PGA Tour star Jon Rahm is reportedly close to accepting an offer from LIV Golf that will blow away the record-breaking deal MLB superstar Shohei Ohtani is expected to get this winter.
Over the last couple of years, there have been some huge sums of money being thrown around in professional golf. However, it has not been the PGA with bigger winnings for Tour events. LIV Golf is backed by the absurdly wealthy Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund and they have been giving out shocking signing bonuses to lure away PGA stars since 2022.
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The wild money the fund has thrown into making LIV equal with the legendary tour is part of why the two golf leagues became bitter rivals and a major reason why the Tour gave in to the idea of a merger earlier this year instead of fighting a losing financial battle for years to come. But that merger seems no closer to being completed despite it being announced months ago.
With the merger up in the air and a December deadline looming, it has opened the door to the yearly question of more PGA stars defecting to LIV if the rivalry restarts. While there has not been nearly the level of movement that there was in 2022, anything is always possible when LIV can make insane offers.
Jon Rahm could get a deal from LIV that is $100 million more than potential Shohei Ohtani contract
Last month, reports suggested that the third-ranked golfer in the world, Jon Rahm, had recently been pursued by the PGA’s rivals, but they failed to land the 2023 Masters champion. However, things may have changed as we near the February start of the 2024 LIV Golf season.
Late last week, golf insider Alan Shipnuck claimed “In recent days Phil [Mickelson] has been telling folks that Rahm signing with LIV is a done deal.” The long-time reporter also claimed that the LIV star shares an agent with Rahm, however, he is a diehard loyalist to his new employer and his suggestion has to be taken with a grain of salt.
It surely would take an obscene amount of money to make the Spaniard leave the PGA in his prime for LIV, and reports following Shipnuck’s X post claim that number may be as much as $600 million. If true, that would likely be over $100 million more than Los Angeles Angels free agent Shohei Ohtani is expected to get in MLB free agency.
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The two-time American League MVP and two-way superstar has been linked to a potential $500 million deal, and that likely would be for 10 years. Rahm’s deal will probably be for a shorter amount of time which makes the yearly rate just as wild as the total he would get from the Saudi-backed league.