Jon Rahm sits in second place at the Spanish Open – an event he’s won three times – after a strong 6-under Saturday. The Spaniard was able to play on home soil after appealing the DP World Tour’s fines lodged against him.

A battle with the DP World Tour over his participation in LIV Golf events threatened his eligibility, but Rahm’s successful appeal allowed him to take to the Club de Campo Villa de Madrid course. The Legion XIII captain and world-ranked No. 15 golfer opened with a score of 68 in the first round, before shooting a 69 in round two – including an eagle on hole 4. But a bogey-less third round of 65, including six birdies, leaves Rahm in strong contention for a fourth title.

With one round remaining, Rahm sits two strokes behind Angel Hidalgo. Rahm aims to become the event’s all-time greatest winner with a fourth win in the competition dating back to 1972, surpassing Angel de la Torre. “I’m very excited. Hopefully, I can end up with the win, but it’s definitely going to be a Sunday, atmosphere-wise, that [Hidalgo and Puig] haven’t experienced yet,” said Rahm after the round. “There’s going to be a lot of people watching and it’s going to be a lot of fun.”

Rahm’s battle on the course against Hidalgo has been preceded by a more complicated fight off of the greens. His conflict with the DP World Tour stemmed from over $1 million in fines imposed against him for participating in golf events conflicting with the DP World Tour’s schedule.

LIV Golf then tried to neogotiate a deal that included covering the fines but the tour declined the offer. The official DP World Tour rules state that players must get an approved release to play in conflicting events.

“I don’t intend to pay the fines,” said Rahm. “And we keep trying to have a discussion with them about how we can make this happen.” Rahm was extremely vocal regarding the importance of playing in the Spanish Open as a Spanish player, outside of its $3.2 million purse to the winner.

Jon Rahm during the Spanish Open

Jon Rahm plans on playing in the Ryder Cup ( 

Image:

Getty)

“I’ve said many times, I don’t go to the Spanish Open for the glory or anything else,” he said. “I think it’s my duty to Spanish golf to be there, and I also want to play in Sotogrande [Andalucia Masters].” Rahm was one of many players on the circuit to face hurdles, as other players also appealed. Other LIV golfers who joined Rahm to compete in the Spanish Open were his Legion teammates Tyrrell Hatton and Patrick Reed.

With the appeal, Rahm’s participation in the Spanish Open and Paris Olympics brings his DP World Tour tally to two of the four events needed to play in the Ryder Cup. The Spanish golfer previously shared that he planned to enter the stroke-play Dunhill Links Championship and the Andalucia Masters in October, bringing his tally to the required four.

The 2025 Ryder Cup is scheduled for Sept. 26 through the 28. To make the European team, a player needs a combination of points earned on the DP World Tour and maintaining their status in the Official World Golf rankings.