Jon Rahm has secured his third consecutive individual season title on the LIV Golf circuit, clinching the crown after the penultimate-but-one tournament of the year in New York. A 41st-place finish at +8 in New York was enough for the golfer from Barrika, Biscay, to lock up the title with one event still to play, the season's final tournament with individual scoring, set for Indianapolis from August 20 to 23.
The New York tournament itself was won by Chile's Joaquín Niemann, who finished at -16. Niemann beat American Harold Varner III by three strokes, and finished seven shots ahead of England's Lee Westwood and Zimbabwe's Scott Vincent.
Rahm's season highlights
Rahm won twice this season, in Hong Kong and Mexico. Speaking right after the New York tournament, he said the last two weeks had not been his best, but that he was proud of how his season started. He said beginning as well as he did, with several second-place finishes before finally winning in Hong Kong, when he had the lead, largely lost it, and then made four straight birdies on the closing holes, was probably the moment he felt most proud of.
He called it a fantastic year, adding that he was still left with a bit of a bad taste from how poorly he played that week, but that it was still something to be proud of. He said that after last year, when he failed to win and there may have been a question mark over his form for the whole season, winning twice, doing so convincingly, and winning again, definitely felt good.
LIV Golf's uncertain future
Rahm, a champion in each of the three years the individual title has been contested, remains the flagbearer of a LIV Golf circuit now entering an uncertain era. The Saudi Public Investment Fund has withdrawn its substantial investment in the circuit, which was launched in 2022 and rivaled the traditional PGA and DP World tours. That situation could push some of the world's best golfers to return to those tours.
An $18 million bonus
Despite the circuit's difficult financial situation, Rahm will pocket a bonus of $18 million, or 15.6 million euros, for finishing the season as LIV Golf's leader. The prize allows the Basque golfer to surpass $100 million in career earnings for another season, keeping him the highest-paid golfer in the world.
