The long-running standoff between traditional tours and LIV Golf may finally be showing signs of easing. Talking into account the recent update from the DP World Tour, Jon Rahm might finally have some breathing room. For years, fines and sanctions have symbolized the DP World Tour’s hardline response to players joining the Saudi-backed league. Now, according to reports, the DP World Tour is considering dropping fines for members who compete in LIV Golf events from the 2026 season onward. Following this update, Rahm has shared his stance on the matter.

In the pre-tournament press conference of LIV Golf Riyadh, Rahm stated, “I personally would say I don’t know too much about the matter. Obviously I think at first, managers are going to be taking care of that early on. I don’t know what the negotiations look like. Obviously they’re going to players individually to make different deals.”

He further added, “I don’t know what it may be or what it’s going to look like, but I’m happy to see that looking for a path forward for LIV players to be able to play on both tours and not to get penalized.”

According to the recent report, the tour is looking to drop the fines on the LIV Golfers. However, the statement has clearly stated that previously issued penalties would still stand. Still, such a strong move from DP World Tour indeed signals a notable change in tone from a circuit which refused to engage in negotiations before. Rahm further appreciated how the authorities are looking towards an optimistic approach to resolve the matter.

Rahm, who joined LIV Golf in 2023, has been among the most high-profile figures impacted by the fine system. Previously, Rahm steadfastly refused to pay the hefty penalties imposed on him calling the deal ‘unfair’. Rahm and Hatton even launched an appeal in late 2024, which temporarily froze their suspensions. The legal game in turn gave them the scope to maintain membership and compete in the 2025 Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black.

Notably, despite facing immense criticism, the Spaniard took a stand for the new names who had recently joined the Saudi-backed league. With his penalties reportedly exceeding $3 million through 2025, Rahm has firsthand experience of the financial and legal strain that has bothered him for long.

Rahm stated, “I think the example of players like Tom or David Puig, who’s now a winner on the European Tour, who just chose the best path possible as young players, shouldn’t be penalized because of the politics of the game.”

Regarding the matter, Tyrell Hatton, too, shared his take and said, “Again, not much more to add than what he’s just said. It sounds positive, so if things are moving in the right direction, that’s good for golf. Yeah, we’ll let other people figure that out, and we’ll just focus on playing golf this week.”

Tom McKibbin, too, echoed the same thoughts. The reported plan might look to reshape how LIV players interact with the DP World Tour in the near future. While Rahm now looks seemingly satisfied with DP World Tour’s new stance, he recently expressed his dissatisfaction regarding a LIV Golf rule that made him $18 million richer.

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Jon Rahm unhappy with LIV Golf rule that helped him secure $18 million

Jon Rahm had a great 2025 playing in LIV Golf. While he did not win a single event, Rahm went on to win a whopping $18 million Individual Championship. Now, ideally, the 31-year-old must be happy about it. But speaking on a podcast, the Spaniard literally hinted at how broken the system was!

“Winning the individual doesn’t have the same weight it did last year with having not won. Having him win five times. Can make an argument there that maybe he was more deserving,” Rahm said in an episode of GOLF’s Subpar podcast. 

This was quite a harsh self-analysis, which surprisingly, was pretty legit. Rahm in 2025 ended up as runner-up on four occasions. He also clinched twelve top-10 finishes in 13 starts. Surely, the performance looks impressive. But when compared to the person he beat to win the Individual Championship, things appear quite controversial.

Joaquin Niemann had won five out of the 13 events and yet fell short by three points! In what was an inexplicable series of events, Niemann dominated and clinched 40% of LIV’s 2025 events. Yet he finished second best to Rahm. This was made possible due to the LIV Golf’s points system. Currently, the PIF-backed league awards 40 points for a win and 30 for finishing as a runner-up. And this was exactly the reason why Rahm raking up second-place finishes constantly overpowered Niemann’s brilliance. 

“When somebody wins more than a third of the tournaments, he should probably run away with it unless I finish second every week, which I didn’t,” Rahm pointed out while speaking about the flawed system. 

Thus, with the Spaniard seemingly wanting a change of rules to allow fair play, fans will be eager to find out if his wishes are granted anytime soon.