Fines, sanctions, the flu and the birth of his third child were all obstacles Jon Rahm was facing in an attempt to compete this week at the Spanish Open and make his first start in a DP World Tour event since joining the LIV Golf League last December. And all appear to have been cleared as the tournament’s social-media account published a video of Rahm’s arrival at Club de Campo Villa in Madrid on Wednesday.

Rahm is set to tee off Thursday, as scheduled, assuaging concerns that he might miss the event after having to withdraw from Wednesday’s pro-am while waiting on his wife Kelley’s delivery. The Spanish publication Marca reported she had the baby on Tuesday, allowing Rahm to make his way to the tournament.

¡Bienvenido al #AccionaOpen 2024, @JonRahmOfficial! ☺️ pic.twitter.com/QYXRcoB7ig

— ACCIONA Open de España presented by Madrid (@accionaopen) September 25, 2024

There is, of course, a sentimental connection to the event for Rahm, who has won his national Open three times, a feat only previously accomplished by Seve Ballesteros. But there’s a practical one as well; in order for Rahm to maintain his DP World Tour membership—and thus be eligible to compete in next year’s Ryder Cup—he must play in three tour events before the end of the 2024 season.

With LIV’s schedule concluding last weekend outside Dallas, Rahm unable to compete after coming down with the flu, the two-time major winner is freed up to play this week in Spain and then next week at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship in Scotland. He is also signed up for next month’s Andalucia Masters in Spain.

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Rahm’s DP World Tour status has been in question throughout the year after he jumped to LIV and competed on the breakaway tour. He could remain a DP World Tour member so long as he played four events in 2024, including the Olympics. But to be eligible to play in any regular-season events, Rahm had to have paid the undisclosed amount in fines he accrued for competing in LIV events that conflicted with DP World Tour events. Very publicly, Rahm said he would not pay the fines. The only other option then was for Rahm to appeal the fines and sanctions, which he officially did two weeks ago.

Pending the decision on the appeal by an independent panel—and there is currently no date set as to when the case will be heard—Rahm is free to play in DP World Tour events and thus fulfill his minimum starts to keep his membership status. Mind you, it’s what comes with being a DP World Tour member that is vital to Rahm—only European born players who are members of the DP World Tour are eligible to play for Team Europe in the Ryder Cup.

This article was originally published on golfdigest.com