Skip to main content

Jon Rahm details ‘concerning’ foot injury that forced LIV Golf withdrawal before U.S. Open

Ahead of the U.S. Open, Jon Rahm discussed his foot injury, which led to his early exit at LIV Golf Houston.

Jon Rahm, U.S. Open
Jon Rahm, U.S. Open
Jon Rahm speaks to the media ahead of the 2024 U.S. Open.
Photo by Alex Slitz/Getty Images
Jack Milko has been playing golf since he was five years old. He has yet to record a hole-in-one, but he did secure an M.A. in Sports Journalism from St. Bonaventure University.

Jon Rahm withdrew midway through last week’s LIV Golf Houston event due to a foot injury.

Three days later, at Pinehurst No. 2, Rahm provided more clarity about the situation.

“It’s a concern. It’s doing better. But definitely still in pain,” Rahm said.

“I think that the closest term would be a lesion on the skin. If I were to show you, there’s a little hole between my pinky toe and the next toe. I don’t know how or what happened, but it got infected. The pain was high.”

Rahm then added that he received a shot on Saturday morning, hours before he withdrew, to help alleviate the pain.

“It was supposed to last the whole round, and by my second hole, I was in pain already,” Rahm said.

“The infection was the worrisome part. The infection is now controlled, but there’s still swelling and there’s still pain. There’s a reason I walked out here in a shoe and a flip-flop, trying to keep the area dry and trying to get that to heal as soon as possible. But I can only do what I can do. The human body can only work so fast.”

Jon Rahm, U.S. Open
Jon Rahm walks to his press conference wearing a flip flop on his left foot.
Photo by Alex Slitz/Getty Images

Rahm has not played up to his standard so far in 2024. He has not won an event during his first season on LIV Golf, nor has he won anywhere since his win at Augusta National last year.

He obviously has the talent to win on any golf course against any player, but this injury raises tremendous concerns going into this week.

“Could I have dragged myself out there and posted some kind of a score? Yeah,” Rahm said about withdrawing.

“But it was getting to a point where I wasn’t making the swings I wanted to make, and I could have hurt other parts of my swing just because of the pain. As to right now this week, I don’t know.”

Rahm did not sound confident when asked if he could play this week, yet he still feels he can win.

“Anytime I tee it up, I feel like I have a good chance,” Rahm said.

Maybe he does not have as good of a chance as he had three years ago at Torrey Pines, where he won his first U.S. Open. But ruling Rahm out completely would be foolish, knowing his caliber. Despite that, the infection between his toes will be something to monitor as the week progresses.

Jack Milko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. Be sure to check out @_PlayingThrough for more golf coverage. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko as well.

More in Golf

Golf
U.S. Open 2026: Wyndham Clark may run away with this thingU.S. Open 2026: Wyndham Clark may run away with this thing
Golf

Wyndham Clark is out to quite the lead at the U.S. Open

By RJ Ochoa
Golf
Rory McIlroy in U.S. Open contention after first roundRory McIlroy in U.S. Open contention after first round
Golf

Rory McIlroy is well in contention after the first round of the U.S. Open

By RJ Ochoa
Golf
Deloitte is helping to make the rules of golf more accessible and fan-friendlyDeloitte is helping to make the rules of golf more accessible and fan-friendly
Golf

The rules of golf are well on display at the U.S. Open

By RJ Ochoa
Golf
Jordan Spieth is ready for the U.S. OpenJordan Spieth is ready for the U.S. Open
Golf

Jordan Spieth is as ready as he can be for the U.S. Open

By RJ Ochoa
Golf
Jason Day helps stories to visualize successJason Day helps stories to visualize success
Golf

Jason Day has a unique approach to “stories” during his rounds

By RJ Ochoa
Golf
T-Mobile made the U.S. Women’s Open even betterT-Mobile made the U.S. Women’s Open even better
Golf

The U.S. Women’s Open at Riviera was a huge success

By RJ Ochoa

Comments
Loading comments
Getting the conversation ready...