Nick Faldo has urged Jon Rahm to “pay up” and bring an end to his dispute with the DP World Tour.
Rahm faces fines of more than £2m for playing in LIV Golf events which clash with the DP World Tour, and is not eligible for events on the European calendar or next year’s Ryder Cup in Ireland until the matter is settled.
Eight of Rahm’s fellow LIV players, including his Ryder Cup teammate Tyrrell Hatton, have accepted a deal to pay outstanding fines and commit to a certain number of events on the DP World Tour. But Rahm has refused, and although he has withdrawn his appeal against the fines, there is still no agreement on his reinstatement.
Asked whether he was confident he would play at the Ryder Cup, Rahm said: “Yes. We keep talking with the DP World Tour trying to figure out a solution that works best. I didn’t think that going the legal route and going to court was good for anybody so I have faith in us and the DP World Tour (that) we’re going to find a good solution for both of us.”
Faldo believes those European players who joined LIV Golf for vast sums of money should “be very careful”.
“The real bottom line is these guys have got to show a bit of gratitude,” said the six-time major winner. “I mean, you must be very careful: if you take six months off, golf would move on, wouldn’t it? Don’t get full of your own importance. [Rahm] is an important member to the last couple of Ryder Cups. but if he’s not there, he’s not there. Don’t get too carried away. The bottom line is that if you want to be there, pay up, my goodness.”
When asked whether he was prepared to offer a compromise, Rahm said: “I think I already have. We’ve already told them many times. We keep talking to them and we keep trying to negotiate. We’re going to work it out. It’s going to work out.”
Faldo suggested it is time for Rahm to accept the DP World Tour’s demands, and dismissed the Spaniard’s claim that he should be able to “freely player where we want”.
Faldo said: “All they’ve asked for was to play a couple of [six] designated events. You signed a contract to play LIV. You can’t say, ‘Oh, I’ll just play where I want to play’ … [They earn] a boat load of money so give back, because it’ll pay forward, it’s as simple as that.”
Rahm is still hopeful of playing in the Spanish Open, Irish Open and the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth in the autumn swing of the DP World Tour.
“As of now, the DP World Tour is doing what they need to do and following the channels they need to follow,” he said. “But I’m confident this will be sorted out before I tee it up in September.”
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