Jon Rahm leaves LIV Golf over ‘unacceptable’ terms as bankrupt breakaway tour’s future suffers major blow

Jon Rahm has quit LIV Golf after deeming the terms for the 2.0 version ‘unacceptable’.LIV Golf has been torn apart after the withdrawal of Saudi funding, leading to questions over the future of its stars.The organisation has reportedly informed the majority of its staff that their jobs had been terminated in August amid the increasing uncertainty shrouding the embattled tour’s future.Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) announced it would stop funding beyond the 2026 season.But the league, after filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, has secured a possible $300million (£227million) in financing from BC Partners Credit.But Rahm won’t be involved after his lawyer, John Beck, said Rahm ‘independently reviewed the terms of LIV 2.0 and determined those terms are unacceptable as to him’. Jon Rahm will leave LIV Golf after the terms for the 2.0 version were deemed ‘unacceptable’It is said that Rahm and LIV are now in talks over ‘a consensual separation agreement between Mr Rahm and LIV’.According to BBC Sport, players are not required to join LIV 2.0, even if they have agreed multi-year contracts.There is an extension for the league to discuss terms with its players, which must be concluded by October 25.Rahm has won three straight seasons in the league. ‘The funding commitment announced by PIF earlier this year will reach its conclusion,’ a LIV spokesman told Golf Digest. ‘As a result, we are scaling back operations as we transition to the next chapter of LIV Golf and work toward making LIV 2.0 a reality. ‘This week, we informed many of our colleagues that their employment under LIV 1.0 will end in the first week of September. We are grateful to our employees for their hard work and dedication in building LIV Golf, and we remain committed to supporting those affected through this transition.’ The rebel golf circuit, which launched in 2022 with the financial backing of the PIF of Saudi Arabia, paid nine-figure bonuses to lure top players like Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau and Jon Rahm away from the PGA Tour, offering $20million prize funds.But it all began to fall apart earlier this year when PIF said it would no longer fund it after the 2026 season. One event in New Orleans already was scrapped.