The DP World Tour has rejected a proposal from LIV Golf to clear the fines owed to the circuit by its players and allow them to compete in its events without penalty.
Per Sports Illustrated’s Bob Harig, officials from LIV Golf met with their DP World Tour counterparts in August to discuss the proposals.
According to the report, LIV Golf officials also offered a £6m settlement fee to put towards purses on the DP World Tour, assurances that future LIV Golf tournaments wouldn’t clash with the biggest DP World Tour events, and an exemption category for DP World Tour players to compete in International Series events on the Asian Tour, which has a close relationship with LIV Golf.
The issue of LIV golfers playing on the DP World Tour came to a head in April 2023. During that year’s Masters at Augusta National, it was announced that the DP World Tour had won its legal battle against LIV golfers.
That didn’t give the DP World Tour the capacity to ban LIV golfers and strip them of their memberships, but it did give it the right to impose sanctions in the form of fines and suspensions against the relevant players for breaching its conflicting tournament regulation. Various LIV golfers have played on the DP World Tour since, including Thomas Pieters at the Soudal Open, but only after outstanding fines have been paid.
Thomas Pieters played in the Soudal Open earlier in the year
The situation has repercussions for European LIV golfers with aspirations of playing in the 2025 Ryder Cup because they must play a minimum of four DP World Tour events a year beyond the Majors to retain their memberships and be eligible for the match.
LIV Golf’s highest-profile eligible player is Jon Rahm, who joined the circuit in December and would ordinarily be a shoo-in for the next Ryder Cup.
However, after the Olympics, which counted towards the total, he still needs three more DP World Tour appearances this year to be eligible. One way to pave the way for the starts he needs is to pay his outstanding fines, but instead he has appealed them, along with Legion XIII teammate and fellow Ryder Cupper Tyrrell Hatton.
That has opened the door for Rahm to play in next week’s Open de Espana, followed by the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship and the Andalucia Masters to meet the minimum requirement.
However, it's uncertain when his appeal will be considered or whether he will be able to compete at the Ryder Cup if the decision goes against him - an outcome that is seen as a strong possibility given the DP World Tour's legal victory last year.
At LIV Golf Chicago, Rahm explained why he hadn't paid the fines, saying: "I’m not a big fan of the fines. I’ve been outspoken about the fines. I don’t intend to pay the fines and we keep trying to have a discussion with them about how we can make this happen."
As to why the LIV Golf proposals were rejected, the DP World Tour told Golf Monthly: “We met with them and listened to their proposal but did not accept it, as our view remains that the focus should continue to be on all stakeholders working together to reach an overall solution that benefits our sport."
Negotiations are still taking place between the PGA Tour and the Saudi Public Investment Fund behind LIV Golf on a way for the newer circuit to co-exist with the established tours in the future.
Meanwhile, the report also states that the DP World Tour’s relationship with the PGA Tour via its strategic alliance is an “underlying reason” the proposal was rebuffed.
LIV Golf has declined to comment.
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