Golf-Rahm explains decision behind LIV exit, has not talked to PGA Tour about potential return

FILE PHOTO: Golf - European Tour - BMW PGA Championship - Wentworth Club, Virginia Water, Britain - September 17, 2026 Spain's Jon Rahm in action during the first round REUTERS/Matthew Childs/File Photo

Nov 3 (Reuters) - Former world number one Jon Rahm ⁠said on Tuesday that he walked away from LIV Golf because he was unhappy with the proposed changes for the ⁠breakaway circuit's next iteration, adding that he has not talked with the PGA Tour about a potential return.

Rahm, one ‌of LIV's highest-profile signings and whose arrival was announced in December 2023 when he was the reigning Masters champion, said there were simply too many unknowns surrounding LIV 2.0.

"I can only reflect on those three years as a positive. It was a wonderful experience. Played a lot of good golf. Obviously individually and as a team, ​we did great," Rahm, in his first public comments since his decision to ⁠leave LIV last month,told reporters ahead of this week's ⁠Abu Dhabi Championship.

"As much as I liked the project and the idea on, let's say, LIV 1.0, I wasn't thrilled with the ⁠changes ‌they were doing to 2.0 and I just wasn't willing to follow that path, right."

LIV Golf is currently trying to emerge from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection with a restructured ownership model and a proposed new investment arrangement with BC Partners Credit. Rahm is ⁠among a wave of high-profile golfers who have left LIV Golf since it ​filed for bankruptcy protection in September.

It was ‌during a bankruptcy hearing last month that an attorney for Rahm told the court the two-times major champion independently reviewed ⁠the proposed terms of ​LIV 2.0, determined they were unacceptable and decided he would not be participating going forward.

Rahm, who won the season-long individual title each year he competed on LIV, said he plans to play on the Europe-based DP World Tour in 2027. He has yet to speak with the PGA Tour to see if ⁠there is a path back for him next year but is willing ​to accept penalties to do so.

The Spaniard was one of four players who were eligible for the PGA Tour's returning member program in January, a limited-time offer that was offered to golfers who had won a major or The Players Championship since 2022 and came with stiff financial ⁠penalties.

Brooks Koepka took advantage of the offer and it came at a cost, with the former world number one facing a five-year forfeiture of potential equity in the PGA Tour's Player Equity Program, representing an estimated $50 million to $85 million loss depending on his performance and tour growth.

"I don't know what is in store for us. We know what they did with Brooks. This is different circumstances," said Rahm. "I don't ​know what things are going to look like. But it's a pretty good safety net to ⁠have that I can play the DP World Tour next year, and if it comes to that, I'm really excited to play for a ​full year."

When asked if he would accept the same terms that Koepka agreed to, ‌Rahm was clear.

"Most likely, yeah. Why not? Yeah, but it's a big ​if. I seriously doubt I get offered the same deal that Brooks did," said Rahm. "But yeah, if I got offered exactly the same penalties as him, I probably would do it, yes."

(Reporting by Frank Pingue in TorontoEditing by Christian Radnedge)

Thank you for your report!

资料照片：高尔夫 - 欧洲巡回赛 - 宝马PGA锦标赛 - 英国弗吉尼亚沃特温特沃斯俱乐部 - 2026年9月17日 - 西班牙选手琼·拉姆在首轮比赛中。路透社/马修·查尔兹/资料照片

11月3日（路透社）——前世界排名第一的琼·拉姆周二表示，他离开LIV高尔夫是因为他对该巡回赛下一阶段的拟议改革感到不满，并补充说他还没有与PGA巡回赛讨论过回归的可能性。

拉姆是 LIV 最受瞩目的签约球员之一，他的加盟是在 2023 年 12 月宣布的，当时他是卫冕大师赛冠军。他表示，LIV 2.0 存在太多未知因素。

“我只能说这三年是积极的。这是一段美好的经历。我打了很多精彩的高尔夫。显然，无论个人还是团队，我们都做得非常出色。”拉姆在决定离开LIV后首次公开表态，他在本周阿布扎比锦标赛前告诉记者。

“虽然我很喜欢 LIV 1.0 这个项目和理念，但我对他们在 2.0 版本中所做的改动并不满意，我也不愿意走这条路，对吧。”

LIV Golf目前正试图通过重组所有权模式和与BC Partners Credit达成新的投资安排，摆脱破产法第11章的保护。自LIV Golf于9月申请破产保护以来，拉姆是众多离开该公司的知名高尔夫球手之一。

上个月的破产听证会上，拉姆的律师告诉法庭，这位两届大满贯冠军独立审查了LIV 2.0的拟议条款，认为这些条款不可接受，并决定他不会继续参加。

拉姆在参加LIV巡回赛的每个赛季都赢得了赛季个人冠军，他表示计划在2027年参加总部位于欧洲的DP世界巡回赛。他尚未与PGA巡回赛联系，了解明年是否有重返PGA巡回赛的途径，但他愿意为此接受处罚。

这位西班牙球员是今年 1 月符合 PGA 巡回赛回归会员计划资格的四名球员之一。该计划是一项限时优惠，面向自 2022 年以来赢得大满贯赛或球员锦标赛的高尔夫球手，并附带严厉的经济处罚。

布鲁克斯·科普卡接受了这一提议，但代价是，这位前世界第一将面临在 PGA 巡回赛球员股权计划中五年内丧失潜在股权的风险，根据他的表现和巡回赛的发展情况，预计损失金额在 5000 万美元到 8500 万美元之间。

“我不知道未来会怎样。我们都知道他们对布鲁克斯做了什么。现在情况不一样了，”拉姆说道。“我不知道事情会如何发展。但明年我可以参加DP世界巡回赛，这算是一个不错的保障。如果真能如此，我非常期待能打满一整年。”

当被问及是否会接受与科普卡相同的条件时，拉姆的回答很明确。

“很有可能。为什么不呢？当然，但这只是个假设。我非常怀疑我能拿到和布鲁克斯一样的条件，”拉姆说道。“不过，如果条件和他完全一样，我可能也会接受。”

（弗兰克·平格多伦多报道，克里斯蒂安·拉德内奇编辑）

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