Jon Rahm talks move to LIV Golf, future with PGA Tour | SportsCenter

On SportsCenter, Jon Rahm sits down with Marty Smith to discuss his transition to LIV Golf and his future with the PGA Tour.
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How do you describe how your life has evolved over the past year oh hard to say it’s hard to say winning the Masters there’s definitely a before and after the 2023 Masters champion John Ro my life has changed quite a bit your name goes up a little bit more the

Majors been r c the Pinnacle r with another clut win for Europe the impact is bigger and you know your your status goes up a little bit Master’s champ John ROM has agreed to leave the PGA tour for the Liv Golf League ROM’s deal is believed to be

Longer than three years and worth more than $300 million why was Liv golf the right decision for you well it’s it’s a change right the best way I can explain it is live golf wasn’t a thing or a possibility for us growing up PGA Tour was the pennacle of golf

Right this is a new change a big change and I I don’t want to skip through this point because there’s no point a big change on the way the the golfers get compensated I’ll be lying if I said it wasn’t a big part of it in a nutshell

I’m getting paid more to play the same Sport and have more time I don’t know about most people that sounds great to me two years ago is when you pledged your allegiance to the tour I am officially declaring let’s say my my FIY to the PGA Tour you know I’m a pack

Member and I have a lot of belief on J Monahan and the product that they’re going to give us on the future so uh so what changed your mind from when I said that certain circumstance circumstances changed when the PJ tour and PF uh got into this agreement framework and and and

They agreed to maybe work together in the future I think it it opened my mind to well maybe I’ve been a little bit close-minded towards this and maybe I should give myself a chance right as an athlete and Entertainer I think I owe it to myself to hear the other side out and

And that’s what I did what were your biggest concerns prior to that moment I think that my biggest concern if I if you know at the point if I were to go was a little bit of negative media backlash the way I see it at the end of the day

Is if you want to let’s say improve your position on to what you think is a better position I think you’re free to go do job interviews right I have the right to do what I think is best for myself and my family period I’ve said it

Before as a father and as a husband I have a duty to set my family up best as possible not that we weren’t we’re extremely privileged people I’m aware of that but it’s my duty you talk about the negative media backlash or fan backlash or perspective part of that is the

Question or criticism about what Liv’s true intentions are the sportswashing narrative what consideration did you give to that and what do you say to anybody who criticizes that I think the fact that they’ve made an effort to be involved with the PJ tour and support

The PJ Tour all along is is a testament that they’re not there to take over and make the PJ tour go away I think it’s that simple I never knew if that was the goal or not but after talking to the people in charge I know that’s not the

That’s not the goal what have your peers said about your decision to go to live specifically Rory and tiger have you had any conversations with them Rory well I mean Rory has been supportive publicly of my decision and uh he was privately as well tiger no not really I mean

Tiger I texted him and the people that triy to reach out you know throughout the process when I signed and I just let him know hey you know this is a personal decision I have nothing against anybody I want to make one thing clear if allowed I would

Still support the PJ tour and DP World Tour I’m not giving up and there’s still some events I would love to absolutely play no doubt about it if my schedule allows I would go One play have you talked to J Monahan at all no no I I

Think he busy enough to be talking to me did being a master’s Champion make you go okay no matter what I’ve won the absolute Pinnacle achievement of golf well I didn’t want to look at it that way like I said I’m I’m very hopeful that there’ll be a path back in in into

All of those things but I can confidently say that if I hadn’t won the Masters this year I don’t know if I would have done it it definitely set me up in a position to where it’s easier to make that change and if I hadn’t won a

Major I don’t know if I would have ever done it