Before Judging Jon Rahm Consider What He Carried to Wentworth

Jon Rahm shot 78-77 at Wentworth and finished last.

There is no way to soften those numbers, nor should anyone try. Rahm made three birdies in 36 holes, offset them with 10 bogeys and two double bogeys, and left a tournament where his four previous finishes had been second, tied for second, fourth and tied for 13th.

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Golf has spent several years turning nearly every score posted by a LIV star into evidence for or against the league.

That argument can wait. Rahm’s week raised a more immediate question: How well could anyone perform while his professional life looked like this?

Nine days before his opening 78, LIV filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Most of the league’s staff had been laid off. Rahm was owed millions, his playing contract was part of a court filing and the proposed replacement for LIV had not yet secured his public commitment. The PGA Tour was not offering another special return path.

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None of those questions had an answer when Rahm arrived at one of the DP World Tour’s biggest events.

It does not excuse 78-77. It helps make 78-77 understandable.

Beyond the Scorecard

What Jon Rahm Carried to Wentworth

An Employer in Bankruptcy

LIV filed for Chapter 11 protection nine days before Rahm’s opening 78.

Millions Still Owed

Court materials listed Rahm as an unsecured creditor owed approximately $7.4 million.

A Contract in Court

His playing agreement appeared among those LIV wanted permission to reject.

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No Simple Next Move

Rahm had not committed to LIV’s replacement, and the PGA Tour was not planning another special return path.

The human point: None of this assigns a stroke to distraction. It explains why one of the world’s best golfers may not have arrived with all of his attention available for golf.

Sources: LIV restructuring case docket, LIV’s restructuring announcement and Reuters reporting.

Golf Does Not Grant Mental Privacy

Golfers do not get to place the rest of their lives in a locker before walking to the first tee.

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Three decades of coaching have reinforced how much the game asks of a player’s attention. The target, lie, wind, start line and shape of the shot must be sorted out before the club moves. Then the player has to accept what happened and do it again. A clear mind does not guarantee good golf. When attention is split, every part of that process asks a little more.

A golfer can lose his concentration without anyone in the gallery noticing. He gets over the ball a fraction early. The last bogey follows him into the next fairway. By the time he begins checking his backswing or ball position, the mistake may have started before the club ever moved.

Wentworth gave Rahm almost no room to drift. He found bunkers, lost a tee shot out of bounds and made bogey or worse on one-third of the holes he played. His Friday round began with an outward 40 when only a low score could keep him in the tournament.

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Across 36 holes, the reset never came.

Rahm did not speak to reporters after missing the cut, so nobody outside his team knows where his mind was. He has not connected his play to LIV’s problems. This is not a diagnosis of his mental state.

Rahm’s status does not change the way attention works. His talent did not have to disappear for his concentration to be less than complete.

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A PGA Coach’s View

Golf Gets Harder When Attention Goes Elsewhere

DecisionCommitment to the target and shot shape can weaken before the swing begins.

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RoutineA player can hurry familiar steps when frustration or outside concerns compete for focus.

RecoveryThe previous mistake can survive into the next shot instead of being left behind.

PatienceA golfer may chase a quick correction when the round needs acceptance and discipline.

Rahm has not said LIV’s turmoil affected his concentration. These are ways divided attention can show up in tournament golf, not claims about his private mental state.

The Business Problem Became a Player Problem

LIV’s crisis was no longer an industry story by the time Rahm reached Wentworth. It was sitting inside his contract and his bank account.

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The league had laid off most of its staff after the Public Investment Fund ended its backing following the 2026 season. LIV then entered Chapter 11 on Sept. 8. Court materials listed Rahm as an unsecured creditor owed approximately $7.4 million, and his agreement was among those the league wanted permission to reject while attempting to reorganize for 2027.

Before the tournament, Rahm offered the only answer available to him.

“There’s a long legal process they have to go through before a lot of things fall into place,” he said.

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For a tour professional, those unresolved pieces touch everything: where to play, which events can be entered, what existing obligations remain and whether the next version of the league deserves another commitment. PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp had already said the Tour was “not currently contemplating” another returning-member program. A rejected LIV agreement would not automatically give Rahm another home.

Rahm has made generational money. That does not mean he would ignore $7.4 million in a bankruptcy filing or feel indifferent about who controls the next stage of his career.

If a PGA professional learned that his employer had dismissed most of the staff, entered bankruptcy, owed him money and wanted to discard his contract, nobody in the golf business would expect the next week to feel routine. Rahm has more resources than nearly anyone in that position. He still has to process the position.

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Other LIV golfers are carrying their own versions of it. Contracts, unpaid compensation, future schedules and access to other tours do not resolve themselves because a player has a tee time. The disruption will not affect each player in the same way, but all of them must manage it while trying to compete.

Wentworth Did Not Erase Rahm’s Season

Rahm’s recent golf gives no reason to declare that his game disappeared. He tied for second at the PGA Championship in May, won twice during his first six LIV starts of 2026, finished runner-up at Indianapolis and secured a third consecutive LIV Individual Championship.

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Then he finished last at Wentworth.

The result did not erase the rest of Rahm’s year, and it does not need to become a grand statement about what LIV did to him as a golfer.

He played terribly during a week when the business supporting his professional life was coming apart. Rahm has not said the turmoil affected him, so the story cannot make that leap. The circumstances still belong in any fair reading of the week.

My opinion is simpler. When a player’s mind is being pulled toward lawyers, contracts, money and an uncertain future, playing great golf becomes harder. Major champions are not exempt from that. Neither are the other LIV players now trying to determine what comes next.

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Rahm’s 78-77 was shocking because of how good he is and how well he had played at Wentworth. Given everything he brought there besides his golf clubs, it was not impossible to understand.

Keep the Result in Proportion

A Terrible Week Is Not a Diagnosis

Rahm’s 2026 Before Wentworth

• Tied for second at the PGA Championship

• Two victories in his first six LIV starts

• Runner-up at LIV Indianapolis

• Third consecutive LIV Individual Championship

Rahm at Wentworth

• Three birdies in 36 holes

• Ten bogeys and two double bogeys

• Last in the 140-player field

The fair reading: Rahm’s game had not disappeared. A world-class player produced a dreadful result during a week filled with unusual professional uncertainty.

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Sources: Golf Monthly’s Wentworth reporting, LIV’s Indianapolis leaderboard and 2026 season results.

PGA of America Golf Professional Brendon Elliott is an award-winning coach and golf writer who serves as Athlon Sports Senior Golf Writer. Read his recent “The Starter” on RG.org, where he is their Lead Golf Writer. To stay updated on all of his latest work, sign up for his newsletter or visit his MuckRack Profile.

Related: Celli and Elvira Lead at Wentworth, but McIlroy Will Move First

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Related: LIV Bankruptcy Could Free Stars, but a PGA Tour Return Must Be Earned

This story was originally published by Athlon Sports on Sep 19, 2026, where it first appeared in the Golf section. Add Athlon Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.