What happened between Jon Rahm and Brooks Koepka at the Ryder Cup? All you need to know about the LIV Golf duo's bout

Brooks Koepka and Jon Rahm had an eventful Ryder Cup outing in 2023. While Rahm contributed to Team Europe's big win, Koepka suffered a devastating loss with his US side. Moreover, the duo even had a fiery exchange at the event.

The drama unfolded when Team Europe's Nicolai Hojgaard and Rahm faced Team USA's Scottie Scheffler and Koepka in the second fourball match on Day 1 of the 44th edition of the Ryder Cup. USA's 1-up lead was leveled up by the Spaniard on the par 4 16th hole.

However, Rahm missed out on a putt on the 17th hole, leaving the golfer visibly frustrated. Following this, Koepka called out Rahm for acting like a ‘child.’

Speaking in the post-match interview at the Marco Simone Golf and Country Club in Rome, Brooks Koepka said, as quoted by Sports Illustrated:

"I mean, I think me and Scottie birdied, what did we say, 14, we birdied 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, and then lost by two. So yeah. I mean, I want to hit a board and pout just like Jon Rahm did. But, you know, it is what it is. Act like a child. But we're adults. We move on."

Soon, Rahm hit back at Koepka for the remark. Replying to Koepka, who was left bitter by Europe’s dominating scores, Rahm said that the LIV golfer could think whatever he wanted. The 29-year-old said that he was not too happy to leave a 10-footer on the 17th hole, but was happy with himself in general.

Responding to Koepka, in his post-match press conference after the second round, Jon Rahm said, as quoted by the BBC:

"If Brooks thinks that's childish, it is what it is. He's entitled to think what he thinks. I'm very comfortable with who I am and what I do. I've done much worse on a golf course like that. That doesn't even register to a low level of Jon anger on the golf course.

"As far as I'm concerned, I'm very happy with who I am, and I needed to do that at that moment to let off some steam and play the hole I wanted to do. Is it right or wrong, childish or not, I don't know, but that's what I needed at the moment.”

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Brooks Koepka welcomes Jon Rahm to LIV Golf

Rahm and Koepka seem to have found common ground now, months after the bout. The American seemed stoked to welcome the Spaniard to LIV Golf, despite the heated faceoff in Rome. The five-time major champion shared a special message after the Spaniard announced his big move to the Saudi-backed series.

Welcoming the reigning Masters champion to his side, Koepka shared a picture of the duo laughing and captioned it “Ready for more Sunday battles.”

Taking to X (formerly called Twitter), Koepka wrote:

Jon Rahm’s move to LIV came after a month-long rumor and speculation. The reported $566 million deal seems to excite several LIV players, including Koepka. It’ll be interesting to see the duo competing against each other on LIV Golf.