“The way I see it is it's simply my duty” - Rahm on private jet rescue
Jon Rahm hits his shot from the eighth fairway during the second round of HSBC LIV Golf Hong Kong. Photo by Jon Ferrey/LIV Golf
Jon Rahm can recoup the cost of sending a private jet rescue to seven LIV Golf colleagues from the Middle East after grabbing a share of the lead heading into the final round at LIV Golf Hong Kong.
The Spaniard carded a five-under 65 at Fanling to share top spot with Harold Varner III and Belgium’s Thomas Detry as he seeks his first individual LIV Golf victory since 2024.
Detry and Rahm’s Legion XIII teammates Caleb Surrat and Tom McKibbin were among the seven who took the private charter organised by Rahm earlier this week after they were left stranded in the UAE in the wake of the US-Israeli conflict with Iran.
“Well, if it wasn't for him, I don't think I'd be here,” Detry said after carding a 66 to join Rahm and Varner III on 17 under. “It's in a way a little bit funny that way.
“But listen, we're both competitors, and he's done it for his teammates. He's done it for the league. It's amazing what he did, and he's a good friend of mine, as well.”
Rahm said he felt obliged to do something to help his colleagues.
“The way I see it is it's simply my duty,” said Rahm, who will pocket a cheque for $4 million if he wins on Sunday.
“I was raised with certain values, that if you have the ability and capability of helping somebody, especially in a scenario like that where my main focus essentially was getting them out of there, not necessarily playing a tournament.
“I remember telling Caleb earlier in the week, how about you forget about playing the tournament and we focus on getting you to safety, and then we'll see if you can get to Hong Kong.
“With the ever-changing environment, it looked kind of dark for a second. For a second, at one point, if they went through a different extraction plan, they were going to go to Europe.
“I was trying to help people in Spain to get them set up to practice in Spain. It looked like coming here was going to be hard.
“But yeah, here they are. Never thought they would be able to come. It's amazing that so many of them are safe and that's the most important thing.”
As for ending his victory drought, Rahm is looking forward to the chance after finishing second in his first two starts this season.
‘You have to keep putting yourself in contention and giving yourself chances,” said Rahm, who is still refusing to sign a deal with the DP World Tour that would allow him to remain a member and play in next year’s Ryder Cup in Adare.
“As long as I'm doing that, I'm playing good golf, take advantage of the opportunities I get, but it'll come. As I'm playing solid golf, I'm hoping tomorrow I have a good Sunday and get it done.”
Varner fired a seven-under 63 to grab a share of the lead with Rahm and Detry, two clear of Mexico’s Carlos Ortiz, South Africa’s Dean Burmester and Belgium’s Thomas Pieters.
McKibbin moved up to 11th, six shots off the lead after a 66, but Graeme McDowell’s quest for his first win for six years suffered a reverse when he shot a level par 70 to slip seven behind in joint 12th.
McDowell’s Smash GC can still take the team prize as they lead by two shots from 4Aces GC.
Individual Top 10
T1 (-17) – Jon Rahm, Legion XIII (66-62-65); Thomas Detry, 4Aces GC (64-63-66); Harold Varner III, Smash GC (66-64-63)
T4 (-15) – Carlos Ortiz, Torque GC (60-66-69); Dean Burmester, Southern Guards GC (62-64-69); Thomas Pieters, 4Aces GC (68-66-61)
7 (-14) – Lucas Herbert, Ripper GC (66-65-65)
8 (-13) – Sergio Garcia, Fireballs GC (63-69-65)
T9 (-10) – Lee Westwood, Majesticks GC (67-64-67); Matthew Wolff, RangeGoats GC (65-64-69)
Team Top 3
1 (-44) – Smash GC (Varner III 63, Gooch 69, Kokrak 69, McDowell 70; Rd. 3 total: -9)
2 (-42) – 4Aces GC (Pieters 61, Detry 66, Kim 66, Johnson 68; Rd. 2 total: -19)
3 (-41) – Legion XIII (Rahm 65, Surratt 65, McKibbin 66, Hatton 69; Rd. 2 total: -15)
