Rahm 'Learning By Watching Suits' Amid Ongoing Legal Disputes

Last week, Judge Beth Labson Freeman delivered a landmark verdict and denied Talor Gooch, Matt Jones and Hudson Swafford a temporary restraining order, citing that the trio felt "no irreparable harm."

Judge Labson added that LIV contracts were “based upon the players calculation of what they would be leaving behind." It felt as if the entire golfing world was watching as the District Court Judge in San Jose, California made her deliberation, including former US Open champion Jon Rahm - albeit, accidentally.

"Well, I can tell you I had zero attention on it. I only found out that it was going on because I walked by player dining and I saw about 10 really nervous people pacing all around the room and I thought, well, there's something going on,” Rahm said ahead of the BMW Championship. 

"I asked and heard what was going on. But I never really – I was in the room when the judge made her decision known, but only because I was walking by and they told me it was time. So I was like, yeah, I'll stay."

The judge's decision meant that the trio were not permitted to tee it up in the FedEx Cup Playoffs, an outcome the Spaniard believed was for the best: "I think it could have made things a little bit awkward, yeah," he added. "They chose to leave the PGA Tour, they chose to go join another Tour knowing the consequences; and then try to come back and get courts and justice in the way wouldn't have, I would say, sit extremely well with me."

The ruling was part of a wider antitrust motion filed by 11 LIV Golf players, including Phil Mickelson and Bryson DeChambeau. The report states that the players are challenging their suspensions from the PGA Tour in light of their appearances in the Saudi-backed Series. The motion states: "The Tour's conduct serves no purpose other than to cause harm to players and foreclose the entry of the first meaningful competitive threat the Tour has faced in decades."

Hearings for the rest of the antitrust case will begin at the end of September before a summary judgement in March 2023. The full trial is expected to begin a few months later in August 2023.

It was earlier revealed that former Masters champion Patrick Reed filed a $750m defamation lawsuit against Brandel Chamblee and the Golf Channel. Within the Complaint, Reed alleges he was the victim of "calculated, malicious, false and reckless attacks" that had a "direct effect on his livelihood", adding that PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan, the Golf Channel and Chamblee "conspired" together.

As legal challenges seemingly become more frequent than golf tournaments, Rahm was able to see the funny side: "I just started watching the show ‘Suits,’ so I'm kind of learning now about what happens in a courtroom," he joked.