'It's pretty cool to hear' - McKibbin flattered by Rahm praise

Jon Rahm and Tom McKibbin at the Masters

Tom McKibbin’s LIV Golf future might be in doubt but he believes he has the game to win the Amgen Irish Open and repay Jon Rahm’s faith in him as a potential superstar.

The Newtownabbey man (23) has several years of his LIV Golf contract to run, and while he intends to honour it as things stand right now, he has a chance this week to grab his second DP World Tour win and thrust himself into contention for a Ryder Cup debut next year.

Winning at Doonbeg, where 30 mph gusts and a rainy forecast have the 138-man field bracing themselves for a brutal test, is his biggest challenge right now.

Having heard Rahm sing his praises and recently reassessed his season in a more positive light, he’s upbeat.

"The golf course seems pretty hard even without any wind," said the Holywood star, who will play alongside European captain Luke Donald and another potential Ryder Cup player in Alex Fitzpatrick for the first two rounds.

"It's blowing 30 miles an hour, so it's definitely going to be a good challenge, and it could be a long week.

The former world number 74 might be 135th in the OWGR right now, but he showed in the recent British Masters, where he was tied sixth despite making a final-round triple bogey, that he’s close to adding to his 2023 European Open win.

"I'm excited and very hopeful that my game can definitely play well around here," he said. "I've definitely started to embrace the challenge a bit more of links golf over the last couple of years, and feel like I've definitely gotten better at it.

"If I can keep the ball in front of me and hit the ball the way I normally would, I could definitely have a good chance."

He believes his game is far better than his LIV Golf results suggest.

"Throughout the whole year I've been very steady," he said. "I felt like I was in a sort of a block where I seemed to finish between 15th and 20th every week.

“I felt like I was playing worse than I did last year because the results weren't as good.

“Then when I sat back and looked at it, I realised it's been very consistent. I've stayed very patient throughout that, and the game has stayed similar.

“I've started to putt quite nicely, and that's producing a couple of good results, which definitely excites me for the rest of the year."

McKibbin has two or three years remaining on his LIV contract, and when asked about the potential for a diminished tour with fewer events, he was pragmatic.

"I have to play where I have to play, I guess," he said after a season that brought his Legion XIII team its second team title. "I've enjoyed LIV the last couple of years. It's been great for me and my game. So we'll see what they have to do.

"I feel like I've just focused on the golf. Once I get to the first tee on Thursday and get that tee shot away—even in general, I'm not really thinking about it.

“It's just the golf at the end of the day, and I'm always going out there to play the best that I can."

Rahm reckons McKibbin is the complete package and the youngster is flattered to be considered a Major winner and Ryder Cup player in waiting by his LIV teammate.

"As golfers, we always tend to put ourselves down a little bit and always search for better," he said. "Hearing stuff like that definitely puts your mind at ease.

“Coming from someone of such high calibre, it's pretty cool to hear. Those are the things I'd love to strive towards.”