Jon Rahm fires 65, sits T-2 after flawless opening round in Abu Dhabi

Jon Rahm posted a bogey-free, 7-under 65 in Thursday’s opening round of the Abu Dhabi Aldar Championship at Yas Links.

It was his first competitive round in seven weeks.

He had not played since the birth of his fourth child.

He arrived with limited preparation, noting earlier in the week that his home course in Arizona had become overseeded.

“Sometimes when your expectation is a little lower than usual, where I just kept thinking, listen, if we have a bad day, we have a bad day,” Rahm said after the round.

“But I just kind of took it one shot at a time, made a couple beautiful swings early on, great second shot on 2, and that kind of got things going ... gave me some good confidence.”

Rahm carded five birdies on his front nine.

He finished birdie-birdie on the final two holes.

He dominated the course’s longer holes, gaining three strokes at the four par 5s.

The first birdie came after a tremendous approach shot with his 5-iron from the fairway at the par-5 second hole.

Rahm currently sits tied for second place alongside Bernd Wiesberger and Sam Bairstow.

Francesco Laporta leads the field at 10 under after shooting a 62, three strokes ahead of Rahm’s group.

Laporta’s opening-round 62 came close to breaking the course record set by Paul Waring in 2024 (61).

Rahm admitted he got away with a couple of bad swings, notably at the par-4 third and the par-5 11th — the only 500-plus-yard hole he did not birdie during Round 1.

“The highlight today was my iron game — very good with the irons, and gave myself plenty of chances and obviously holed a few,” he said.

“I think sometimes it helps to not be overly aggressive. On the hole like 10, I think it’s easy to maybe want to hit driver, but not quite comfortable with the lines, just lay it out, but giving myself a chance. And overall just trust in your feel more than what you’ve seen in the past. It can be a blessing.”

The Abu Dhabi Aldar Championship is the first of two DP World Tour playoff events.

Bairstow, who also shot 65, was the first player out of the clubhouse after qualifying for the tournament when 11 players in the top 70 decided not to make the trip to Abu Dhabi.

“I was on the flight over here, and I got the message that I was playing,” Bairstow said.

“I think where I am, you sort of just go at it and see what happens, really.”

Rahm’s performance comes amid intense speculation about his professional future.

He left LIV Golf in October 2026 after three seasons with the Saudi-backed league.

LIV Golf filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in September 2026 after losing Saudi financial backing.

The league had proposed a restructuring plan known as LIV 2.0, which Rahm disliked because of changes to the team-focused identity.

Rahm reached a separation agreement with LIV Golf on October 15, 2026, releasing him from his remaining contractual obligations and allowing him to pursue other opportunities.

He reportedly signed a contract worth approximately $300 million when he joined LIV Golf in December 2023.

During his LIV career, Rahm won three consecutive individual season championships between 2024 and 2026.

He also won the 2021 U.S. Open and the 2023 Masters Tournament.

Now, Rahm faces a decision about returning to the PGA Tour.

Under PGA Tour rules, players who left for LIV Golf face a one-year suspension from regular events before they can reapply for membership.

Rahm has not yet secured a spot for the 2027 season.

He has indicated that he would prefer to play on the PGA Tour, but admits that no official discussions have taken place yet.

Brooks Koepka demonstrated that former LIV players can return to the PGA Tour, but he accepted significant financial restrictions before receiving permission to compete again.