Ryder Cup group chat reaction when Jon Rahm sent LIV Golf message sums PGA Tour stars up
Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton were star performers at the Ryder Cup last year as Europe regained the iconic trophy, but within a few months they both defected to LIV Golf to the surprise of teammates
Shane Lowry has lifted the lid on what went down in the European Ryder Cup group chat as Jon Rahm informed his teammates he was quitting the PGA Tour for LIV Golf.
Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton played a massive part in Europe’s triumph over the Americans at Marco Simone Golf & Country Club in Rome in October, but within a few months, they had turned their backs on the PGA Tour and signed mega-money deals with LIV Golf.
Reigning Masters champion Rahm joined in December on a deal believed to be worth in excess of £400million, and world number 17 Hatton followed on the eve of the new LIV season earlier this month. The pair have put their Ryder Cup futures at risk as a result of the move, with European players required to be active members of the DP World Tour to be included when Luke Donald’s team defends their title at Bethpage Black in New York next year.
Lowry has revealed Rahm and Hatton informed their Ryder Cup teammates from Rome of their decision to join LIV Golf before their moves were made official and the Irishman has given an insight into how the players responded to the news.
“Rumours were big at the time and we were all talking about it individually, and then Jon put a message into the group telling us. Some guys were like ‘Whatever’,” Lowry told Fore Play. “I was like ‘Whatever, that’s your choice. Just don’t go there and kind of s*** on the tours like some people did. Go there and go gracefully and do what you have to do.
“Tyrrell was the same. It was disappointing to see them go and it’s kind of weird that you’re not going to play a tournament with Jon and Tyrrell until the Masters.
“It’s a strange time in golf, so as long guys go and go gracefully and don’t tell everyone how bad the PGA Tour is and how bad the European Tour is, because they’re not. They’re still great tours and we do very well out of professional golf. I wish they wouldn’t go, but it is what it is.”
Lowry took a dig at several LIV players in his comments, with many taking a parting shot at the PGA Tour on the way out of the door. Phil Mickelson and Sergio Garcia were among the players who slammed the American-based circuit upon joining LIV, creating a deep feeling of resentment for several PGA Tour members.
However, the 2023 European Ryder Cup team were clearly a tight-knit group. And while they weren’t jumping for joy to see two players leave for LIV Golf, it sums up the personal connections they formed that Lowry and co. were understanding of their decisions.
Tthe 2019 Open champion’s comments are indicative of the rapidly changing landscape in elite golf. Hostility between both sides of the LIV-PGA Tour divide has faded, with the majority of players eager for the authorities to find an amicable solution to reunify the game.
The narrative has turned to whether LIV players should be penalized upon their return to the PGA Tour once an agreement between the rival tours is sealed. Rory McIlroy, once the PGA Tour’s most passionate defender, has dramatically changed his stance, insisting he would have no issue with LIV players being welcomed back for certain events.
Other players, including Justin Thomas and Rickie Fowler, however, disagree, believing LIV players should pay the price for their actions if they are to tee it up on the PGA Tour again.
