Rahm ready to snap out of so-so season

Spaniard looking for a victory boost before PGA; Stray Shots considers fresh faces

Jon Rahm was all top 10s but no wins in six 2025 LIV starts (Chris Trotman/LIV Golf)

Jon Rahm has had a respectable 2025 campaign, but you can’t put an acceptable season on the mantle next to a U.S. Open trophy and a Masters green jacket.

Needless to say, solid is not what the 30-year-old Spaniard is looking for.

Six events into the LIV season, Rahm has recorded six top-10s, including a runner-up finish in Riyadh in the season opener. He has recorded 16 rounds under par, leads the league in birdies and ranks in the top 10 in greens in regulation percentage, driving distance and scrambling.

Even in all the other statistical categories, Rahm is above average, including putting (T12).

But the one category he is woefully behind is wins, not having recorded one since the season finale in Chicago last September.

In the 12 events Rahm played in as an individual in 2024, he was never outside the top 10 and had three top-3s, a runner-up finish and two victories.

“While I like having top-10s and I like being a good player week in and week out, winning obviously is what matters more, I would gladly give up some of those top-10s for more wins,” Rahm said on the eve of the seventh LIV event in Korea. “I keep playing well, I keep putting myself close enough, just every once in a while, there's been enough mistakes where I’m just not quite close enough going into the back nine on Sunday. If I can just clean that up, I know I’m playing well enough to win.”

With his talent, Rahm continues to believe that the next win is just around the corner, and it may be. However, with Joaquin Niemann (three wins) taking most of the hardware this season, Rahm knows he can’t make many mistakes and hopes he finds some luck to fill in the blanks.

“Usually, it’s very little things that can change a season,” Rahm said. “Usually, it’s one swing or one hole that can ignite a great run. Hopefully, I can do that and have a great finish to the year like I did last year.”

Rahm admitted he had not done everything he needs to do to win, and the results so far have proved him out.

“I’m just not doing everything I need to do right,” Rahm said. “Sometimes you also need a little bit of luck in your favor — not that I haven’t been lucky. I just haven’t done myself any favors on the golf course, I would say it like that. Just enough small mistakes to put myself just a little too far to be able to win.”

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Stray Shots: Risers, ratings and reconsidering

By Peter Kaufman

Let’s play stream of consciousness this week.

1. Joel Dahmen. Real men face the press, and Dahmen builds on his fan-favorite status by owning up to his Corales Puntacana collapse on the last three holes and answering press questions with candor and class.

He ranks No. 155 in the world, a drop from his high of 58th. But he is No. 1 in our hearts.

2. Andrew Novak. How is this for his last four starts: missed cut in Houston, third at Valero Texas Open, lost a playoff at RBC Heritage and won the Zurich team event with Ben Griffin. He has gone from “who is he?” to red hot and “wow!”