Jon Rahm came to Wentworth hoping the West Course would offer some refuge from the noise surrounding his career. Instead, the BMW PGA Championship delivered the worst 36-hole stretch of his professional life, and the reality check arrived in the harshest possible way: dead last, by three shots, in a $9 million field.
Golf reporter Jamie Kennedy captured the brutal scale of it in a post on X as Friday’s second round unfolded: “Jon Rahm is currently 141st of 141 players in the field at Wentworth. 10 over par and 3 shots worse than anyone else in the field.”
By the time he signed his scorecard, the numbers were even starker. Kennedy followed up with the final tally: “Rahm’s worst week as a pro? Shoots 78-77 to finish 11-over. Currently dead last by three shots. His 155 total for two rounds is his worst 36-hole score in 253 total events as a professional.”
The collapse started on Thursday when Jon Rahm shot a 6-over 78, tying his highest single-round score on the DP World Tour. He made just one birdie all day, on the par-5 12th, along with five bogeys and a double bogey. He finished the round tied for 136th, just one shot ahead of last place.
Friday did not bring any improvement. Jon Rahm shot another 5-over 77 to finish at 11-over for the tournament. Today’s Golfer called it the worst score of his professional career. At the time he finished, Rahm was at the bottom of the 140-player field. He made 10 bogeys and two double bogeys over his two rounds, a shocking result for a two-time major champion. Yahoo Sports also reported that Rahm did not speak to the media after Thursday’s round, noting that not many players would have done so after such a difficult day.
The reaction from fans was swift, and much of it circled back to the same theme: his time with LIV Golf.
“Love Rahm and at one point he was my favourite player on tour. His career took a nosedive when he went to Liv and I hope he can turn it around,” one fan wrote.
Another was harsher about the broader principle at stake: “And this is why the LIV guys should not be given the invite. Great players trying to carve out a living on the tour… cast aside for the once decent pro’s who walked out on the tour.”
A third summed up a common theory bluntly: “That’s what LIV does. Pays them to show up, and they lose their edge.”
Others pointed to the financial chaos swirling around Rahm specifically, with one writing, “It seems like all the money he’ll lose from Liv bankruptcy is playing on his mind,” while another took aim at his continued sponsor ties: “his ego still allows him to wear his bankrupt company’s logo.”
Not every reaction piled on one fan pushed back on the pile-on itself: “Out of 144. While Rahm’s week was terrible, I hate the revisionism that ignores players who actually did worse by WDing,” a fair point given that Daniel Brown had actually been sitting in the projected last-place spot before withdrawing from the tournament entirely, technically leaving that “infamy,” as Golf Channel put it, to Marcel Siem instead.
There is some reason behind the fans’ concerns. Rahm’s putting has been very different depending on the tour. He currently ranks No. 1 in strokes gained putting on LIV Golf, but he is 32nd in the same stat on the DP World Tour. That difference was clear at Wentworth, where missed chances on the 6th and 15th holes hurt him badly. Yardbarker also pointed to Rahm’s recent results in non-LIV events, which read missed cut, 23rd, 46th and 36th before this week. His LIV future is also still unclear.
Before last week’s Irish Open, Rahm said, “I still have a contract with LIV 1.0 that I’m more than willing to fulfill,” even as LIV Golf goes through Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
There are also factors away from golf that could have made this week harder for Rahm. He and his wife, Kelley, are expecting their fourth child in the coming weeks.
Wentworth’s West Course has also been difficult for many players, with narrow fairways, tricky slopes and fast greens. Brooks Koepka and Tommy Fleetwood also missed the cut. Still, Rahm’s latest result stands out because of his recent form. He finished last after shooting 78-77, with a 155 total over 36 holes. With $1.53 million going to the eventual winner, Rahm leaves Wentworth with more questions than answers about his game and whether he can find his best form again.