Rahm’s rules workaround stuns DeChambeau, holes out to tie in LIV Golf Adelaide
Jon Rahm turned a rules oddity into a momentum-shifting finish Saturday, February 14, 2026 (ET), holing out for eagle on the 18th to pull level with Bryson DeChambeau and reshape the liv golf leaderboard heading into the final round.
What happened on the 18th?
The drama unfolded on the par-4 18th at The Grange Golf Club during the third round. Rahm’s tee shot sliced left and came to rest near the adjacent 10th-tee area. That same route had played out the day before, when a temporary fence blocked his shot back to the green and granted him relief under the rules for a temporary immovable obstruction. Rahm used that prior experience to confer with a rules official on Saturday, then picked up his ball and dropped it slightly left of the fairway where he’d been positioned the previous day.
One of Rahm’s playing partners reacted with visible surprise when the move put Rahm almost directly behind him; an on-course camera caught the moment and the brief, puzzled exchange. Rahm then played a precise approach — 62 meters into the wind, he said afterward — and watched the ball find the cup for an eagle two. That hole-out erased DeChambeau’s lead after he made par, leaving both players tied at 19 under for the tournament.
Impact on the LIV Golf leaderboard and Sunday shootout
The swing to a shared lead sets up a high-stakes final pairing for Sunday’s final round. Rahm’s eagle capped a 6-under 66 for the day; DeChambeau carded an 8-under 64 and had looked in command through much of the round. Their pairing will be the focal point as both chase the title and the team implications remain significant: Legion XIII surged on Saturday to build a healthy margin on the team standings, while Crushers GC and Ripper GC remain in striking distance.
Beyond the two leaders, Anthony Kim moved into solo third and a cluster of contenders lurk a handful of strokes back. The leaderboard is compact enough that a single swing or a hot streak on Sunday could reshuffle the finish order dramatically.
Reactions and what it means for rules awareness
Players and onlookers reacted to the moment with a mixture of astonishment and admiration. DeChambeau admitted he was surprised — “What the heck, you can do that?” he said — emphasizing that he had not been aware the relief option applied in that spot. Rahm described the sequence with a dash of self-deprecation, noting the unlikely odds of hitting the same troublesome line twice and then making a hole-out eagle.
The episode underlines how detailed knowledge of local and temporary obstruction rules can influence outcomes, particularly in formats that move quickly and put players in unusual positions on complex course setups. For the leaders, Saturday’s finish injected fresh drama into the final round; for the field, it was a reminder that awareness of the rulebook can be as valuable as a hot stretch of form.
Sunday’s final round will decide both the individual champion and the fate of the team competition, with the top of the liv golf leaderboard poised for a tense finish as the group of Rahm and DeChambeau heads out in the last pairing.
