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Newsweek
16 hours ago
- Sport
- Newsweek
Did Jon Rahm Cross Line With Outburst At LIV Golf UK Event?
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. The dust had barely settled at the JCB Golf & Country Club when a new controversy stole the spotlight from Joaquin Niemann's fifth LIV Golf win of the season. Niemann clinched the 2025 LIV Golf UK title on Sunday, finishing at 17-under-par, three shots ahead of Bubba Watson. Niemann has been the most consistent winner of LIV Golf, but according to Rahm, he is underrated. "Nowadays in golf, due to various circumstances, I think Joaquin is severely underrated," Rahm told reporters after the 26-year-old pro's win on Sunday. But that was not the only debate through which Rahm raised discussions in the golf world again. WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, WEST VIRGINIA - AUGUST 18: Jon Rahm of Spain looks on at the 11th hole during day three of LIV Golf: Greenbrier at The Old White Course on August 18, 2024 in... WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, WEST VIRGINIA - AUGUST 18: Jon Rahm of Spain looks on at the 11th hole during day three of LIV Golf: Greenbrier at The Old White Course on August 18, 2024 in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia. (Photo by) More Getty Images A video surfaced shortly after the final round showing Rahm lashing out on the seventh tee at the JCB Golf & Country Club. After hitting a loose drive, the former Masters champion was visibly irritated. As he tried to regroup, a voice from the gallery called out, "Chin up, Jon, son!" And it boiled the blood inside Rahm. He turned and kicked a microphone placed on the tee box with his right boot. The moment, captured by @aidenward1998 and reposted by Nuclr Golf on X, quickly went viral and sparked a wave of backlash on social media. 🚨🥾🎙️ #WATCH — Jon Rahm was LIVID after his tee shot on the 7th hole found the rough at LIV Golf UK 😲 🗣️ 'Chin up Jon son!' (Via: aidenward1998/TT) — NUCLR GOLF (@NUCLRGOLF) July 28, 2025 This wasn't an isolated incident. Just two weeks earlier, during the Open Championship at Royal Portrush, Rahm snapped at a fan who whistled during his backswing on the par-4 11th hole. "Really? Whistling? Great timing. Right in my backswing. Very smart, whoever it was," Rahm said at the time. He later admitted the distraction wasn't as serious as he made it seem. "These things happen," he told reporters during his post-round conference at The Open. "It probably didn't affect me as much as I made it sound like." But fans aren't convinced. Rahm's latest outburst drew sharp criticism on X. Some fans even branded the LIV pro as "Childish." As per his performance in the latest LIV Golf event, Rahm finished T5 at 10-under-par. This helped his team, Legion XIII, secure the team title with a final score of 35-under, eight shots clear of Torque GC. But his individual performance was once again overshadowed by his temper. What do you think about the incident? Let us know in the comment section below! More Golf: Brotherly Bond Boosts Kitayama to 3M Open Win as LIV Star Calls In Caddie
Newsweek
a day ago
- Business
- Newsweek
LIV Golf Doubles Down, Reportedly Will Award Record-Breaking Purses In 2026
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. The LIV Golf tour has been in the news from Day 1 due to its substantial financial resources. It has flexed that muscle several times in player recruitment and, above all, in its sizable purses. The trend doesn't seem likely to change much. A Sports Business Journal report states that the Saudi-backed league is prepared to increase its tournament purses by 20% for the next season. This means going from the current $25 million to $30 million. Such a figure would break all professional golf records for high purses. Until now, LIV Golf tournaments were tied for first place with the Players Championship at $25 million. However, the PGA Tour's flagship event had an advantage over LIV Golf because its purse is entirely dedicated to an individual tournament, while LIV events currently allocate $20 million to that format, with $5 million as prize money for the top three teams. A flag with the LIV Golf logo is seen prior day three of the LIV Golf Invitational - Mayakoba at El Camaleon at Mayakoba on February 26, 2023 in Playa del Carmen, Mexico. A flag with the LIV Golf logo is seen prior day three of the LIV Golf Invitational - Mayakoba at El Camaleon at Mayakoba on February 26, 2023 in Playa del Carmen, second-highest purse for individual tournaments in the 2025 season was the US Open at $21.5 million, closely followed by the Masters Tournament at $21 million. The 14 individual tournaments on LIV tied for fourth place with the eight PGA Tour Signature Events, which also had $20 million purses each. But the fact is that no current professional golf event reaches a purse of $30 million, as LIV events will in 2026, according to the Sports Business Journal report. So far, there is no information available about how the LIV Golf purse distribution will be once the purses are increased. Currently, the individual events distribute its purse in the usual way in professional golf, with $4 million going to the winner and the last-place player receiving $50,000. The team event allocates $3 million to the winning team, $1.5 million to the runner-up, and $500,000 to the third-place finish. Teams in fourth through 13th place receive no prize money. Recently, The Telegraph reported that LIV Golf will suspend its practice of paying player fines imposed by the DP World Tour, effective after the Ryder Cup. The league is estimated to have spent about $20.3 million on this issue so far, with an additional $13 million to be added for the Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton cases. More Golf: Lottie Woad Sends Powerful Five-Word Message Ahead Of Women's Open
Daily Mirror
2 days ago
- Sport
- Daily Mirror
Jon Rahm's true character on show for all to see after wild shot strikes LIV Golf fan
Jon Rahm issued an apology after a wayward tee shot flew towards LIV Golf spectators before striking a fan in the stomach, adding the the Spaniard's woes at the JCB Golf and Country Club Jon Rahm was compelled to swiftly apologise during the second round of LIV Golf UK on Saturday, after his tee shot at the par-four 12th struck a spectator. Rahm was back at JCB Golf and Country Club with hopes of defending the title he clinched 12 months ago. However, he was ultimately unable to do so, with Joaquin Niemann taking the top spot by the end of Sunday's play with a total of 17-under-par. For context, that's three strokes clear of tournament runner-up, Bubba Watson, and seven strokes ahead of Rahm, who settled for T5 alongside Dean Burmester. One of the tournament's biggest talking points, however, came when Rahm attempted to take on the drivable par-four 12th on Saturday, before his teeshot veered astray from the target. A rare overdraw saw Rahm's tee shot lag far left of the green and towards a group of spectators, reports the Mirror US. The ball ended up hitting one fan in the stomach, who was taken by surprise despite Rahm and tournament officials shouting fore. Luckily, the affected spectator seemed fine but did display some bruising to the TV cameras afterwards. There was a silver lining for his mishap, as Rahm showed his true character by first apologising before giving the fan a signed glove. The pair laughed off the incident and shared a handshake, with the Legion XIII star thanking him for stopping his ball in its tracks. In classic Rahm style, the Spanish golfer managed to recover quickly, executing a brilliant up-and-down from the dense JCB rough. It came among six birdies for the European Ryder Cup veteran on Saturday, though he remained considerably adrift of Niemann for the duration. The Chilean's commanding performance effectively crushed Rahm's chances of retaining the crown he claimed in 2024, which came as his first LIV triumph, as he edged out his Legion XIII team-mate Tyrrell Hatton to secure the £3million jackpot. Despite crossing the finish line first, Rahm confessed the victory felt somewhat hollow when reflecting on it last week, given Hatton's final-hole blunder. He said: "In a weird way, it's always going to be a bittersweet memory because I don't know if there's been many cases where two team-mates have gone at each other to win the individual title and then go on to win the team title as well, and you never want to see a teammate and a friend make a mistake on the last to win. "In a weird way, as much as I like that I won here, it's not something that I can celebrate in that sense, just because it was such an unusual circumstance. "It's one of those things that happen in LIV, and as we get better, as the league gets better, I think it's something that's going to happen more and more often." Rahm, who holds two wins on the LIV circuit in total after doubling down at LIV Golf Chicago last year, will now turn his attention to the final two singles events of the season as he hopes to finish strong in the league standings. The breakaway circuit lands at the Bolingbrook Golf Club for LIV Golf Chicago between August 8 and 10, before LIV Golf Indianapolis plays out at The Club at Chatham Hills a week later. The LIV Golf Team Championship then takes place at The Cardinal at Saint John's, Michigan, between August 22 and 24.
Arab News
2 days ago
- Sport
- Arab News
Niemann, Legion XII rule LIV Golf UK by JCB to maintain dominance in 2025
ROCESTER, England: On a day of familiar winners but high drama, Torque GC captain Joaquin Niemann and Jon Rahm's Legion XIII exerted their dominance Sunday at LIV Golf UK by JCB, continuing the winning form that keeps them atop the season-long standings. Niemann won for a record fifth time this season, shooting a 3-under 68 to finish at 17 under and hold off a spectacular back-nine challenge from RangeGoats GC captain Bubba Watson. Legion XIII won their second consecutive and fourth team title of the year, this time led by their youngest player, 21-year-old Caleb Surratt, who earned the first podium finish of his LIV Golf career. With the three-shot victory, Niemann extended his lead in the individual points race to 37.64 points over Rahm and now can clinch the individual championship at next month's LIV Golf Chicago on Aug. 8-10. Niemann becomes the first player to win five times in a season; the 26-year-old from Chile now has seven LIV Golf wins, most of any individual player. 'If I play my best game, I know I can win,' Niemann said. 'I think that's the only thing that kind of matters for me, is to find that A-game more often.' After entering the final round with a six-shot advantage, Niemann admittedly didn't have his A-game on Sunday, but his steady play allowed him to build his advantage to eight shots with 10 holes to play. That's when Watson, the 46-year-old from Florida, produced the best six-hole stretch in LIV Golf history. It started with a birdie at the par-3 ninth when his tee shot landed inside 3 feet. He then eagled the par-5 10th with a brilliant driver off the deck on his second shot that finished inside 6 feet. He followed with birdies at the 11th and 12th hole, then used another driver off the deck at the par-5 13th to set up another eagle from 21 feet. He finished the amazing stretch with a birdie at the par-3 14th from 12 feet. 'It's almost like you black out,' Watson said. 'When that stretch happens, you're just kind of unconscious, right? One of those moments, an hour-long stretch, that was unbelievable. … That was crazy. Throwing in the eagles with two drivers off the deck was pretty special, pretty spectacular.' Watson's 8-under stretch allowed him to move within two shots of the lead going into the par-4 15th. That's when Niemann responded with a terrific approach shot from 140 yards off a difficult lie in the rough, followed by a 5-foot birdie putt that stemmed the tide and gave him some much-needed breathing room. 'I never thought he was in the picture,' Niemann said of Watson. '(Then] he started making those moves, started making a big charge, and I was in a way feeling a little bit more uncomfortable with my lead. … Was able to hit a great shot on 15. That put me back into my place.' Watson ultimately shot 65 to finish solo second at 14 under, while Surratt also shot 65 to finish another stroke back, the best individual results for each player since joining LIV Golf Surratt's play was especially important on the team side, as it sparked Legion XIII to produce another final-round rally with a cumulative 14-under total on Sunday to win by eight strokes over Torque, with Rahm also shooting 65 to tie for fifth. Not only was it Surratt's first-ever top 10 finish on LIV Golf, it was the first time he had led his team in scoring after a tournament. 'It means a lot,' Surratt said. 'Shows me a lot. It's very hard to be at the top of the leaderboard out here, especially for the first time … To be able to do it on a day where I knew it was going to be really, really hard means a lot to myself.' Said Rahm: 'Getting his first top 10 and finishing third is a big deal, a big week.' Legion XIII has now won two consecutive tournaments, and their lead is 46.66 points over Crushers GC. Rahm's team has the opportunity to guarantee itself the top seed in the Team Championship with a good result in Chicago. As for Niemann, he's close to wrapping up the most successful regular season by any player in LIV Golf's young history. Only Rahm or DeChambeau can catch him for the championship now. 'Obviously I want to win the season,' Niemann said. 'I think there is a lot of golf to play yet. Jon, we know how good of a player he is, also Bryson. 'There is not much I can think about other than worry about what I'm doing, how I can improve and get better and play my best golf for the next two weeks. I feel like that's all I'm worrying about it right now.' TEAM SCORES Here are the results and scores for each team after Sunday's Rd. 3 of LIV Golf UK by JCB: 1. LEGION XIII -35 (Rahm 65, Surratt 65, Hatton 70, McKibbin 70; Rd. 3 score: -14) 2. TORQUE GC -27 (Niemann 68, Muñoz 69, Pereira 71, Ortiz 73; Rd. 3 score: -3) 3. STINGER GC -26 (Burmester 66, Oosthuizen 66, Schwartzel 66, Grace 69; Rd. 3 score: -17) T4. FIREBALLS GC -23 (Ballester 65, Garcia 68, Puig 69, Ancer 71; Rd. 3 score: -11) T4. CRUSHERS GC -23 (Lahiri 64, DeChambeau 69, Casey 71, Howell III 71; Rd. 3 score: -9) 6. RIPPER GC -17 (Smith 67, Herbert 70, Leishman 70, Jones 73; Rd. 3 score: -4) T7. CLEEKS GC -14 (Kaymer 67, Bland 68, Meronk 69, Kjettrup 75; Rd. 3 score: -5) T7. HYFLYERS GC -14 (Ogletree 69, Steele 69, Tringale 70, Mickelson 72; Rd. 3 score: -4) 9. SMASH GC -9 (Gooch 66, Kokrak 68, McDowell 70, Koepka 73; Rd. 3 score: -7) 10. RANGEGOATS GC -6 (Watson 65, Uihlein 67, Campbell 70, Wolff 71; Rd. 3 score: -11) 11. 4ACES GC -5 (Reed 66, Varner III 68, Pieters 71, Johnson 75; Rd. 3 score: -4) 12. MAJESTICKS GC -3 (Horsfield 69, Poulter 72, Stenson 72, Westwood 74; Rd. 3 score: +3) 13. IRON HEADS GC +7 (Na 66, Jang 67, Kozuma 69, Lee 74; Rd. 3 score: -8)
Arab News
4 days ago
- Sport
- Arab News
Niemann, Grace, Meronk tied for individual lead at LIV Golf UK
ROCESTER: Similar to last season, Joaquin Niemann entered this week's LIV Golf UK by JCB as the season-long points leader, with Jon Rahm in hot pursuit. The Torque GC captain is determined to write a different ending this time. For the latest updates, follow us @ArabNewsSport Niemann, a four-time winner this season, shot a bogey-free 65 on Friday at JCB Golf & Country Club to grab a share of the first-round lead with Cleeks GC's Adrian Meronk and Stinger GC's Branden Grace. The trio are one shot ahead of Majesticks' co-captain Lee Westwood, RangeGoats' captain Bubba Watson, and Niemann's Torque teammate Carlos Ortiz. The team leaderboard is also tightly bunched at the top with defending UK champions Legion XIII tied with Stinger and Torque at 11 under. Six other teams are within five shots of the lead. Rahm won the individual UK trophy for his first career LIV Golf victory a year ago, using it as a springboard to catch Niemann for the season-long Individual Championship in the regular-season finale. Niemann entered this week with a 15-point lead over Rahm and is now in a great position to build on his advantage, as Rahm shot an even-par 71 and is tied for 32nd. Crushers' captain Bryson DeChambeau, who is in third place in the standings, is tied for 11th after a 68. Based on projections after Friday's first round, Niemann would leave England with a 44-point lead, which would mean he would be guaranteed pole position in the standings going into the regular-season finale, LIV Golf Indianapolis, to determine the Individual Championship next month. Niemann, who birdied four of his first six holes, said: 'I'm in a really privileged situation to be on top of the rankings and being chased by Jon and Bryson. It just makes me a better athlete. I like that pressure.' Unlike Niemann, the other two players who share the lead are fighting different battles. Grace has spent most of the season in the drop zone (49th and below in points) and facing relegation while battling wrist problems, but the South African has found his form recently. He tied for fourth earlier this month in Andalucia, a result that moved him out of the drop zone, and he continued his fine play with a round that started hot (three birdies in his first four holes) and ended the same way. Meronk, meanwhile, returned to the kind of form on Friday that secured him the season-opening tournament in Riyadh. His 65 was his best score, relative to par, in his last 25 LIV Golf rounds. The Polish star, who finished with four birdies in his last five holes, said: 'Finally, I'm enjoying myself on the course and playing good golf again, which is quite exciting. 'It's great to be back in this position, and I'm really looking forward to this weekend and to three more tournaments this year.' Of the top eight players on the leaderboard, three are from England, led by the resurgent Westwood, the 52-year-old legend who tied an Open Championship record last week at Royal Portrush by shooting a back-nine 29. Legion XIII's Tyrrell Hatton and the Crushers' Paul Casey, the other two Englishmen on the front page of the leaderboard, are tied for seventh after shooting 67s. All six English players on the LIV Golf roster received huge support from a packed and enthusiastic gallery at JCB, which is hosting the tournament for the second successive year and will return as a host course next season. 'It feels like our home event, and it's always nice to perform in front of home fans,' said Westwood, who played with fellow Englishmen and Majesticks' teammates Ian Poulter and Sam Horsfield on Friday. The crowd was especially vocal at the par-3 14th. 'It's a fun atmosphere,' said Hatton, who tied for second last year to his captain Rahm. 'There were a lot of people there, and the music was good too. I think most of us probably enjoyed a singalong down that hole.' TEAM SCORES LIV Golf's new scoring format this season now involves all four scores counting in every round in the team competition (click here for more on the new format). Here are the results and scores for each team after Friday's round one of LIV Golf UK by JCB. T1. LEGION XIII -11 (Hatton 67, Surratt 67, McKibbin 68, Rahm 71) T1. STINGER GC -11 (Grace 65, Schwartzel 68, Burmester 69, Oosthuizen 71) T1. TORQUE GC -11 (Niemann 65, Ortiz 66, Muñoz 71, Pereira 71) 4. RIPPER GC -10 (Leishman 67, Smith 68, Herbert 69, Jones 70) 5. MAJESTICKS GC -9 (Westwood 66, Horsfield 68, Stenson 70, Poulter 71) 6. HYFLYERS GC -6 (Tringale 68, Ogletree 69, Mickelson 70, Steele 71) T7. CLEEKS GC -5 (Meronk 65, Bland 71, Kaymer 71, Kjettrup 72) T7. RANGEGOATS GC -5 (Watson 66, Campbell 70. Wolff 71, Uihlein 72) T7. CRUSHERS GC -5 (Casey 67, DeChambeau 68, Howell III 68, Lahiri 76) 10. FIREBALLS GC -3 (Puig 68, Ballester 70, Garcia 71, Ancer 72) T11. 4ACES GC E (Reed 68, Pieters 70, Varner III 72, Johnson 74) T11. SMASH GC E (Gooch 70, Kokrak 70, Koepka 72, McDowell 72) 13. IRON HEADS GC +2 (Jang 69, Kozuma 72, Lee 72, Na 73) Wildcards: Kim 72, C. Lee 75
