DP World Tour Set To Resume Fines And Sanctions For LIV Golfers

LIV Golf's players who are members of the DP World Tour have a dilemma on their hands, with The Athletic reporting the circuit is prepared to resume fining its members for playing in the LIV Golf League next year.

The Athletic's Gabby Herzig wrote the 'DP World Tour has begun notifying current LIV golfers that, beyond the 2026 season, it will resume imposing heavy-handed fines and tournament suspensions as part of its conflicting events rule.'

This follows the DP World Tour agreeing conditional releases with eight players in February, which saw the golfers agree to pay their outstanding fines, drop appeals and play in additional 'stipulated' tournaments.

The releases allowed them to continue playing in LIV Golf events for the entire season without facing any further fines or sanctions. The agreement only applied to 2026 and was not 'precedent-setting' - and that now appears to be the case.

The players who originally agreed to the deal were: Laurie Canter, Thomas Detry, Tyrrell Hatton, Tom McKibbin, Adrian Meronk, Victor Perez, David Puig and Elvis Smylie.

Jon Rahm later agreed a similar deal in May.

Golf Monthly understands the DP World Tour will review conflicting event releases on a case-by-case basis next year but it is highly unlikely its members will be successful when applying for them in relation to LIV events.

'LIV 2.0' is scheduled to host ten tournaments in 2027, five in the USA and five internationally, with reduced purses following an agreement reached with a 'lead investor' last week.

LIV's players are set to become equity holders in the circuit if plans go ahead, a significant change from the league's original make-up and when the conditional release agreements with the DP World Tour were made.

It it understood this element may well have influenced the DPWT's decision for 2027.

The news is significant for many reasons, firstly because the Ryder Cup takes place next year.

A number of DP World Tour members who play on LIV Golf will be looking to qualify for Team Europe, with Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton highly likely to make Luke Donald's side once again.

Other players like David Puig, Thomas Detry and Tom McKibbin could also be in the frame for the team.

Whether the golfers will be able to appeal their fines and continue playing on the DP World Tour while that appeal is pending remains to be seen. Rahm and Hatton both played for Europe at Bethpage Black last year in this exact scenario.

Another key aspect is the PGA and DP World Tour's recent partnership with the Asian Tour.

The Asian Tour was previously partnered with LIV Golf and allowed the team tour's players to freely compete on the circuit in regular tournaments and LIV-backed International Series events.

LIV's players may still be able to compete on the Asian Tour next year, but some may have previously planned to build their schedule with a mix of LIV, DP World Tour and Asian Tour events in 2027. That no longer looks as viable with this latest news.

What does this news mean?

The reality of this latest development likely means many LIV Golfers could well be seriously considering their futures on the tour.

Flushing It Golf has recently reported some damning news from inside LIV, last week stating that "insiders expect a significant number" not to commit their future before today, reporting a "significant number of people within the league have told me they have lost all faith in the leadership."

Jon Rahm is reportedly owed up to $150m from his original LIV contract and he may have been considering a return to the PGA Tour anyway.

This update could only strengthen that desire, or potentially make his mind up, and it could be the same for any LIV player with genuine ambition to reach the top of the sport including the likes of Joaquin Niemann and David Puig.

The walls feel like they're closing in on LIV Golf and the tour is being cut adrift even further from the traditional circuits. Its Asian Tour pathway appears to be gone and its players who are DP World Tour members will now face huge fines or be forced to forfeit their memberships - in a Ryder Cup year.

The DP World Tour declined to comment on this story.