PGA Championship 2026: Jon Rahm reportedly strikes volunteer in the face with divot after frustrated hack at rough

It’s only Thursday, but it’s already been a week to forget for Jon Rahm. It began in the media center on Tuesday, when Rahm was grilled by reporters about the failure of LIV Golf and the questionable decision making that led him to join the upstart league in 2023. The line of questioning sought to explore Rahm’s professional and personal regrets, or lack thereof, and though he did his best to answer thoughtfully, his discomfort was palpable.

During the opening round at Aronimink Thursday, Rahm’s agitation translated to the golf course. The Spaniard struggled over the course of his first 10 holes before breaking the pressure with an unlikely hole-out eagle at the second (Rahm began his day on the back nine). The relief was only temporary though, and after a poor shot out of the fairway rough at the 7th hole, Rahm took an additional hack at the turf out of frustration. According to The Athletic’s Gabby Herzig, the swing pulled up a chunk of grass that flew through the air, stricking a nearby volunteer in the side of the face. When it rains, it pours ... divots.

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Though the divot was not visible on ESPN+’s camera feed, the reaction of the nearby fans and the volunteer himself, who was seen holding the side of his face in the immediate aftermath, seemed to corroborate much of Herzig’s account. Rahm also appeared concerned, going over to check on the elderly man before making his way toward the green.

After his round, Rahm was asked about the incident, and he took the chance to apologize for his behavior. "I got a flier on my second shot that went long. It's not a good spot," Rahm explained. "Out of frustration, I tried to make an air swing, just over the grass, and I wasn't looking, took a divot, and unfortunately, I hit a volunteer ... Unfortunately it hit him in the shoulder and then the face. Which I couldn't feel any worse. That's why I was there apologizing. I need to somehow track him down to give him a present because that's inexcusable and for something that could be completely avoidable. Whether it was my intention or not, it was just not good."

The bizarre moment echoed increasing concerns about the code of conduct at golf’s highest profile events. Outbursts by the likes of Robert Macintyre and Sergio Garcia at the Masters last month drew official reprimands and calls for stricter behavioral standards on the golf course.

The PGA of America’s Chief Championship Officer, Kerry Haigh, recently spoke on the growing issue, saying that it will be a point of emphasis at Aronimink this week.

“The player code of conduct is something that has been a collaborative effort among all the majors and the major tours … We had a number of meetings to discuss the issue and how we could come up with a program that we feel is fair and effective,” Haigh said. “From our standpoint, which is all I can speak from the championship way, we have adopted the code of conduct … If a player does something sort of egregious, unfortunately, we would give a warning to that player, and if they were to do it again, there would be a two-shot penalty. And there's a sort of number of sort of examples in the code that sort of gives us some guidance.”

Whether Rahm’s Thursday incident represents such a violation or will be viewed as an innocent mishap remains to be seen. Whatever the case, we hope it’s a wake-up call for the two-time major winner. Rahm finished his opening round with back-to-birdie’s following the incident, so punishment or no punishment, perhaps he has learned his lesson already.

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