It seems that Jon Rahm’s one decision to sign the $500 contract with LIV Golf is costing him more than he would have expected. The deal surely made him the richest golfer of the 2024 season, but it has a possibility of taking away his chance to represent Europe at the Ryder Cup. After debuting on the breakaway circuit, Rahm did everything that would not make his European card null and void.

He fulfilled the criteria to play the four events per year to keep the membership and appealed the sanctions for not paying the fines. However, the Spaniard concluded his DP World Tour season at the Andalucia Masters. And opted that he wouldn’t play in the DP World Tour playoffs, the $9 million Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship, and the DP World Tour Championship. This decision has pushed his ranking on the European Ryder Cup standings to be below the top 10.

Notably, only the top 6 get automatically qualified for the Ryder Cup. However, according to Nosferatu, after the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship ended, Rahm is projected to be 13th on the list. The reason is that Paul Warning won the event and came in fifth. Thorbjørn Olesen finished T3 and would be catapulted to 10th at Rahm’s previous rank. On the other hand, Rahm’s teammate, Tyrrell Hatton, played in the event, finished T7 and will be leading the Ryder Cup standing.

Rahm could’ve improved his rank if he had at least teed up at the season finale, but the Spaniard wouldn’t be there either. This makes it a vicious cycle that by the time Rahm plays on the DP World Tour again for the Ryder Cup points, there will be many golfers ahead of him that he may not be able to surpass. And with the PGA Tour’s role, Rahm teeing up at the Ryder Cup may become much harder.

What does the PGA Tour have to do with Jon Rahm’s eligibility?

The PGA Tour might be the American league for golf, but it is undoubtedly the biggest golf circuit in the world. And courtesy of that, the PGA Tour entered into a strategic alliance with the DP World Tour in 2022. This alliance meant that the Tour would invest money in the European league, enhance the structure of the DP World Tour, and also help it find new sponsors for their events.

Overall, the workings of the European league are in short dependent on the PGA Tour. Highlighting the same thing, Bob Harig, the SI Journalist said that the PGA Tour provides the European circuit with a significant amount of money to help elevate the prize purse. And thus, the DP World Tour “can’t afford to upset the PGA Tour” with a decision that may welcome the LIV Golf defectors into the league without any repercussions or make an easier pathway for them to qualify for the Ryder Cup points.

So, Rahm’s decision to not play the final two playoffs may backfire as his Ryder Cup qualification will be under threat. The only way he can get ahead of everyone and get inside the top 6 is by playing for the points in the 2025 season. However, with 14 LIV Golf events, will Rahm be able to afford to add more events to his schedule? It remains to be seen.