Jon Rahm deals double blow to Rory McIlroy as Spaniard celebrates LIV Golf exit in style

Jon Rahm is finally a champion on the DP World Tour again. The two-time major winner celebrated his long-overdue exit from LIV Golf by putting on a show at the Abu Dhabi Championship on Sunday. In the first of the lucrative DP World Tour play-offs, Rahm was back to his brilliant best, carding rounds of 65, 67 and 66 over the first three days. Then, with pressure coming from Rory McIlroy, Rahm shot a flawless final round 67 to take the prestigious title by two strokes from fellow former LIV star Tyrrell Hatton. Rahm has not won outside of LIV since his 2023 Masters glory and has been without a European Tour victory since November 2022. But he put a tough year behind him to clinch glory in Abu Dhabi and will hope to perform well again at next week’s season-ending DP World Tour Championship, where he has won three times before. An emotional Rahm said: “It means a lot. I’m still almost not letting myself believe it. It’s been quite a while since I played good in a DP World Tour event.  “In my last showing [the BMW PGA Championship], I think if we don’t count the withdrawals, I think I finished last. “So from last to first, it is a pretty good feeling!”  Asked if he feels like this win will usher in a new beginning in his career, Rahm said: “One could say that.  “After everything that’s gone on, and some poor play, and some battles mentally, with a lot of noise, to come back out after a little bit of rest after having a new baby, it’s quite special. “I only wish they [my family] were here to celebrate with me. “I’m looking forward to [next week] and hopefully I can finish the year with back-to-back wins Rahm’s win has dealt a double blow to his Ryder Cup teammate McIlroy despite him coming third this week. McIlroy now has 11 top three finishes in his last 13 starts at the Abu Dhabi Championship but still no win despite shooting a record-breaking 63 on Friday . McIlroy pushed hard throughout the weekend but couldn’t reel in Rahm and missed out on the title while also causing himself a headache in the Race to Dubai standings. Top ten on Race to Dubai 1. Eugenio Chacarra (Spain) – 4,243.79 2. Rory McIlroy (Northern Ireland) – 3,709.86 3. Patrick Reed (USA) – 3,528.62 4. Casey Jarvis (South Africa) – 2,892.98 5. Aaron Rai (England) – 2,560.15 6. Jon Rahm (Spain) – 2,525.15 7. Jayden Schaper (South Africa) – 2,445.79 8. Ryan Fox (New Zealand) – 2,427.52 9. Daniel Hillier (New Zealand) – 2,351.25 10. Jacob Skov Olesen (Denmark) – 2,111.49 The Grand Slam champion is hoping to win a record-equalling eighth Order of Merit crown on the European Tour this season. But Spain’s Eugenio Chacarra, who came T22 in Abu Dhabi this weekend, leads the way in the standings and only a McIlroy win on Sunday would have seen him jump into top spot. McIlroy will now need to out-perform Chacarra in Dubai next week if he is to snatch the Race to Dubai title on the final day of the season. Rahm is now in contention for the title too while Patrick Reed, Casey Jarvis and Aaron Rai are also in the mix. McIlroy said: “It was a week where I had my chances, I just couldn’t keep my momentum going but it was a good week. “I saw some encouraging signs in my game. I’m going to be in that final group going out [at the DP World Tour Championship] on Thursday next week.  “Obviously, I would have loved to have won the tournament, but [there are] enough positive signs to feel good about going into next week. “I’m excited for it.” Chacarra added: “Well, I mean, it’s hard, you know, Rory is the number two player in the world and the number one in Europe and he’s been doing it for a long time. “He plays really good out in Abu Dhabi and Dubai. He’s played that course a million times and I only played it once you know. So either way it’s going to be tough. “Obviously I’m from Spain, I’m rooting for Jon, so hopefully he can get it done and he’ll help me towards the Tour next week. “We’ll play golf. I know what I’m capable of. We know that I’m playing good. Like I said, there’s a lot of good this week, but I just need to sharpen that to have a chance next week.” The $10million DP World Tour Championship at Jumeirah Golf Estates will get underway on Thursday.