Xander Schauffele has shared his thoughts on Jon Rahm’s decision to leave LIV Golf, offering a measured response as uncertainty continues to surround the Spaniard’s next move.
Rahm’s departure has become one of the biggest developments in professional golf this week, with the two-time major champion deciding against joining LIV Golf’s proposed new version of the league. His decision has also reopened the debate over whether players who left the PGA Tour should be welcomed back.
Speaking to reporters after the third round of the Baycurrent Classic in Japan, Schauffele suggested Rahm was simply making the decision he believed was best for his career.
“He’s clearly done whatever’s best for himself just like all of us,” Schauffele said.
Rahm’s future, however, remains unclear. His lawyer, John Beck, told a bankruptcy hearing that the Spaniard’s team was in advanced discussions to finalise a termination of his LIV Golf contract. The proposed agreement is expected to determine his next steps as the league attempts to rebuild ahead of the 2027 season.
A return to the PGA Tour is one possibility, although there is no guarantee Rahm will be offered the same route available to Brooks Koepka earlier this year. Rahm previously declined the Tour’s returning-member programme, while Bryson DeChambeau and Cameron Smith also turned down the opportunity.
Schauffele acknowledged that he did not know whether the PGA Tour had offered Rahm another opportunity to return.
“I don’t know if the Tour has offered him a spot like they had that window before,” he said. “He’s just doing whatever he thinks is best for himself.”
The DP World Tour could provide another option for Rahm as he considers his future. However, his relationship with the European-based circuit has been complicated, and the terms of any potential return remain uncertain.
Schauffele was also asked whether he believed the PGA Tour would eventually reach a compromise with players who joined LIV Golf. His response suggested there is no clear consensus among Tour members on how returning players should be treated.
“There are 225 guys with Tour cards and if you sat down and interviewed all of them, you’re going to get probably three or four boxes of how guys feel,” Schauffele explained.
“Some guys don’t care, some guys are really ticked off, some guys want them to have a huge fine, some guys would let them back tomorrow.”
The two-time major champion admitted that he was still unsure where he personally stood in that debate.
“Where I stand in those boxes, I don’t really know. I’m in the sort of, I try to mind my own business most times.”
Schauffele’s comments carry additional context given his own history with the LIV Golf split. He is understood to have rejected an offer to join the breakaway league in 2022 and has previously criticised the PGA Tour’s handling of the situation.
Following the announcement of a framework agreement between the PGA Tour and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund in 2023, Schauffele questioned the leadership of then-commissioner Jay Monahan, saying he had lost trust after the developments.
Now, with Rahm preparing to leave LIV Golf and the league facing major financial and organisational challenges, the question of how former LIV players might return to established tours remains unresolved.
For Schauffele, there is no straightforward answer. While some players may support immediate reinstatement and others may demand significant penalties, the PGA Tour has yet to outline a new pathway for Rahm.
The Spaniard’s next move could have major implications for his career and the wider golf landscape, but Schauffele has made it clear that he is not ready to take a definitive position on what should happen next.
