Rahm wins third straight LIV Golf season title as Niemann sets record in New York
Jon Rahm secured the LIV Golf individual season championship for a third consecutive year in New York, where Joaquin Niemann won the event itself for a record ninth career title on the tour.
Jon Rahm won the LIV Golf individual season championship for the third consecutive year at LIV Golf New York, held at Trump International in Bedminster. Joaquin Niemann won the event itself, closing with a round of 70 for a record ninth career LIV Golf title.
Jon Rahm has won the LIV Golf individual season championship for the third consecutive year, securing the title at the tour's New York event at Trump International in Bedminster. Joaquin Niemann won the tournament itself, closing with a round of 70 after Harold Varner III briefly drew level, in what reports describe as a record ninth career victory on the circuit. Rahm, a Spanish former world number one, is one of the biggest names to join LIV Golf, the Saudi-backed tour that launched in June 2022 and rebranded as the LIV Golf League in 2023. He brings two major championships to his record, the 2021 U.S. Open and the 2023 Masters. The weekend settled two storylines at once. Rahm reportedly clinched the season crown with one event still to play, earning an $18 million bonus, while Niemann's win moved him past every other player in the young tour's history. Lee Westwood, aged 53, also recorded his best LIV result with a share of third place.
Rahm takes a third straight LIV Golf season title in New York
Jon Rahm walked off Trump International in Bedminster as the LIV Golf individual season champion for the third consecutive year, even as Joaquin Niemann claimed the New York event itself.
Niemann closed with a round of 70 to win the tournament, holding off Harold Varner III, who had drawn level with him before Niemann pulled away late in the round. Rahm, meanwhile, did enough across the weekend to put the season-long race beyond reach.
According to Sky Sports, the Spaniard clinched the title with one event still remaining on the schedule. The same reports note that he secured the crown despite recording his worst finish at a LIV Golf event, an unusual way to seal a championship. GolfMagic reports that the season title carries an $18 million bonus for Rahm.
The result underlines Rahm's consistency across the campaign. He did not need to win in Bedminster; the points he had accumulated earlier in the season did the work. Niemann's victory, by contrast, was about the day itself, a closing 70 that separated him from Varner when the tournament was still live.
The New York event was staged at Trump International in Bedminster, a venue that has hosted LIV Golf before. Prize money payouts for players and teams were published following the event, according to reports, though the focus on Sunday was split between Niemann's win and Rahm's larger prize: a third straight season championship, secured before the campaign had even run its course.
Niemann's record ninth win and Westwood's late-career high
Joaquin Niemann arrived at the final round of LIV Golf New York with the title in his hands and, for a stretch, it looked like slipping away. Harold Varner III drew level with him during the closing round at Trump International in Bedminster, setting up a tense finish. Niemann responded by pulling away late, carding a 70 to secure the victory. According to reports, he finished the event at 16-under 268.
The win carried weight beyond the week. It was reported to be Niemann's ninth career title on the LIV Golf circuit, a record for the tour. No player has won more often since the series began. The Chilean had already tasted victory earlier in the 2026 season, reportedly winning a LIV Golf event in South Korea, and his New York performance underlined his status as the league's most prolific champion.
There was a notable story further down the leaderboard, too. Lee Westwood, aged 53, reportedly recorded a share of third place, his best result since joining LIV Golf. For a player in the later stages of his career, the finish stood as a reminder that he can still compete with the tour's leading names on a given week.
Varner's challenge, Niemann's late surge, and Westwood's resurgence gave the Bedminster gallery a final day with something for everyone, even as the larger season narrative played out around them.
A former world number one with two majors adds another crown
Jon Rahm arrived on the LIV Golf League with a pedigree few players on the circuit can match. The Spaniard is a former world number one in the Official World Golf Ranking and a two-time major champion. He claimed the 2021 U.S. Open, then added the Masters Tournament in 2023, putting him among a select group of players with victories at two of golf's four biggest events.
A third consecutive LIV Golf individual season championship adds a different kind of entry to that record. Major titles are won across four days; a season championship is won across an entire campaign, rewarding consistency rather than a single peak week. Winning it three years running suggests sustained dominance over the league's whole roster, not just a hot stretch.
It also underlines how completely Rahm has established himself since joining the tour. Whatever the debates around LIV Golf's standing in the wider game, its season-long race measures performance across the same fields and the same schedule, and Rahm has now topped it every year he has contested it. For a player whose reputation was built on the traditional majors, the streak gives him a second, parallel claim: not only a champion of golf's oldest prizes, but the defining player of its newest league.
From the Centurion Club in 2022 to a league of its own
LIV Golf is a professional men's golf tour that takes its name from the Roman numeral for 54, the number of holes played in its events. The tour staged its first competition on 9 June 2022, when the inaugural LIV Golf Invitational Series event began at the Centurion Club near St Albans in Hertfordshire, England.
That first season was run under the Invitational Series banner, a format that positioned the venture as a new entrant in the professional game. The structure did not last long in name, at least. In 2023, the series was rebranded as the LIV Golf League, formalising its status as a circuit with a season-long individual championship.
It is that individual title which Jon Rahm has now won for a third consecutive year. The Spaniard, a former world number one in the Official World Golf Ranking and a two-time major champion, secured the 2026 crown at the New York event held at Trump International in Bedminster. His latest success came at the same tournament where Joaquin Niemann claimed a record ninth career victory on the tour, underlining how far the league has travelled from its beginnings at the Centurion Club little more than four years ago.
Jon Rahm won the U.S. Open, the first of his two major championship titles.
The first LIV Golf Invitational Series event began at the Centurion Club near St Albans in Hertfordshire, England.
The LIV Golf Invitational Series was rebranded as the LIV Golf League.
Rahm won the Masters Tournament, his second major championship.
Joaquin Niemann won a LIV Golf event in South Korea.
At Trump International in Bedminster, Harold Varner III drew level with Niemann before Niemann pulled away late in the round.
Niemann closed with a round of 70 to finish at 16-under 268 and win the event.
The victory was Niemann's ninth career LIV Golf title, a record for the tour.
Lee Westwood, aged 53, recorded his best LIV Golf result with a share of third place.
Rahm secured the LIV Golf individual season championship for the third consecutive year despite his worst finish at a LIV event, clinching with one event remaining and earning an $18 million bonus.
Prize money payouts for players and teams at the event were published.
Why one weekend settled two storylines at once
The Bedminster weekend compressed two narratives that might otherwise have unfolded separately. Rahm's season-long consistency meant the individual championship was decided at Trump International rather than at the finale — according to reports, he clinched with one event still to play, and did so despite what was described as his worst finish at a LIV Golf event. That detail underlines the point: his dominance was built across the season, not in New York.
At the same tournament, Niemann was making his own kind of history. His closing 70, after Harold Varner III briefly drew level, delivered what outlets including Sky Sports reported as a ninth career LIV Golf victory — a record for the tour. One leaderboard therefore produced both the season's champion and its most prolific event winner.
Money sharpened the interest further. Reports put Rahm's bonus for the season title at $18 million, a figure that gives concrete shape to what the individual championship is worth. Dominance, a record, and a reported eight-figure prize, all settled in one round: that convergence is why this weekend, rather than any other, has drawn the attention.
The payouts and the numbers still to emerge
Prize money payouts for players and teams at the New York event were published following the tournament, according to reports, though the specific breakdown of those figures was not immediately available.
Several details of the weekend at Trump International in Bedminster remain unclear. Rahm's exact finishing position and score in New York have not been confirmed, with reports describing it only as his worst result at a LIV Golf event. The precise amounts paid out to individual players and teams have likewise not been disclosed in detail.
Also yet to emerge is how the season-long points standings looked behind Rahm at the moment he clinched the title, and which event remains on the schedule to close out the campaign. Until organisers or the tour release fuller figures, the complete financial and statistical picture of the New York weekend stays incomplete.
One event left, and what it can still decide
According to reports, Rahm wrapped up the individual championship with one event still left on the LIV Golf schedule. That finale now arrives with its biggest prize already settled, but not without questions of its own.
The briefing does not identify which event closes the season, or when it will be played. Nor is it clear how the points standings looked behind Rahm at the moment he clinched — who sat second, how tight the chasing pack was, or whether the final event could still shuffle the order beneath the champion.
What the remaining tournament can decide, then, stays open. Season-long placings below first place, and whatever they carry in terms of bonuses and standing, were still to be resolved when Rahm secured the title in New York. Whether the finale becomes a dead rubber for the championship or a meaningful contest for those behind him will depend on a points picture that has not been published in detail.
For now, the only certainty is the name at the top. Everything underneath it waits for one more week of golf.
Frequently asked questions
Did Jon Rahm win the LIV Golf season title?
Jon Rahm won the LIV Golf individual season championship for the third consecutive year. The Spaniard, a former world number one and two-time major champion, secured the title at the LIV Golf New York event at Trump International in Bedminster. Reports suggest he clinched it with one event still remaining on the schedule, despite recording what was described as his worst finish at a LIV Golf event.
Who won LIV Golf New York at Bedminster?
Joaquin Niemann won the LIV Golf New York event at Trump International in Bedminster. He shot a closing round of 70 after Harold Varner III briefly drew level with him, before Niemann pulled away late in the round. Reports put his winning total at 16-under 268. Lee Westwood, aged 53, reportedly recorded his best LIV Golf result with a share of third place.
How many LIV Golf titles has Joaquin Niemann won?
According to reports, the New York victory was Joaquin Niemann's ninth career win on the LIV Golf circuit, a record for the tour. He had also won a LIV Golf event in South Korea earlier in the 2026 season. LIV Golf, whose name refers to the Roman numeral 54, began with its first Invitational Series event on 9 June 2022 and became the LIV Golf League in 2023.
How much did Jon Rahm earn for the LIV Golf season championship?
Reports suggest Jon Rahm earned an $18 million bonus for winning the LIV Golf individual season championship. Prize money payouts for players and teams at the New York event were also published following the tournament, according to reports, though the specific figures were not detailed in the available coverage.
Who is Jon Rahm and what majors has he won?
Jon Rahm is a Spanish professional golfer who plays on the LIV Golf League. He is a former world number one in the Official World Golf Ranking and has won two major championships: the 2021 U.S. Open and the 2023 Masters Tournament. He has now won the LIV Golf individual season championship for three consecutive years, securing the latest title at the New York event in Bedminster.
Compiled from reporting by 8 independent outlets. How we source our reporting.
