GENESIS SCOTTISH OPEN

July 7, 2026

Jon Rahm

The Renaissance Club

Press Conference

BRIONY CARLYON: Delighted to be joined by Jon Rahm at the Renaissance Club for the Genesis Scottish Open.

Jon, you're a five-time Rolex Series winner, definitely have won on some links golfs, as well, in Ireland, but you come to Scotland this week. How special would it be to add another Rolex Series and a sixth in the tally?

JON RAHM: It would be very, very special. I've done very well in Ireland. Besides I think my first couple wins, I haven't played as well as I would have like. A victory on Scottish soil would be fantastic. As a European, understanding where it came from, and links golf, a list of great champions in The Scottish Open would be something that would be really, really exciting.

Q. 2022 was the last time you were here; the golf course has matured a lot in that time. Would you agree?

JON RAHM: As we know, links is very dependent on the weather we get approaching the tournament. So we have a hotter week last week is a little drier than I've seen it. But I haven't played the front nine yet because they switched it.

It doesn't look too different to me. It looks very similar. Luckily I played when they had a few of the bunkers, the ones on 1 and the ones on 10. The last time some of the rough areas had been regrassed, like right of 10 there was a little bit of a few patchy areas, which I guess is now 1, remember that. But that looks really good.

It looks a lot healthier. It looks very much grown in. And obviously as they keep having more and more events, the golf course is only going to get better.

Q. You've obviously played the DP World Tour events since you've became a LIV player. This is so-sanctioned. Does it feel any different?

JON RAHM: No.

Q. Not at all?

JON RAHM: Not really. It's just another event. Just happy I can -- happy that the DP World Tour let me have the opportunity and that I can be here and play what's not only a great week but a great golf course, great crowd. It's one of my favourite weeks, so it's really fun to be here again.

Q. Obviously when you made the change of the tours, was this one of the biggest misses that you had, this event?

JON RAHM: The biggest what? I'm trying to get used to the accent; it's been a bit.

The lad that drove me from the airport, I was a bit too sleepless on the flight, and he was very kind, and I could not understand 90 percent of what he told me on that hour drive.

It is, yeah. It is. It's such a great week that if the schedule had allowed, I think I would have tried to play. I think many of us would have tried to play.

Although I love Valderrama, it's a fantastic week, this one gets you much more prepared for The Open and that's why so many players have come and played The Scottish Open before it was a co-sanctioned event. It great to play a links golf event before a links golf event, and playing in the weather and the fescue grass and different than what we are playing year around.

Q. People are delighted to see you and David and Tyrrell and tomorrow playing against the guys again. Would it be good if we looked back on this week in a couple of years, start of a new chapter going forward, feels like this could be something quite new?

JON RAHM: Yeah, it could be. Yeah, I mean, it's a fantastic event, and I think I lot of us, if given the opportunity we are going to continue to play in the events that we like to play. Myself, very thankful and happy that I can be here.

Q. On the future of LIV, there's been a suggestion that some of you might put your own money into the prize fund for next year, maybe in return for some sort of equity. Is that a discussion you've been involved in, and do you think it is a viable option?

JON RAHM: I know Scott is doing a lot of work trying to find developers. And there's many ways around that, as far as putting my money into it, they have not asked me to do that yet. So I don't know if they will or not. It's not something that they have asked me but there has been many different avenues to try to make it different, what we've had till now. They haven't asked me to putt my money in yet.

Q. Hypothetically, if they did, would you be opposed to it or would you give it consideration?

JON RAHM: Something I've learned in life, never say never. I'm not going to say absolutely no to anything that can happen in the future.

Q. Just wanted to ask you about the U.S. Open. Seemed like it unraveled in two holes. Do you just chalk that up to golf can do that sometimes? Was that easy to move on from or how do you assess it?

JON RAHM: I think it was in four holes -- five holes. 12, 13, 14, 15.

Listen, I was 6-over in five holes. I can't chalk that up to bad luck. There's certainly mistakes that I made. The second shot on 14 is not bad luck. It's entirely my fault, right, and if you see those mistakes, I made bogeys on 13 and 14 from the fairway. So it's entirely up to me.

Obviously after looking at it, it hurts to miss a cut because I feel like I was playing good. I played the first round bogey-free, felt good around the greens. Did a lot of things in the second round as well, even to be 2-over with the great par save on 10, but even par, felt like I was in a good position.

Yeah, it's hard to get over about how quickly it feels like it happened but I definitely made some mistakes that weren't too overly difficult to identify, right. Once you analyse it, in that sense, yeah, I think you have to be vulnerable enough to admit those mistakes yourself and try to move on from that and learn.

Q. How would you assess where your game is right now going into this two-week stretch? Do you feel pretty good?

JON RAHM: Yeah, feels good. I would say the mistakes have something to do with how I'm hitting in the game, right. It's just I feel like that's one of those things that can only happen at a U.S. Open and a place like Shinnecock because it didn't feel like hit bad shots, except the swing on 14, and that's why I say it's my mistakes. If it doesn't feel that bad, I should have made a better job of minimizing some of the mistakes.

Q. What makes a good links player? And following on that, what would be the top quality of Open Champion? Like the U.S. Open, they might say someone who is tough, has more mental toughness. What would they say about the Open Champion?

JON RAHM: That would be a great question for Open Champion. It's a big difference, too, between somebody that's maybe been able to win the tournament and necessarily not have the best record on links golf and somebody who has played really good on links golf that maybe hasn't essentially become Open Champion.

I just think you need to have a great understanding of spin, trajectory, control, and how the ball reacts on the fairway and on the greens, right. You can usually, except a few holes here with some trees, where you can start the ball whatever you want, you hit whatever shot shape you feel like hitting or you can be as aggressive or as passive as you want to be.

It all depends on your ability to understand how you can hit the shot, how the elements are going to affect how the ball is going to react once it lands on the fairway, on the green. I know it sounds like a lot but essentially it comes to what I understand as trajectory and spin control, mainly on to the greens.

Q. Are you good at that?

JON RAHM: I like to think I'm good at it but you still have to do it.

Q. Have you been to Birkdale since the last time you were there?

JON RAHM: No, I have not yet.

Q. Just how important is strength of field this week? Obviously outside of a major, this is probably one of the strongest fields in the world throughout this season, and you're going head-to-head again with Scottie, Rory, Tommy, Matt Fitzpatrick with, Bob. Is that important to you this week with The Open coming up next week at Birkdale that you get used to playing again with -- and I know you're playing in LIV with some top players, but this is different, is it not?

JON RAHM: I think it's a great test for next week, yes. You're only playing the type of golf you need to be playing. You're also playing at a world-class field.

As far as strength of field goes, it does feel like you have two majors in a row without being a major, right, it's that good. It speaks to how good this event is for all these players to come in here.

Q. Has your attitude changed back to what it was, having been in LIV Golf, because it looks a lot noisier, and asking different questions of you. Do you think coming out here is very peaceful and exactly what you need before an Open?

JON RAHM: As in saying a LIV week is not peaceful? I don't understand the question. What do you mean? Sorry.

Q. LIV Golf, when I've watched it, sounds very noisy, and you know, the players are moving on run and sort of having to make out that they are having fun all the time. Now, do you come for something like this and think, "Ah, peace, perfect peace"; what do you think?

JON RAHM: I'm quite peaceful on LIV. I think the music is a lot louder on the TV broadcast than it really is on the golf course. I forget there's music going on. Obviously on first tee it's a little bit louder, but after that, I forget there's even music going on. It becomes part of the whole crowd noise and atmosphere.

If I'm being perfectly honest, the overall feeling in LIV Golf, leading up to the tournaments and the tournaments, it's a really good atmosphere, really good vibe and quite a lot of happiness.

So I don't feel any different coming to this week. Because when we're competing, it's all about, obviously, trying to shoot the lowest score possible. So sometimes takes more than a few holes for me to realise, Oh, there's no music going on.

When I'm home playing and practicing, I have music on, as well, and I forget about it. It doesn't change anything on how I approach it and how my process is on a day-to-day basis and in competition.

Q. Looking for this week and ahead to next week for links golf, is there a specific area of the game or a specific shot that you'll spend time working on this week?

JON RAHM: I'm trying to think -- not really, no. I think a lot of shots are situation-based. We'll see how the golf course is playing next week, as well.

Obviously like I told Doug, you need to have a good understanding of how you're hitting and how to create certain shots when the wind gets going.

But I wouldn't say anything special, especially different to what I have. Like you could be working on for Shinnecock, right, for a U.S. Open, it does has a linksy feel to it sometimes, a lot of people have worked -- but nothing specific no.

Q. Your first time back in four years, will you use the opportunity to get some links rounds in anywhere else?

JON RAHM: I think about it every time I come to play links golf. I've never played Muirfield, North Berwick, Gullane. At some point, I'm going have to come early enough to enjoy those golf courses because I hear nothing but good things about them.

Q. Obviously you are here this week in Scotland, and I know you committed to play Ireland, as well. In terms of of the DP World Tour, have you mapped out your schedule yet?

JON RAHM: I think I've said this a few times. I'm here, Ireland, Wentworth. I want to play Dunhill and Spanish Open but that doesn't seem like because of our due date being in October. Being our fourth, I don't think I would have time to fly back and be on time.

So most likely, most likely, miss those two. I hope in Spain -- I've already talked to them and asked, listen, if I can arrive Thursday morning, I'll tee off in the afternoon, so maybe we wait till the last moment. But then otherwise, I'll have to play most likely Abu Dhabi and Dubai. Those would be the events I have in mind.

If for whatever reason there's a change in the due date and I can play the other events, I will, but those are the five events I would like to play, including this one.

Q. We saw last week the PGA TOUR rolled out quite a lot of changes, promotion, relegation coming in; have you had a chance to look at that?

JON RAHM: I haven't even seen it. No idea. I'm not on social media. I have an account but if somebody doesn't tell me, I haven't seen any of it. What is it? I have no idea.

Q. It's quite a lot. One of the biggest ones is splitting two tours, promotion, relegation. Your thoughts on that? I know LIV have relegation and things like that.

JON RAHM: Yeah, I think it's a part of golf, right? What is it, you're going to have two different tours within the PGA TOUR and then the Korn Ferry? That's not the first time I've heard that, so it's not a surprise that that would happen.

Q. First of all, is it difficult, or maybe how difficult is it, to put yourself in the present when there are so many questions about your future?

JON RAHM: No. Maybe early on. I think at this point, seeing whatever some of the headlines that come my way, I can pretty much predict what I'm being asked. I'm ready for what is coming. It's not entirely a surprise.

Q. Did you see that one coming?

JON RAHM: No. But that one is not really a rallying question, is it.

No, I also understand it's everybody's job to do. I'm ready for it. I like to say I'm an open book, so I like to be as honest as I can.

Q. Secondly and back to the Tour schedule, I don't know to go through the details is one of the things is it end in August and leaves off-season September through December area for international play. What would you like to see?

JON RAHM: So no more fall events?

Q. There's still some fall events but nobody is going to play them and opens up either Australia, this isn't being recorded, is it? No, I'm just kidding.

JON RAHM: (Laughing.)

Q. It opens up Australia, some European events, Middle East, whatever. Looks like there's going to be opportunity. What would you like to see, in a perfect world, and some of that might be related to Spain?

JON RAHM: Yeah, so one of my complaints back in the day that was changed was that I didn't like when you finished the FedExCup that immediately seven days later they are starting a new FedExCup.

And when we show up to the Tournament of Champions, if you didn't play in the fall, you were a thousand points behind somebody. I don't feel like it's fair for the points race to start in January.

And with that said, I always played DP World Tour that time of year because it was hard for me to play else [where] earlier on because those big events in the Middle East, being in the West Coast my life, I always like those West Coast events.

So I never really went and took advantage of those big events. I had to go afterwards. So that was always, September through December was always my DP World Tour time. I never thought of adding anything else, and if we were to go back to that, I think a lot of people would think about it that way.

If there's any non-DP World Tour members that play the PGA TOUR that want to take advantage of some of their events, I think it's wonderful. Those events in Australia look unbelievable and from what I've experienced there, it's a lot of fun.

The Spanish Open, I would hope for it to become a bigger event. When I was growing up, Spain had five to eight DP World Tour events. They were all quite big. The Spanish Open had a bit of a bigger weight to it, and I think we have enough of a footprint in the history of the DP World Tour with Seve and Sergio and all that many others have done that I think Spain deserves to have a bigger event. So if that opens the opportunity for that to happen, yeah.

And I think it shouldn't be the hardest sell. If you can get the right sponsor, the right course and the right prize money, it's not that hard to go to Spain. You get good weather, good food, good night life for whoever is interested, good drinking, it produces itself in that regard.

Q. (No mic.)

JON RAHM: I can but the circumstances need to be right. The week before The Open, right -- the best time to play in Madrid is October or April, nobody is going to be doing that coming here before the Masters, all the big events you have.

In October, you're going to have to entice those non-DP World Tour players to come all the way here for a reason, right. So you need the right combination of things to happen. I'm not sure you can do it outside of somewhere preparing for a major and the timing being right. Maybe not as big -- something bigger, that could happen.

Q. Just one back on The Scottish Open. You touched on it at very beginning, the rerouting this year is slightly different than the last time you played it. I know you've not played the front nine yet but just your opinions on the change?

JON RAHM: Haven't given me a reason yet as to why they changed it. My guess is because the back nine, besides 18 and 10, so now 1 and I guess 18, is quite a ways from the clubhouse. You didn't really get as many spectators as you wanted, and now if you want, you have now 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, all very close, as much as 10 and 11.

So I think they want it to be a bit busier and easier to watch from the clubhouses and a sponsor value, I also get it for whoever Genesis brings in. It's a lot easier to follow the back nine on Sunday. It makes sense. I.

Also think it's quite a thrilling finish. Obviously you don't have the par 5 on 16 that gave quite a bit away, but with the right wind you have a possible reachable par 4, a very tricky short par 3, a long par 4 and then 17 and 18. I still think it gives it a good variety and a very exciting finish. I think it could be a really good change.

BRIONY CARLYON: Jon, as always, thank you for your time. Good luck this week.