Jon Rahm told to follow golden rule by Ryder Cup teammates after LIV Golf move
Shane Lowry told Jon Rahm and other LIV Golf defectors to avoid bad-mouthing the PGA Tour upon completing a lucrative switch to the controversial series.
Last month, Tyrrell Hatton became the latest big name from the PGA Tour to defect after reigning Masters champion Rahm joined the Saudi-backed breakaway league in December. Funded by the Saudi sovereign Public Investment Fund, LIV Golf secured Rahm’s services by inking him to a deal worth up to £450 million - and Hatton followed suit with a £50m move of his own.
During an appearance on the Fore Play Podcast, Lowry explained what it’s like to receive news that a friend and Ryder Cup teammate has switched to the rival tour. The 36-year-old insisted he is OK with it - as long as they ‘go gracefully’.
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“Rumours are big at the time and we were all talking about it individually and then Jon put a message in the group chat telling us,” Lowry said on the Fore Play Podcast. “Yeah, some guys are like, ‘Whatever’. I was like, ‘Whatever, that’s your choice. Just don’t go there and kind of s*** on the Tours like some people did. Go there and go gracefully and do what you have to do'.
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“And Tyrrell, the same. I was disappointed to see them gone because it’s kind of weird that you’re not going to play a tournament with Jon or Tyrrell until the Masters. It’s a strange time in golf, so as long as guys go and they go gracefully and don’t tell everyone how bad the PGA Tour is and how bad the European Tour is because they’re not, do you know what I mean?
“They’re still great tours and we do very well at professional golf. I wish they wouldn’t go but like you know, it is what it is.”
Asked if he downvoted Rahm’s message when he said he was leaving for LIV Golf, Lowry added: “You don’t like the message obviously, but you just say yeah, whatever.”
Shane Lowry tied for 60th at the Phoenix Open earlier this month (Getty Images)Following Rahm's move, Rory McIlroy - a staunch critic of LIV - reversed his stance on golfers from the circuit playing in the Ryder Cup by calling on the DP World Tour to rewrite the eligibility rules. McIlroy had previously said LIV players should not represent Europe in the biennial competition against the United States, which will next be held at Bethpage Black in New York in 2025 - but he and Lowry have both since admitted to wanting Rahm to feature.
Rahm’s shock switch was accelerated by the stunning announcement in June that LIV Golf was set to sensationally merge with the PGA Tour. The PGA and DP World Tours announced they had a 'framework agreement' to merge with PIF, and the news sent a seismic shock around the golf world although no agreement has been finalised as talks are currently affected by US Government intervention.
Meanwhile, earlier this month, the PGA Tour approved a £2.4bn investment deal with Strategic Sports Group in a new commercial fund. SSG committed to an immediate cash injection of £1.2bn, and there is the potential for that investment to double over time.
The deal with SSG is immense and will give almost 200 PGA Tour members the opportunity to hold equity in PGA Tour Enterprises as part of a reward for staying loyal and shunning LIV Golf.
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