In this Issue

1. 💥 Jon Rahm rocks the golf world

   • Rahmbo signs with LIV Golf

   • Reaction to the news

   • Where to next?

💥 Jon Rahm rocks the golf world

Rahmbo signs with LIV Golf

Jon Rahm, the number three ranked player in the world, has rocked the golfing community by signing with LIV Golf for the 2024 season and beyond. Details of the deal are not 100% clear, but it seems the value is somewhere in the vicinity of $600m, with a cash component of $300m, and a further $300m made up in equity of a new team that will be captained by Rahm. In explaining his decision, Rahm said that money was obviously a factor so that he can provide for his family, but the innovation that LIV Golf has invested in along with the team play aspect and growing the game globally were vital considerations in getting him to move. In a further sign of the significance of the deal, Rahm’s major sponsor, Callaway, will be coming to LIV with him and apparently also taking some equity in Rahm’s new team. This is a big deal if true, and other manufacturers must be considering similar moves to boost their LIV presence (after many initially boycotted LIV in support of the PGA Tour).

The announcement was made via a variety of channels including Bret Baier on Fox News, an interview with David Faherty on LIVGolf Plus, and also leaks through various social media accounts to front run the formal announcement. A collection of these social media accounts (which many in the US golf establishment have called “LIV Bots”) were given select details to publish ahead of time. Given the significance of the Rahm’s potential move on the world golfing landscape, it was difficult to know the reliability and accuracy of what these accounts were putting out, but in the end, they were right and the two main accounts who broke the scoop were Flushing It and LIV Golf Updates. Kudos to those two for being on the mark.

Reaction to the news

The reaction to the news has understandably been very mixed. And it seems the reactions are largely based on whether one wants the PGAT to remain the dominant force in world golf or whether an evolution beyond this is required for the game to thrive. Notwithstanding, there has been heavy scrutiny (justified) of Rahm over his prior comments that strongly pledged his “fealty” to the PGAT and expressed his disapproval of the LIV format - “it’s not real golf” he said.

For those in the US Golf Establishment, there have been many chicken littles - “the world is ending”. The reactions have largely been forlorn, depressed, and the common narrative is that pro golf is ruined. A few have turned this depression into optimism by flipping their perspective and predicting that Rahm’s signing with LIV will be the catalyst the PGA Tour needed to finally crunch a deal with the Saudis and create a global golf league. Interestingly, the PGAT has been pretty silent in response to the news.

For LIV and international golf fans (outside the US), The reaction has largely been “bring it”! These people want to see more of the best players competing more often on a global basis. They see the potential that this signing has for creating a global golf league and the momentum that the 2024 season can generate with a player of Rahm’s calibre leading up a new team.

As for the governing bodies in Australia, the PGA of Australia and Golf Australia, there has been absolute silence. It's been amazing to see how these two bodies are stuck with their heads in the sand. Their historic allegiances to the PGAT and the PGA of America have hamstrung them as the global golf landscape has changed dynamically. It's time for a rethink about future allegiances for these governing bodies. LIV has the money and the willingness to invest in global golf, including in Australia - something that the PGAT has failed to do.

It has been eye opening to see even the harshest LIV and Saudi critic, Golf Channel’s Brandel Chamblee, call for the PGAT to lock in the Framework Agreement with the PIF. "I hope the LIV deal goes through now. It's obviously the best thing for the PGA Tour” he said on the Dan Patrick Show. For those that have seen Brandel’s earlier diatribes, he has been adamant that none of the Saudi’s “blood money” should be allowed into golf under any circumstances. Well, it certainly seems he's changed his tune following the announcement of the Rahm deal.

Where to next?

It seems inevitable that there will be more big signings to come from LIV. For starters, Jon Rahm needs to fill his new team and we think it's very unlikely he would have agreed to make the move without a couple of other big-name players coming with him to join his team. The current scuttlebutt is that Tony Finau and Tyrell Hatton are close to signing deals (apparently Finau might have some legal and financial trouble that a big sign on bonus with LIV could solve pretty quickly).

The framework agreement between the PGA Tour and LIV is supposed to be finalised by 31 December 2023. But it is hard to imagine how this realistically happens in the current environment. Big Jay and Yasir are due to meet this week to thrash out the details. Things might be a little tense in that meeting! Stay tuned as things continue to develop from here.

Liked this Newsletter?

If you enjoyed this read or other issues of The Shank Show, can we ask for your help in growing our community of Shankers. If would consider passing on this issue to your golfing mates and encouraging them to subscribe using the button below, that would help us greatly.

Thanks again for your support and readership. We’ll be back later in the week with our usual issue. But we’ll leave you with a recap on Rory’s view of LIV Golf just over 18 months ago...😲