Jon Rahm entered for Andalucía Masters, maintains criteria to be a part of 2025 Ryder Cup
Jon Rahm's fight to maintain his eligibility for the 2025 Ryder Cup seems to have been successful. European golfers who want to play have to play a minimum of four DP World Tour events. One of the four has to be in his home country, which the Spanish Open was. Now with entry confirmed to the Andalucia Masters, he has secured all the appearances he needs in order to be eligible.
Rahm began this fight by pleading with those in power, saying that it would be a disservice to prevent him from playing the Spanish Open. He played in that event and has either committed to or played the other tournaments he needed.
Rahm also appealed the fines the DP World Tour levied against him for leaving for LIV Golf. The golfer said he wasn't a fan of the fines and hasn't paid them. As a result of his appeal, he was granted entry into the tournaments he'd asked to play.
He initially faced an uphill battle to get the needed appearances for Ryder Cup eligibility, including the birth of his child one day before the Spanish Open. However, barring an unforeseen withdrawal, Rahm will have played enough to at least be up for consideration.
It remains difficult to envision him automatically qualifying as most of the events he will play next season won't count. Brooks Koepka won a major in 2023 and still didn't automatically qualify. But as long as Rahm is eligible, he can and likely will be a captain's choice.
Jon Rahm adamant about not paying fines
When Jon Rahm defected to LIV Golf at the beginning of the year, he effectively terminated his membership with the DP World Tour. The golfer was, like others who left for the rebel tour, subject to heavy fines that have since added up.
Rahm has not been paying the fines. In fact, when he began this crusade to maintain his Ryder Cup eligibility, he insisted that he had no plans to pay them. Via CNN, he said:
“I’m not a big fan of the fines. I think I’ve been outspoken about that. I don’t intend to pay the fines, and we keep trying to have a discussion with them about how we can make this happen.”
Jon Rahm has expressed a desire to see the golf world come back together, and part of the reason is so that he and other golfers can play events they want and be eligible for international events like the Ryder Cup without having to jump through the hoops the Spaniard is currently having to go through.