Jon Rahm says he was "motivated" to prove his critics wrong after ending a 15-month wait for a victory by claiming his first LIV Golf title in the United Kingdom on Sunday.
The Spaniard was LIV's marquee signing of the off-season, joining the breakaway league on a deal in the region of $500 million. But he had not tasted victory since donning the iconic green jacket when he won The Masters at Augusta National in April 2023.
The two-time major champion's frustrations have been compounded since joining LIV, failing to win any of his first 10 events on the Saudi Arabia-backed league despite being in contention at most tournaments.
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Rahm has faced scrutiny for his performances at the majors this season. He finished in a tie for 45th place in his defense of his Masters crown before failing to make the cut at the PGA Championship in May. The 29-year-old's mood was not helped by a foot infection that forced him to withdraw on the eve of the U.S. Open at Pinehurst No. 2 in June.
He mustered a return to form at The Open Championship a week ago, finishing in a tie for seventh place at Royal Troon, finishing eight shots behind winner Xander Schauffele.
Rahm ended his wait for a victory at JCB Gold & Country Club in Staffordshire, England on Sunday, edging out Tyrrell Hatton, Joaquin Niemann and Cam Smith by one shot to claim the $4 million top prize. And he told reporters after lifting the trophy that the criticism he has faced has been unjust, which motivated him to prove people wrong.
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"For the most part, I've felt like from what I've read in media it's that I guess maybe my play hasn't reflected how good I really felt about my game. I felt like I was playing good, and I guess top 10 is not enough anymore, even when I didn't feel my best in some of the weeks," Rahm said.
"Just because I had poor performances at The Masters and the PGA, I think I was taking a lot of criticism just for two weeks on how I was really playing and how I really felt. So I feel really good to actually perform the way I did on the weekend last week and carry that over and win it.
"I'm happy about it, but you almost -- when you're in the public eye, you're going to get criticized. You almost have to use it as fuel to motivate yourself."
Rahm insists the critiques of his performances did not affect him negatively; instead it fuelled his desire to get back in the winner's circle again.
"It never bothered me because I don't think any of you guys would say something I wasn't already thinking. I'm my worst critic," he continued. "When it comes to that, no, it really bothered me. Most of it was I hadn't won in a while and I had given myself a chance and I didn't get it done.
"I tried to use it as motivation and told myself if I put myself in that position again I was going to try my hardest to take advantage of it, so I'm glad I did."
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