Kevin Kisner believes Jon Rahm will be told to "earn his way back" onto the PGA Tour amid his search for a fresh start after deciding to leave LIV Golf.

Rahm, 31, has reached a formal separation agreement to terminate all contractual obligations with the breakaway league after it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the wake of Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) withdrawing its financial support, seeing him walk away from over $100 million in remaining future contract payments.

The Spaniard had independently reviewed the proposed terms for a restructured "LIV 2.0" circuit but deemed them completely unacceptable, rendering him eligible to move on to pastures new for 2027 and beyond.

Rahm's pathway back to the absolute top of the professional landscape, however, is slightly complicated. While he retained his membership on the European circuit earlier in the year and is scheduled to compete in the upcoming Abu Dhabi Championship, an immediate comeback to the PGA Tour is not guaranteed.

The two-time major champion remains fully qualified to play in all four majors thanks to his previous victories, but PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp has stated that the window for LIV major champions to enter via the "Returning Member Program" has closed, and there are currently no active pathways to automatically reinstate players.

As a result, Rahm may have to play exclusively in Europe through 2027 to earn a PGA Tour card for 2028, though now that it has been officially confirmed that he is leaving LIV, questions have emerged about whether Rolapp might reconsider the Spanish star's position.

However, Kisner believes this will absolutely not be the case, placing faith in the PGA Tour chief to stand firm and "stick to his guns" on the decision.

"I had this discussion at lunch today with some fellow tour players I played with this morning, and everyone's all over the place on it. Nobody really knows," Kisner said on this week's episode of the Fore Play Podcast.

"My personal stance is Rolapp's going to stick to his guns and be like, I gave you an opportunity to come back. I gave you a pathway in the off-season. You elected not to take it. Now go earn your way back onto our tour."

Kisner made his comments in the same episode that he doubled down on his claim that Rory McIlroy only competed in the DP World India Championship for financial benefit, telling the Northern Irishman in a fresh statement, "If it was zero dollars, you're not showing up."

Prior to last week's event, McIlroy cited India as a vital, rapidly growing market for golf and his genuine interest in expanding the sport's international reach as two reasons for his return in 2026, while also referencing his chances of securing a record-tying eighth Race to Dubai title with a win.

Following his final round and T42 finish in India on Sunday, McIlroy was told about Kisner slamming his "dog s--- comments", to which he responded with: "How would he know? Two things can be true at the same time."

Kisner, however, wasn't buying it, stating on Tuesday's show: "It's like, yeah, I'm all for you growing the game too, Rory. I think it's great that we get more people in India to play golf. But if it was zero dollars, you're not showing up there. You didn't show up the last 16 years. Why, suddenly, is India great?"