Jon Rahm won the Masters Tournament when he was part of the PGA Tour. However, his decision to switch to the LIV Golf League has changed the dynamics of the game moving in the 2024 season. Now, two of the players from the breakaway series will be defending the major titles. The other player is Brooks Koepka who won the PGA Championship.
What is more interesting about the 2024 season’s majors is that the first two will be defended by Jon Rahm and Brooks Koepka. The Spaniard will be back at the Augusta National in hopes of retaining the prestigious green jacket. The American golfer will be defending his PGA Championship title at the Valhalla Golf Course in Louisville, Kentucky.
How wild is it that 2 LIV players will be the defending champions at the first two majors of the season next year?
That truly feels like the biggest golf story heading into 2024. pic.twitter.com/RYjYsCBmYl
— Tour Pro ️♂️ (@OfficialTourPro) December 27, 2023
Rahm is currently ranked third on the Official World Golf Rankings. However, with his move to LIV Golf, which does not offer world points, it is quite certain that the Spaniard would slip down the rankings sooner or later.
Also, his move to LIV Golf is a massive blow for the PGA Tour. Not just in terms of losing a special talent, but also opening up the prospects of more young and skilled golfers making a switch to the cash-rich league in the near future.
Although Jon Rahm mentioned that he might have risked playing in the Ryder Cup by his move to the LIV Golf. However, he would take inspiration from Koepka, who made an entry to the US team in the 2023’s edition of the prestigious biennial event.
Will Jon Rahm be Invited to the Other Three Majors in 2024?
The Spaniard’s move to LIV Golf may have hurt his chances to get a chance to participate in the PGA Tour events and probably the Ryder Cup, but not his chances for the majors – at least for some time. Since Rahm has already won the US Open in 2021, he was exempted from playing in that particular major for the next 10 years. As of now, he is exempted from playing the third major of the season until 2031.
With his Masters victory in 2023, Rahm has booked an automatic slot at the Augusta National Golf Club for the entirety of his life. In addition to the prestigious green jacket and the trophy, he also received a five-year exemption to other three majors, the US Open, the PGA Championship, and the Open Championship. This means he will be getting invites until 2028.
With at least five years of exemption remaining in each major, Jon Rahm can hope for another major title win to get more invites in the future. Also, he would hope for the PGA Tour, the DP World Tour, and the PIF merger to go well to open further opportunities for the LIV Golf players to get world ranking points and participation opportunities in important tournaments on the leading tours.
