On the surface, for the second year running there appeared to be plenty of respect shown towards LIV golfers competing at The Masters.
However, according to Jon Rahm, who won the title in 2023 before signing for LIV Golf eight months later, that wasn’t necessarily the case.
The Spaniard had a largely disappointing time at Augusta National as he attempted to become only the fourth player to win the title back-to-back. In the end, he had to settle for T45, but that wasn’t the only thing that appears to have left a slightly sour taste in his mouth.
In an interview with Spanish daily newspaper El Mundo, Rahm revealed there had been some less-than-friendly reactions to his appearance at the Major. While Rahm didn’t name names, he said: “Yes, I have noticed hostile attitudes, but I expected it. My friends have continued to be my friends, but some with whom I had a very cordial relationship have not even looked at my face. These are things that happen.”
Despite the attitude of some towards Rahm, he admitted he had been expecting it, continuing: “I knew what was going to happen but I didn’t know who.“
It wasn’t all bad, and Rahm revealed after his final round that there had been some warmth shown to him by the patrons. He said: “It's been nice to have some receptions walking up to some tees no matter what my score was and seeing the appreciation.”
Still, that clearly wasn’t the case across the board in what was Rahm's first appearance alongside PGA Tour players since his big-money switch in December.
Before his move, Rahm had been one of the PGA Tour’s biggest defenders amid the LIV Golf threat and even said before the 2022 Genesis Invitational: “I don't do this for the money, which to me is the only appeal to go over there.”
However, two months after signing a deal rumored to be north of $500m, he admitted that money had influenced his decision. He told Golf.com’s Breakthrough: "When they slap you with a large amount of money in your face, your feelings do change.
"I try not to be a materialistic person but I do owe it to my family as well to set them up for success as best as I can, right. And having kids I think changed that quite a bit. So yeah the money is a part of it, I’m not gonna lie and say no, it is.”
Whether that change of attitude played a role in Rahm’s reception not being wholly positive at Augusta National is unclear. However, it seems that, with a deal between the PGA Tour and the Saudi Public Investment Fund behind LIV Golf still not agreed 10 months after they came to the table, the fractures in the game, as Rahm has experienced, still have some way to heal.
After Rahm's final round, he also addressed what had gone wrong on the course, saying: "There's a lot of things that contributed to me not having my best week, and one of them I think was obviously on the greens, which is not easy.
"Never really had the pace of the greens, and a couple too many three-putts. That's the easiest way to fix it, but that's, I think, very subjective to this golf course and the conditions we're playing on."
