Jon Rahm 'hurting' and 'hasn't turned up' as PGA Championship star singled out

Ryder Cup hero believes former world No. 1 is "hurting" at the majors since joining . And he doesn't appear to be holding out much hope for the Spaniard at this weekend's .

Rahm, 30, caused a massive stir in the community when he jumped ship to LIV at the end of 2023 despite repeatedly vowing to stay with the . Labelled a turncoat by some fans, he drew sympathy from others due to the reported $300million (£225m today) cheque he was supposedly given to defect.

Rahm has been cleaning up on the Saudi-backed circuit and pocketed close to £35m in a little more than one LIV season. But despite his bulging bank balance, McGinley reckons the lower standard of play at LIV events and a general relaxation in player efforts has blunted Rahm's edge in the majors.

READ MORE:

READ MORE:

"Jon's performances in majors since he's gone to LIV have been disappointing," he told the Golf Channel (via ). "Because three years ago before he went to LIV, I would say he's going to be an absolute powerhouse - not far from where we have Scottie [Scheffler] now.

"We haven't seen that from Jon when he's come back to the majors. Yes, he's top 10 every week on LIV, but we're really looking at the majors."

McGinley, 58, shared his belief that many of the LIV golfers are likely facing challenges they "hadn't thought about" when they made the move. This unexpected element could be causing some players to fall off the radar at major golf tournaments.

"There's nothing easy in life," he added. "Yes, they can say they've made a lot of money. But they're hurting on the other side in terms of coming to these major championships not on the cutting edge, as they would have been had they stayed on the PGA Tour."

Before joining LIV, Rahm had finished within the top 10 in 12 out of his previous 22 major appearances (approximately 55%). Since making the switch last year, he has only managed this once in four major tournaments, and his streak of 18 consecutive major cuts is over.

Coincidentally, it was at last year's PGA Championship at Valhalla where his streak came to an abrupt end. However, he'll be aiming for a much-improved performance at Quail Hollow this weekend.

Despite his criticisms, McGinley - who putted Team Europe to Ryder Cup victory in 2010 then did so again as captain in 2014 - isn't entirely negative about LIV's stars. He praised Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau - both of whom have won majors since their defection - for their continued success at the highest level.

"Coming back with all the jet leg is not that easy," he continued. "It's a whole lot easier staying in one country then playing the Major in that same country.

"Going to LIV, yes there's a lot of upside and they got a lot of money to do so, but because it's a start-up and they have to travel around the it gives a lot of disadvantages when it comes to these major championships.

"Bar Brooks and Bryson the rest have not turned up seriously since they've gone to LIV in these major championships."

Since spearheading the PGA exodus, Dustin Johnson has seen his presence at major championships dwindle. Cameron Smith, who was rocketing towards superstardom and clinched The Open before his 2022 departure, has struggled to pose the same level of threat following his own exit.

This weekend, Rahm will line up with other LIV defectors such as DeChambeau, Koepka, Smith, Johnson, Phil Mickelson, and Joaquin Niemann. He's set to commence his round from the 10th at 1pm BST, along with Patrick Cantlay and Matt Fitzpatrick.