Tiger Woods misses out on $300 million star golfer status after joining LIV
It looks like Tiger Woods and Jon Rahm aren’t ready to have coffee together anytime soon. In an interview with ESPN’s Marty Smith on February 25, 2024, Rahm revealed that he hadn’t heard from Woods since his decision to leave the PGA Tour and join LIV Golf. This is in stark contrast to Rory McIlroy, who has privately supported Rahm. Woods and McIlroy have been among the most high-profile golfers to speak out against LIV. “Rory has publicly supported my decision and has supported me privately,” Rahm said. “Tiger, no, that’s not true. Tiger, I wrote to him and to the people who tried to reach me through the signing process, and I told him, “Look, it’s a personal decision. I have nothing against anyone. »
“I want to make one thing clear: if I were allowed to do so, I would continue to support the PGA Tour and the DP World Tour. I’m not giving up and there are a lot of other events I’d probably like to play if my schedule allows. I was going to play.”
Like Woods and McIlroy, Rahm was already among the golfers who publicly committed to staying on the PGA Tour. The circumstances clearly changed after the PGA Tour partnered with LIV Golf. ESPN’s Mark Schlabach reported that Rahm’s deal with LIV Golf is worth more than $300 million.
“For more than a year, Rahm had voiced his dislike of LIV Golf’s 54-hole tournaments, no cuts and shotgun starts, saying he preferred to remain with the PGA Tour, where legends such as Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer and Tiger Woods had played before him,” Schlabach detailed in a December 7, 2023 story titled, “Jon Rahm leaves PGA Tour for LIV Golf, accepts fans’ backlash.”
“In the end, Rahm, a 29-year-old native of Spain, couldn’t pass up a multiyear contract that is worth more than $300 million, according to sources, and includes partial ownership of his new LIV Golf team. Sources told ESPN that LIV Golf is recruiting other PGA Tour players to join Rahm’s team; he declined to name whom they might be.”
Woods spoke briefly about Rahm’s departure in the days following the initial news. The legendary golfer hinted that he was a bit skeptical of the LIV rumors until they actually happened.
“There’s been a lot of talk over the years about certain players moving (to LIV Golf), but it was all speculation until it happened because there were rumors of players who would leave and players who wouldn’t leave and it never really crystallized,” Woods said in December 2023, according to Golf Channel. “We thought it was just speculation until it happened.”
Fans interested in the ongoing drama can check out the Netflix show Full Sweep. Season 2 features behind-the-scenes footage of golf’s top players learning the news of the PGA Tour and LIV Golf merger.
The latest season of the popular Netflix documentary series premiered on March 6. This season will feature star golfers such as McIlroy, Justin Thomas, Jordan Spieth, Brooks Koepka and Rickie Fowler.
