Jon Rahm has withdrawn his appeal of the sanctions placed on him by the DP World Tour.
Rahm has racked up more than $2 million in fines for competing in “conflicting events” as a member of LIV Golf, and refused a conditional release deal offered by the DP World Tour last month, opting to continue appealing the fines in hopes of coming to a solution that better fits his schedule. Then, last week, Rahm withdrew that appeal, as first reported by Golf.com’s Sean Zak and confirmed by Golfweek on Friday.
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That appeal is what has kept Rahm eligible to compete in DP World Tour events and, most importantly, be a member of the 2025 European Ryder Cup team, for which he played a pivotal role in defeating the U.S. at Bethpage Black in September. Now, Rahm’s status as a member of future European Ryder Cup teams appears to be at greater risk than ever before.
More: Lynch: Won’t anyone tell Jon Rahm he’s not the victim in his own mess?
Jon Rahm of Legion XIII acknowledges the fans at the first green during day one of LIV Golf Singapore at Sentosa Golf Club on March 12, 2026 in Singapore.
Players can maintain their DP World Tour membership while competing on different tours so long as they play in a minimum of four non-major DPWT events. It’s the reason stars like Rory McIlroy or Justin Rose remain in good standing with DPWT despite spending most of their time on the PGA Tour.
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But for members of LIV Golf, that minimum requirement is higher. The eight players who accepted the terms of the conditional release back in February, including Tyrell Hatton and Thomas Detry, agreed to play between six and eight non-major DPWT events — as well as pay any outstanding fines and withdraw any active appeals — in order to keep their status as DPWT members. Rahm turned that deal down.
“I don’t like the conditions,” Rahm said on March 3 during a press conference ahead of LIV Golf Hong Kong, which he went on to win. “They’re asking me to play a minimum of six events, and they dictate where two of those have to be, amongst other things that I don’t agree with. If we just go based on that — I’ve been a dual member my whole career, PGA Tour and DP World Tour. Now with LIV Golf being accepted in the world rankings as part of the ecosystem, you could almost say a three-tour member, even though I’m suspended from the PGA Tour.”
One day later, DP World Tour CEO Guy Kinnings responded: “I think it’s pretty straightforward,” he said. “[Rahm] either withdraws an appeal and settles fines or he goes through the appeal process — and that process is underway — and then we’ll obviously then have to go with whatever the decision is made in that appeal hearing.”
Well, now that process is null and void, because Rahm has withdrawn his appeal. But he remains steadfast in refusing to pay the fines and agree to the elevated minimum requirement the DPWT laid out when the eight other LIV players accepted the conditional release. Rahm believes those terms are unfair.
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“I don’t know what game they’re trying to play right now, but it just seems like in a way they’re using us to — they’re using our impact in tournaments and fining us and trying to benefit both ways from what we have to offer,” Rahm said in that same news conference on March 3. “In a way, they’re extorting players like myself and young players that have nothing to do with the politics of the game. So I don’t like the situation and I’m not going to agree to that.”
It’s worth noting that Rahm wasn’t the only one who turned down that deal. Golf.com reported that Dean Burmester and Branden Grace did, too, but they’re South African, so the Ryder Cup element is irrelevant to them. In turn, those two resigned their DP World Tour membership. Rahm did not, meaning the standoff continues and one of the parties — either Rahm or DPWT — will have to waver in order for Rahm to play in the 2027 Ryder Cup at Adare Manor in Ireland.
Earlier this month, Rory McIlroy called it a “shame” that Rahm is refusing to pay the fines and risking his eligibility to remain a stalwart of the European Ryder Cup team. In January, McIlroy made a plea to Rahm and Hatton to bite the bullet and settle up. “We went really hard on the Americans about being paid to play the Ryder Cup,” McIlroy said. “We also said that we would pay to play in Ryder Cups. There’s two guys that can prove it.”
Hatton did, in a way, but Rahm is standing his ground.
Rory McIlroy and Jon Rahm of Team Europe celebrate following victory at the 2023 Ryder Cup at Marco Simone Golf Club on October 01, 2023 in Rome, Italy.
“That statement would make a lot more sense if all 12 of us were being asked to pay, not only just the two of us,” Rahm said. “There’s more intricacy that goes into this whole situation, right? While I understand why he’s saying that, we all do it for the love of the game, it’s a different situation than what we usually see.”
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Rahm seems to take more issue with the minimum requirement of events than he does with the fines.
“I did tell them, funny enough, ‘Lower that to four events, like the minimum says, and I’ll sign tonight,’” Rahm said. “They haven’t agreed to that. I just refuse to play six events. I don’t want to, and that’s not what the rules say.”
At the moment, Rahm’s focus lies with LIV Golf, where he’s off to an excellent start to the 2026 season, having finished top-5 in all four events with a victory in Hong Kong. His game seems to be in great form with less than three weeks until the Masters, where he’ll look to capture his third major title. But the saga with the DP World Tour still looms over his head, and it doesn’t appear to be ending anytime soon.
This article originally appeared on Golfweek: Jon Rahm withdraws appeal of DP World Tour fines, standoff continues
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