LIV Golf had a slightly embarrassing end to their season in 2025, after their Individual Champion didn’t win a single event.
Jon Rahm won the LIV title but was winless in 2025. It was bittersweet for the Spaniard, and frustrating for runner-up Joaquin Niemann, who won five times on the year.
Rahm had four second-place finishes on LIV last season and finished outside the top 10 only once, showing remarkable consistency. But crowning a champion who failed to win all season was a confusing finale to a tight title race.
There were calls for LIV to change their scoring system following the result, so the winner of an event gained a greater points advantage over second. However, a recent change to LIV’s format may have inadvertently solved the issue.
LIV’s 72-hole format may change Jon Rahm problem
Rahm has long called for a 72-hole format on LIV, and he was recently granted his wish. LIV abandoned the 54-hole format that they named the tour after in the hope that their players can earn points in the Official World Golf Rankings moving forward.
But LIV may have killed two birds with one stone here. In LIV Golf’s press release on their website, Dustin Johnson was quoted: “I’ve always liked the grind of four rounds – it gives the best players a chance to rise to the top.”
Playing in longer tournaments gives the best players more opportunities to climb the leaderboard and win events.
Anything can happen over one day, and 54-hole events can produce random winners. Adding an extra round eliminates the randomness of the leaderboard.
How many times have we seen Scottie Scheffler in the top five at the end of Saturday’s play, knowing full well he was going to fly up the leaderboard on Sunday and chase down the lead?
LIV’s biggest stars, such as Bryson DeChambeau and Rahm, are now far more likely to claim victories next season, and that can only be good news for the tour.
The change is also likely to produce more consistent results for the game’s best players, and therefore a less controversial winner at the end of the season.
The reason why Jon Rahm was pushing for 72 holes
Rahm’s push for LIV to change to a 72-hole format had nothing to do with the tour itself. Instead, he wanted to be more prepared for major championships, where his performances have been poor since joining LIV.
Former LIV Golf player Hudson Swafford, speaking on GOLF’s Subpar Podcast, explained: “I know Jon Rahm has pushed for 72 holes over at LIV. Some guys have had some push back but I know there has been a group who have pushed for 72 holes for sure.“
Rahm joined LIV after he won The Masters in 2023, his second major championship. Rahm was predicted to be one of the next dominant talents for years to come, but he didn’t contend in the biggest tournaments last season.
Rahm will therefore hope that this change from LIV can put his career back on track, as he looks to challenge Scheffler at Augusta in April.
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