PGA Championship 2025: Will Jon Rahm finally regain his form, truly contend at a major championship?

Rahm has struggled to threaten contenders at majors since departing for LIV Golf

Two years ago, there were three players being debated as the best golfer in the world: Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy and Jon Rahm. They traded the No. 1 spot in the Official World Golf Rankings by the month with Rahm claiming it after his win at the Genesis Invitational before getting jumped by Scheffler and McIlroy only to take the mantle back after winning the Masters that April.

Rahm won five worldwide events in nine starts to open the 2023 season and appeared primed to duel with Scheffler and McIlroy for major titles and world No. 1 rankings for the foreseeable future. 

And then suddenly, after making numerous strong public comments against LIV Golf, Rahm suddenly gave in by signing a nine-figure offer in December 2023. It was the biggest blow the upstart league had struck against the PGA Tour to date, and many wondered whether his departure would open the floodgates for other top stars to defect.

A mass exodus never materialized as Rahm perhaps expected, and as he competed during his inaugural season with LIV Golf in 2024, frankly, he looked downright miserable at times.

In the midst of that malaise, Rahm finished T45 as the reigning Masters champion, missed the cut at the PGA Championship and withdrew from the U.S. Open at Pinehurst No. 2 with a foot injury. It was understandable to wonder whether he regretted his decision. Perhaps going back on his word was weighing on his shoulders more than he expected?

Rahm seemingly escaped the funk that July when he finished T7 at The Open Championship, though that included a late Sunday charge. He won his first two individual LIV Golf titles later that month, but even so, no longer stood as the upstart league's greatest threat.

As Rahm and the rest of the field arrive at Quail Hollow on Monday, his name no longer occupies the third spot as the conversation for "best in the world" continues to center around Scheffler and McIlroy. Instead, it is Bryson DeChambeau -- LIV Golf's most consistent threat on the major stage -- who has arrived as a top challenger across this four-month stretch.

A missed cut at the Open for DeChambeau is the only blip on what has been an otherwise incredible run at majors since the start of 2024. In 2024, he finished T6 at the Masters, 2nd at the PGA Championship and won the U.S. Open in thrilling fashion over McIlroy. The table turned on him at this year's Masters when Rory secured his career grand slam and Bryson finished T5 despite standing alongside the green jacket winner in the tournament's final pairing. 

Rahm's place in the major conversation has shifted more to the periphery. He's still viewed as something of a threat, as evidenced by his place near the top 5 on the odds sheet each major. Rahm enters the 2025 PGA Championship at 18-1, according to Caesars Sportsbook, sixth in the field behind the triumvirate of aforementioned favorites, Xander Schauffele and Justin Thomas.

Despite Rahm's placement on the oddsboard, he has yet to prove that he will genuinely contend one major after another as he did a couple years ago. He has consistently stood as one of LIV Golf's best, but for a man who dominated fields on the PGA Tour, he is hardly running roughshod over the reduced level of competition in that league.

When he turns up at majors of late, he appears rather timid, someone lacking the juice that made him one of the top golfers in the world. This despite standing as one of the game's fiercest competitions, a behemoth capable of bending courses to his will. Instead, even in top-15 finishes at his last two such appearances, Rahm battled back from well off the pace with solid yet unspectacular final rounds to backdoor him into respectable positions. 

Quail Hollow is a course that should, theoretically, present opportunities for Rahm as he has the combination of distance off the tee and ball-striking ability that is a requirement to win in Charlotte. What remains to be seen is whether he can tap into that intangible factor that is required to contend at majors.

Having "it" means displaying a confidence bordering on arrogance that you can execute every shot you are required to combined while simultaneously having the humility to understand when and where to be aggressive or conservative. Scheffler, McIlroy and DeChambeau have "it" in abundance right now. 

Early in Rahm's career, it was the latter part of that equation that challenged him; now, it feels like the former has become a greater issue. Whatever you want to call "it" -- fire, juice, mojo -- Rahm has been lacking in that category for more than a year. If he wants back into that best-in-the-world conversation, he needs to find it again.