MEXICO CITY (AP) — Jon Rahm capped off a chaotic week on LIV Golf when he closed with a 7-under 64 on Sunday for a six-shot victory in LIV Golf Mexico City, his second victory this year on the Saudi-funded circuit.
Rahm went all of last season on LIV without winning, though he did claim the points title. And he had experienced disappointment before in 2017 at Chapultepec Golf Club when it was a World Golf Championship.
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Captain Jon Rahm, of Legion XIII, waits to hit on the 13th tee during the final round of LIV Golf Mexico City at Club de Golf Chapultepec, Sunday, April 19, 2026, in Naucalpan, Mexico. (Charles Laberge/LIV Golf via AP)
Fans wait for players at 18th hole during the first round of the LIV Golf tournament in Naucalpan on the outskirts of Mexico City, Thursday, April 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)
Bryson DeChambeau watches his tee shot on the 12th hole during the second round of the Masters golf tournament at the Augusta National Golf Club, Friday, April 10, 2026, in Augusta, Ga. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
First-place individual champion captain Jon Rahm, of Legion XIII, celebrates on the 18th green after the final round of LIV Golf Mexico City at Club de Golf Chapultepec, Sunday, April 19, 2026, in Naucalpan, Mexico. (Jon Ferrey/LIV Golf via AP)
There was no doubt this time after he made birdie on the reachable par-4 second hole and then holed out for eagle on the next hole. He played bogey-free.
“If you would have told me last week on Thursday afternoon that I’d be winning by a six-shot margin this week, I would not have believed you because of how bad I played,” said Rahm, who tied for 38th in the Masters. “Hell of a an effort.”
The week has been filled with uncertainty surrounding the Saudi-funded league, with CEO Scott O’Neil writing a memo to staff to say LIV was assured of funding through the end of the year amid reports speculating about the league’s financial future.
LIV announced Sunday it would be returning to Chapultepec next year.
There was a power outage on Tuesday, fueling more speculation. The streaming went out for two hours during the opening round. And then Bryson DeChambeau withdrew from the final round, citing an injury to his wrist that he did not want to further aggravate.
DeChambeau, who was trying to become the first player to win three straight times on LIV Golf, was 16 shots behind Rahm when he stopped playing.
“I experienced some discomfort in my wrist during yesterday's round and have decided to withdraw from the the final round of LIV Golf Mexico City to prevent further injury,” DeChambeau said in a social media post. “Not how I wanted this week to go.”
DeChambeau said he would be evaluated and hoped to be at LIV Golf Virginia on May 7-10, a week before the PGA Championship.
Rahm motored along, and so did his Legion XIII team, which won for the first time this year.
David Puig shot 66 to finish second, picking up valuable world ranking points and all but assuring that he will be in the PGA Championship. The Spaniard is close enough that another top finish in Virginia could get him into the U.S. Open.
AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf
Captain Jon Rahm, of Legion XIII, waits to hit on the 13th tee during the final round of LIV Golf Mexico City at Club de Golf Chapultepec, Sunday, April 19, 2026, in Naucalpan, Mexico. (Charles Laberge/LIV Golf via AP)
Fans wait for players at 18th hole during the first round of the LIV Golf tournament in Naucalpan on the outskirts of Mexico City, Thursday, April 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)
Bryson DeChambeau watches his tee shot on the 12th hole during the second round of the Masters golf tournament at the Augusta National Golf Club, Friday, April 10, 2026, in Augusta, Ga. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
First-place individual champion captain Jon Rahm, of Legion XIII, celebrates on the 18th green after the final round of LIV Golf Mexico City at Club de Golf Chapultepec, Sunday, April 19, 2026, in Naucalpan, Mexico. (Jon Ferrey/LIV Golf via AP)
Oklahoma City's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander might be adding a couple more trophies to his collection. San Antonio's Victor Wembanyama has a shot at doing the same.
And for the eighth consecutive year, the MVP will be an international one.
Gilgeous-Alexander — the reigning NBA MVP — is one of the finalists for this year's top individual honor, along with Denver's Nikola Jokic and the Spurs' Wembanyama, who is also a finalist for defensive player of the year.
The NBA's run of international MVPs started in 2019 and 2020 with Milwaukee's Giannis Antetokounmpo, who is of Greek and Nigerian descent. Jokic, a Serbian, won in 2021, 2022 and 2024. Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid, who was born in Cameroon but since became a U.S. citizen, won the award in 2023, and Canada's Gilgeous-Alexander won last year.
Gilgeous-Alexander is also a finalist for Clutch Player of the Year this season.
The NBA announced the finalists for seven individual awards Sunday night and will start announcing winners on Monday. The Defensive Player award — widely expected to be going to Wembanyama — comes out then, followed by Clutch Player on Tuesday and Sixth Man on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, the appeal that got the Los Angeles Lakers’ Luka Doncic onto the award ballots might earn him All-NBA, but did not lead to him getting his first MVP award. He was not among the top three in the balloting for MVP; voters cast their ballots last week after Doncic and Detroit's Cade Cunningham won appeals that got them on the ballot even though they didn't satisfy the terms of the NBA's 65-game rule for eligibility in most cases.
Minnesota’s Anthony Edwards lost his appeal — but might get an award after all.
Edwards is a finalist for Clutch Player of the Year. He wasn’t on the ballot for MVP, All-NBA and other honors, but was on the Clutch ballot because those nominees were selected by the league’s coaches.
— MVP: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Oklahoma City; Nikola Jokic, Denver; Victor Wembanyama, San Antonio.
— Defensive Player of the Year: Wembanyama; Chet Holmgren, Oklahoma City; Ausar Thompson, Detroit.
— Clutch Player: Anthony Edwards, Minnesota; Gilgeous-Alexander; Jamal Murray, Denver.
— Most Improved Player: Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Atlanta; Deni Avdija, Portland; Jalen Duren, Detroit.
— Sixth Man: Tim Hardaway Jr., Denver; Jaime Jaquez Jr., Miami; Keldon Johnson, San Antonio.
— Coach of the Year: J.B. Bickerstaff, Detroit; Mitch Johnson, San Antonio; Joe Mazzulla, Boston.
— Rookie of the Year: VJ Edgecombe, Philadelphia; Cooper Flagg, Dallas; Kon Knueppel, Charlotte.
Gilgeous-Alexander is trying to go back-to-back, Jokic — who has been first or second in five straight seasons, entering this year — is seeking his fourth MVP in six years and Wembanyama is a finalist for the first time.
Bickerstaff won the award from the National Basketball Coaches Association, selected by his peers, and is the likely favorite for the official NBA honor. Johnson and Mazzulla both led teams that widely exceeded most preseason expectations.
This will likely be a two-person race in the end, with Flagg and Knueppel — both former Duke players — the presumed frontrunners. That would suggest Edgecombe likely finishes third.
Wembanyama was the likely frontrunner to win it last season, but wound up falling short of eligibility after being diagnosed with deep vein thrombosis at the All-Star break and missing the rest of the season.
Minnesota’s Rudy Gobert’s bid for a fifth DPOY award — which would break a record — will continue for at least one more year.
Gilgeous-Alexander led the league in clutch scoring per game, with Edwards second. Denver had two legitimate candidates with Murray and Nikola Jokic; voters clearly gave Murray the edge.
Clutch scoring is defined as points that come in the final five minutes of a game where the point differential between teams is five or less.
Jaquez averaged 15.4 points in 74 appearances off the bench, Johnson averaged 13.2 points — after playing in all 82 Spurs games as a reserve — and Hardaway also averaged 13.2 points in the 74 games where he came off Denver’s bench.
The winner will be a first-time selection for the award.
Avdija averaged 24.2 points and led Portland’s surge to the playoffs, while Alexander-Walker — bidding to give Atlanta its second consecutive MIP winner after Dyson Daniels last season — averaged 20.8 points, by far the most his career.
Duren was a first-time All-Star selection and averaged 19.5 points, almost double what he averaged last season despite playing basically the same amount of minutes.
AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA
Minnesota Timberwolves center Naz Reid, right, gets called for a foul as Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic fields a pass in the second half in Game 1 of a first-round NBA playoffs basketball series, Saturday, April 18, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards reacts after hitting a 3-point basket against the Denver Nuggets in the first half in Game 1 of a first-round NBA playoffs basketball series, Saturday, April 18, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
Philadelphia 76ers center Andre Drummond, left, tangles with San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, April 6, 2026, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/Darren Abate)
