If we believe, like Woody Allen, that money does not bring happiness, but it produces a very similar feeling, Jon Rahm must be floating through life. The Spaniard put the finishing touch on Sunday to a successful first season in the LIV in terms of sport and tremendously productive in terms of finances.
With his victory in the individual final, held at the Bolingbrook Golf Club in Chicago, he put an end to the first episode of his career in the Saudi superleague, which has made him the highest-paid Spanish athlete by far.
It has been a nine-month roller coaster, in which there have been criticisms, praise, ups and downs in a game that at times seemed to be suffering but which has managed to return to excellence, many planes (that has not changed), surely many meetings and even a new baby on the way.
With his European tour still to come, which will take him to the Spanish Open in Madrid next week, Dunhill and Sotogrande in October and Dubai for the DP World Tour final in November, and with the peace negotiations between LIV and PGA still to come, the question of whether his sporting legacy has grown or not during this period would have multiple answers depending on who you ask and the angle from which you approach it.
Where there is no debate is in his assets. Forbes magazine estimates that his earnings between May 2023 and this year are 218 million dollars (196 euros). 198 between the guaranteed money from his contract, of which they estimate that he has already received half, and the tournament purses, to which must be added a little more than 29.5 million from the prizes he has won in the events played from that date.
And another 20 through his multiple sponsorship agreements with companies such as Mercedes-Benz or Banco Santander. In total, he earns around 270 million, which places him second in the world in the prestigious annual ranking of this publication, only behind Cristiano Ronaldo.
The accounts of other star golfers, such as Rory McIlroy (80 million), Tiger Woods (67) or Scottie Scheffler (59), and even those of more popular sports icons such as Leo Messi (135) or LeBron James (128), pale in comparison.
The 38 million he has pocketed in prize money alone is not even close to Rafa Nadal's best season (16 in 2019). The Barrika native is already a global brand and it seems that he intends to transfer it to his franchise, which is dressed by TravisMatthew, his supplier since he signed with Callaway in 2021 in an agreement that was renewed last year, and to which he has incorporated his agent, Jeff Koski, as general manager, and sponsors such as Santander or Maestro Dobel tequila.
There he would have a new source of income when the super league model, which according to what has been published gives the captains 25% of the ownership of the teams, begins to pay dividends. Between the victories and the checks, it can be assumed that Jon Rahm is a happy guy. And if not, he will have a very similar feeling.
