Jon Rahm tips 2023 Ryder Cup teammate to become future World No. 1

Jon Rahm has held the No. 1 position in the world rankings for 52 weeks during his career. It is unlikely that he will return to that position anytime soon (given his move to LIV Golf) but he already has a possible successor in mind.

Days before signing with LIV Golf, Rahm gave an interview to the well-known golf podcast Subpar, hosted by Colt Knost and Drew Stoltz. Among other topics, the Spaniard expressed his opinion about which player could become the top-ranked golfer in the world.

Jon Rahm said (via Golf.com):

"Viktor Hovland. Viktor should be, in my mind, the one that’s ahead. There’s a lot of players with potential to do it, but based on his progression the last few years I think he’d be the clear one. Anybody seeing this, and as a fan of Viktor, they would understand."

Jon Rahm and Viktor Hovland were teammates in the most recent edition of the Ryder Cup. They did not play any matches together, but both contributed to Team Europe's brilliant victory, 16.5 & 11.5.

The current No. 1 in the world rankings is Scottie Scheffler, who leads second-placed Rory McIlroy by almost 1.4 average points. Hovland is ranked fourth (right behind Rahm), 3.4 average points behind Scheffler.

Jon Rahm, LIV Golf and the World Ranking

The Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) has reiterated its refusal to award points to LIV Golf events, although they have shown signs of being open to dialogue on the matter. For the moment, Jon Rahm will not receive any points for his performances on the circuit.

At the same time, the Spaniard has already been banned from the PGA Tour, despite his expressed interest in maintaining his membership. The current rules of the American circuit establish that Rahm can only aspire to return one year after his last opening in a non-sanctioned event (in this case, belonging to LIV Golf).

Both conditions will almost immediately affect Rahm's place in the world rankings. The lack of counting events will cause him to lose places almost weekly.

There are, however, two possibilities that Rahm's fall in the world rankings will not be catastrophic. The first is his participation in the Majors. It is not unreasonable to expect that the Spaniard will perform well in those events, allowing him to maintain a high ranking.

The other is the DP World Tour. Rahm also expressed an interest in maintaining his membership on the European circuit, about which there has been no pronouncement yet. If the Spaniard manages to keep participating in tournaments in Europe, it would also boost his world ranking.

The DP World Tour has admitted LIV Golf players to several tournaments, albeit without full membership. In fact, LIV players have won five of the last six European 2023 tournaments.