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Several LIV Golf players were reportedly stranded in Dubai amid Iranian attacks, but they are safe thanks to one of their own.
Seven players and a cadet were left stranded in the United Arab Emirates as Iran launched retaliatory attacks against Israel and several of its neighbors.
The Saudi-backed league is playing in Hong Kong this weekend, so those with homes in Dubai were there before heading to China. But once the attacks began, airports closed and flights were canceled.
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Jon Rahm hits from the eighth tee during the second round of the St. Jude Championship golf tournament on Friday, Aug. 11, 2023, in Memphis, Tennessee. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)
LIV was reportedly exploring options to bring its players to Hong Kong safely, but Jon Rahm took matters into his own hands, according to Golf.com.
The two-time grand winner and his team organized a charter flight through his partnership with VistaJet, a private aviation company, to transport members from Oman to Hong Kong. LIV had planned to send its players to London initially.
“Do whatever you have to do, but get them out of there,” Rahm reportedly told his team.
Jon Rahm watches his tee shot on the second hole during the first round of the BMW Championship golf tournament, Thursday, August 17, 2023, at Olympia Fields, Illinois. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)
Two of the members were part of Rahm’s Legion XIII team.
It was not an easy journey, as a typical journey of over four hours was much longer due to traffic with other people also trying to get to Oman. But after leaving Wednesday morning around midnight local time, they landed in Hong Kong almost eight hours later.
Caleb Surratt, one of the golfers stranded in Dubai, told Golf Channel it was “terrifying.”
“There is a lot of relief knowing that they will see their teammates today and will be able to compete alongside them starting tomorrow,” a source told Golf.com.
Rahm joined LIV in late 2023 in what was rumored to be a deal worth more than $300 million. There has been speculation that the deal was even worth double that.
Jon Rahm of Spain poses with the Masters trophy during the green jacket ceremony after winning the 2023 Masters tournament at Augusta National Golf Club on April 9, 2023, in Augusta, Georgia. (Andrew Redington/Getty Images)
He won the Masters a few months before joining LIV after winning the 2021 US Open at Torrey Pines.
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