Former world No 1 Jon Rahm has rubbished Phil Mickelson 's most recent comments on the PGA Tour.
Six-time major champion Mickelson has proved a divisive figure following his move to LIV Golf, having been outspoken about the PGA Tour - the circuit he has played almost all of his career on.
His latest words came ahead of LIV's penultimate event of their maiden season last week in the Saudi city of Jeddah. The 45-time PGA Tour winner said: "I see LIV Golf trending upwards, I see the PGA Tour trending downwards, and I love the side that I’m on."
The comments drew plenty of reaction from both sides of golf's civil war, no more so than from Spanish PGA Tour star Rahm who addressed the matter at this week's CJ Cup.
The 27-year-old said: "I love Phil but I don’t know what he’s talking about. I really don’t know why he said that. There’s been some changes being made but that doesn’t mean it’s going down. I think there are some great changes being made for the tour and the players.”
Rahm has found himself at the centre of golf's ongoing saga surrounding the Saudi-backed series in recent weeks, as tensions continue to rise. The Spaniard has seemingly looked to build bridges between the two opposing sides, having been more sympathetic to LIV Golf than many of his PGA Tour colleagues.
In regard to rumours surrounding LIV players being banned from competing in the Ryder Cup, Rahm defended the corner of his LIV rivals by claiming they should still be eligible for selection. Speaking earlier this month, he commented: "The Ryder Cup is not the PGA Tour and European Tour against LIV. It’s Europe versus the U.S., period.”
And ahead of this week's tournament in North Carolina, the two-time Team Europe player elaborated on the point but this time seemed to offer a slightly different stand point. "So far, the two Ryder Cups I’ve been part of, once you’re in that environment it’s the unusual situation where everyone can be themselves," said Rahm.
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“If there’s animosity between players it’s not going to work. I don’t know if you can make that happen. I want Europe to have the strongest team we can have. You want the best players at the time, but if that includes having some bad blood or some issues I don’t know if that’s a good thing.”
A number of Europe's most important stars in recent years have made the LIV Golf switch, including Ian Poulter, Sergio Garcia, Lee Westwood and Paul Casey. Meanwhile three stars of America's record-breaking 2021 team have made the controversial move in Bryson DeChambeau, Dustin Johnson and Brooks Koepka.
