Jon Rahm flew Thomas Detry to LIV Hong Kong. Now, they are tied for the lead

Thomas Detry may not be in LIFE Golf Hong Kong this week without the help of Jon Rahm.

Detry was one of eight LIV players stranded in the United Arab Emirates earlier this week as the United States and Israel began attacking Iran. like GOLF’s Alan Bastable first reportedRahm organized a charter flight to help Detri and seven others leave the Middle East. That trip included a drive from Dubai to Muscat, Oman, where they boarded the plane Rahm had chartered. Detry and the others arrived in Hong Kong at noon on Wednesday.

After three rounds at Fanling Golf Club, Detry finds himself atop the leaderboard at 17, tied with Harold Varner III and the man who was instrumental in getting him to Hong Kong.

“If it wasn’t for him, I don’t think I’d be there,” Detry said after his 66 Saturday at Rahm’s LIV Golf Hong Kong. “It’s kind of funny that way.”

Detry noted that he booked an Emirates flight to Hong Kong that ended late Wednesday night, so he could have gotten by without Rahm’s generosity. But that was unknown at the time, and he’s grateful that Rahm was willing and able to help.

“I’ve got to pay that plane, so I’d better play well, hopefully I’ll be able to pay that off. That was incredibly generous of Jon, with all the uncertainty,” Detry said Friday after his second round. “It was incredible for Jon to get on that plane, and it seems like he’s always at the top of the leaderboard, so you know if you’re playing well, you’re always going to have to battle with Jon anyway.”

Rahm’s Legion XIII teammates Caleb Surratt and Tom McKibbin were among the eight players banned, along with Detry, Lee Westwood, Adrian Meronk, Sam Horsefield and Anirban Lahiri. For Rahm, it was an easy assist to give to friends and teammates in need.

“The way I look at it is it’s just my job,” Rahm said Saturday. “I grew up with some values, that if you have the ability and the ability to help somebody, especially in a scenario like that where my main focus was basically getting them out of there, not necessarily playing a tournament. I remember telling Caleb earlier in the week, ‘How about you forget about playing the tournament and we focus on getting you to safety and then we’ll see if Kongu sees you.’ With the ever-changing environment, it seemed somewhat dark for a second. For a second, at some point, if they were to pass another extraction plan, they would go to Europe. I was trying to help people in Spain to set them up to practice in Spain. It looked like getting here would be difficult.

“But yes, here they are. I never thought they’d be able to come. It’s amazing that so many of them are all safe, and that’s the most important thing.”

This is the third consecutive LIV event that Rahm has entered on Sunday in contention. He lost his opening match in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to Elvis Smylie and watched as Anthony Kim cruised past him at LIV Golf Adelaide to win his first tournament in 16 years. Rahm has not won an LIV event as an individual since LIV Chicago in September of 2024.

On Sunday, he’ll look to end that streak by beating Detry, who might not improve this week if not for Rahm’s generous assist.

“I think we’re going to have a nice, competitive and fun round tomorrow,” Detry said. “We’ll see who prevails.”