Jon Rahm‘s club throw at The Open sparked an immediate debate over whether he deserved a two-stroke penalty. The LIV Golf player arrived at Royal Birkdale after rebounding from a winless 2025. Although he opened with 1-under 69, his second round was shaping up to be much better. He already had four birdies and just two bogeys across 14 holes. But he made a costly mistake on the par-three 15th that resulted in a bogey. A poor tee shot was the culprit, and Rahm lost his cool.

Rahm hit a 210-yard tee shot aiming for the green. But it veered left, and he missed the green on the left, landing on the fairway. Right after hitting the shot, the Spaniard realized that he missed the green on the wrong side and tomahawked his club in frustration. The club had a first bounce followed by multiple others as spectators watched in surprise (and some amusement). NUCLR GOLF shared a seven-second clip of the moment on X and asked whether the Spaniard should receive a two-stroke penalty for it, alluding to Joaquin Niemann’s incident at the 2026 U.S. Open.

In 2026, every major organizer brought in a new code of conduct policy for players. Any golfer deemed to be in serious violation of the code of conduct can be penalized and even disqualified. The general rule says a first breach results in a warning, and a second breach will cost you strokes. But Joaquin Niemann received a two-stroke penalty at Shinnecock Hills after tossing his club some 50 yards. So should Jon Rahm have received the same penalty?

Well, the Spaniard was let go with just a warning under the Code of Conduct policy. The R&A deemed it was the first violation. The Rules Committee must assess the severity of such incidents before passing judgment. It considers the severity, intent, and impact of the outburst. After reviewing his actions, the committee issued a code-of-conduct warning to Rahm. If he does something similar during the remainder of the event, he might face a two-stroke penalty.

Rahm’s temper has become a recurring subplot. In 2026, at Aronimink Golf Club, he accidentally hit a volunteer on the shoulder with a divot after a frustrated swing. However, he later apologized and admitted that he “couldn’t feel any worse.” A year before that, he engaged in a tense exchange at Royal Portrush with a fan after they whistled during his backswing on the 11th hole. However, there’s a vast difference between Rahm’s club throw and Niemann’s.

Niemann’s incident was a serious act of misconduct for several reasons. He threw the club 50 yards away and then also kicked a spotter’s flag while the rules official was present. He got a penalty because of that severity. But what happened during the opening round of the U.S. Open invites comparison for online debates.

Golf fans demand a penalty for Jon Rahm’s actions

While the R&A let Rahm off the hook with a warning, many golf fans argued for a two-stroke penalty.

Many comments touched upon the Niemann incident.

One fan wrote, “Should it? No, but the precedent was set with Joaquin Niemann earlier this year. You have to now.”

Another said, “If that’s not a penalty, we may as well eliminate the rule now.”

Fans are asking for consistency in implementing the rules. They see both incidents in the same light and want the same penalty for Jon Rahm.

In fact, after the final-round incident with Wyndham Clark, the R&A announced The Open Commitment a few days ago, which focuses on the fan code of conduct. But apart from poor behavior, there are other things to consider.

There’s a fair distinction between the two because Niemann continued to show poor conduct even after throwing the club. His caddie also got into a heated conversation with journalist Gabby Herzig after she reported about the two-stroke penalty. Even though this happened after the penalty was given, it reflects the severity of the misconduct. In contrast, Rahm just threw his club and then went on with his round.

Some reactions went further, calling for harsher punishment than just a penalty.

“Really should be more than penalizing shots. Ban or some sort of suspension. Rahm threw the club. Could have hit someone,” wrote an X user.

While a penalty or even disqualification from an event is still possible for serious misconduct, banning a professional for throwing his club is unheard of.

While many demanded a penalty, some felt in their bones that Rahm would avoid the penalty despite the criticism.

“Yep. But it won’t be,” predicted one user, and their prediction came true.

One fan even argued that there should be no questioning or review of such an incident. According to them, any unsportsmanlike conduct should automatically warrant a punishment.

“Yes, unsportsmanlike conduct = 2 strokes,” the fan wrote.