“Not real golf”;”was it in his contract”: Fans react to LIV Golf asking if Jon Rahm is the LIV golfer of the year
Jon Rahm had an extraordinary debut on LIV Golf. He won two tournaments, finished in the top-10 ten times, and was named the individual champion of the 2024 season.
Based on these results, it is no surprise that LIV Golf asked its followers on X (formerly Twitter) if Rahm should be considered the circuit's player of the year. It is an award that the breakaway league has not given out in either of the last two seasons.
Fans had mixed reactions to LIV Golf's post. Some joked that Rahm was contractually stipulated to win the "player of the year" award while others claimed that the Greg Norman-led circuit is of lower quality.
One user wrote:
"Not real golf"
Another user commented:
"Was it in his contract"
Here are a few other reactions from fans on X:
"Did I have an almond butter and jelly sandwich yesterday? I sure did. Still though, no one cares," one fan posted.
"Absolutely meaningless," another user wrote.
"Perhaps but he doesn't cut it if he was a professional golfer on a real tour," another fan opined.
"MVP & Rookie of the Year!" another commented.
Jon Rahm joined LIV Golf in December 2023. At the time, he was considered one of the best players in the world and was ranked in the top 3 in the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR). He won four PGA Tour tournaments in 2023, including a Major (the Masters Tournament).
Why could Jon Rahm be the LIV Golf player of the year?
Jon Rahm was very dominant in his rookie season on LIV Golf. While his first win did not come until the penultimate event of the 2024 season (United Kingdom), he did not finish outside the top 10 in any event.
Rahm's results included two wins (United Kingdom and the Individual Championship), one runner-up finish (Greenbrier), three third-place finishes (Mayakoba, Adelaide and Nashville), one fourth-place finish (Miami), one fifth-place finish (Jeddah), two eighth-place finishes (Las Vegas and Hong Kong), and two 10th-place finishes (Singapore and Andalucia).
The only event where Rahm did not finish in the top 10 was in Houston. The Spaniard was forced to withdraw due to a foot injury, which also forced him to skip the 2024 US Open.
Rahm arrived at the individual championship in Chicago to battle Joaquin Niemann for the season's individual title. The Chilean was a strong contender in the first two rounds but the Spaniard pulled away in the final round to win the title by three shots.
His results in the season's Major championships were not as impressive as those on LIV Golf. He finished T45 at the Masters, was cut at the PGA Championship, and had his only top-10 finish at the Open Championship (T7). He also tied for 5th in the 2024 Paris Olympics.
With the LIV Golf season complete, Rahm has played in two DP World Tour events to date. He finished second at the Open de España and tied for seventh at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship.