BROOKLINE, Mass. – Players including Sergio Garcia who have joined the Saudi Arabia-backed LIV Golf league will be allowed to play on the DP World Tour.
For now.
According to reports, players who played in the inaugural LIV Golf Invitational Series event in London last week will be allowed to tee it up in this coming week’s BMW International in Munich, Germany. In addition to Garcia, that participation list could include Martin Kaymer, Bernd Wiesberger, Louis Oosthuizen, Laurie Canter, Adrian Otaegui and Pablo Larrazabal, all of whom played in London.
Commissioner Jay Monahan indefinitely suspended 17 PGA Tour members shortly after the first tee shots were hit in London. Several players including Garcia resigned their membership in the PGA Tour. Other PGA Tour members joining LIV Golf after the London event will also be banned from the Tour. That will include Bryson DeChambeau and Patrick Reed, who are scheduled to play in the rival league’s second event in Portland in two weeks.
After Monahan’s action, people were left to wonder if the DP World Tour would follow suit. It just might. Especially with next month’s Genesis Scottish Open, which falls the week before the Open Championship in St. Andrews, Scotland.
The Genesis Scottish Open is co-sanctioned by the PGA Tour; the two formed an alliance in November 2020. It’s unlikely the DP World Tour would allow LIV Golf players to play the Scottish Open considering the PGA Tour’s stance.
The DP World Tour will announce its course of action on June 23.
The R&A has not announced how it will deal with LIV Golf players for the British Open. The USGA said there wasn’t enough time to consider banning LIV Golf players from this week’s U.S. Open, so 15 LIV Golf players were in the field.
The LIV Golf Series, which will play eight events this year, rivals the PGA Tour. The second event in Portland will be played the same week as the Tour’s John Deere Classic. LIV Golf also faces considerable controversy because it is backed by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund. The Saudi Arabia regime has long faced accusations of human rights violations and many consider the government’s entry into professional golf is considered sportswashing to cover up its human rights record.