Jon Rahm has doubled down on his stance that LIV Golf players should be eligible to qualify for the European Ryder Cup team.
Rahm was the star performer for Europe at the 2021 Ryder Cup, despite coming out on the losing side to the US team.
The contentious breakaway LIV Golf series has caused a major division in the world of golf, with the PGA Tour forcing all players who signed with the series to resign their memberships, meaning the likes of Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau are likely to be absent from the 2023 edition of the Ryder Cup in Rome.
Jon Rahm will be hoping to fight his way onto the European team once again for next year's tournament - and he believes that his European LIV Golf counterparts should be allowed the chance to fight their way onto the team.
Jon Rahm wants LIV Golf players to be allowed in Ryder Cup
Team Europe have yet to clarify whether the likes of Ian Poulter and his fellow players on the breakaway series will be eligible for selection on the next Ryder Cup.
When asked for his stance on LIV Golf players potentially forming part of the European team, Jon Rahm said:
The Ryder Cup is not the PGA Tour and European Tour against LIV - it's Europe versus the US, period.
The best of each against the other, and for me the Ryder Cup is above all. I wish they could play but it doesn't look good.
Rahm played in all five sessions of the 2021 Ryder Cup, winning 3.5 points for his team. He currently sits just outside the automatic qualification spots for the European team, but would surely be a shoe in as one of Luke Donald's captain's picks.
26 September 2018; Golfers, from left, Sergio García, Jon Rahm and Justin Rose of Europe makes their way down the first fairway during a practice round prior to the Ryder Cup 2018 Matches at Le Golf National in Paris, France. Photo by Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile
Rahm played alongside countryman Sergio Garcia at that Ryder Cup in 2021. Garcia has since defected to the LIV Golf series, and his attendance at events on the DP World Tour has significantly dropped since his move to the Saudi-backed tour.
Jon Rahm spoke about his fellow Spaniard's situation, saying that there was still time for Garcia to force himself into contention:
It is a complicated situation for Sergio - I understand that he decides not to play, because the last time he played a tournament on the European circuit he was not received very well, although I imagine it would be different in Mallorca. In any case, there are still days left and you can still sign up.
It is hard to say whether allowing LIV Golf players to play at the Ryder Cup would cause more problems than it will solve - but Jon Rahm certainly seems to believe that they should be afforded the opportunity to qualify.
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