years are passing, and his relevance among the elite has diminished. His results on major stages have been a mix of nostalgia-based predictions and reality checks.
Despite this, Rahm is not a bad golfer. His major finishes since the end of 2023 include a T45, a cut, an injury, T7, T14, T8, T7, and T34. Objectively, this is a strong record, but everything is relative. In 2021, when he won the US Open, he was never lower than eighth in a major. In 2023, he won the Masters and finished second at the Open and 10th at the US Open. That was his level, supported by 17 other titles between 2017 and 2023 on the DP World Tour and PGA Tour.
Rahm’s slide from a player expected to battle with McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler is unmistakable. He performs well in smaller fields and gentler courses of LIV, where he has been excellent in 2026. However, there are too many faded stars on his day-to-day tour.
When asked about his performance, Rahm denies any issues, as he did rather tetchily on Friday. He has also denied rumors of “buyer’s remorse” since moving to LIV. His teammate Tyrrell Hatton dismissed these assumptions as “media bull****,” but many in golf believe otherwise.
A senior figure on the DP World Tour mentioned this under the grand oak tree outside the Augusta clubhouse. Rahm’s agent has been there most days, raising questions about whether Rahm has privately questioned if they were right to sign the biggest deal of all.
Brooks Koepka and Patrick Reed have quit LIV recently, and there’s no certainty that Bryson DeChambeau will get the $500 million he’s requesting to stay beyond this year. If he leaves, where does that leave LIV? And where does it leave Rahm, who has committed to this concept through 2027?
For now, Rahm is in no-man’s land, stubbornly committed to a nonsensical row with the DP World Tour over unpaid fines. His place in the next Ryder Cup, where his stock is enormous, remains in peril if he doesn’t back down.
We tried to discuss this with him earlier in the week, but he met us with a minor protestation that he was here to talk about the Masters. The place where many of us, including myself, tipped him to win. But he let a few thoughts slip and offered an assurance he will be at Adare Manor in 2027, albeit to some surprise from the Tour with whom he is currently squabbling.
To watch him play golf is still to get reminders that he can play shots like few others. Also, he is a massive draw to galleries wherever he competes.
But this third round was sad and summed up somewhat by his final hole, where for the third time in a handful of hours he shouted ‘fore right’ off the tee before playing his next shot from an awkward stance under a bush. There was magic in the pitch over sand that gave him an eight-footer to save par, and there was an inevitability that he then missed the putt.
That, sadly, has been the story of his week and much of the past three years.
When he wrapped up, he had little to say. “I came in with the same expectations I come into any other major, any other tournament – not any higher or lower,” he said. “If I knew the why, two things: I’m probably not going to say it right now, and I would have tried to avoid it if I knew.”
He sounded confused. As are all the onlookers who swear by memories of what he could do in the not-so-distant past.
