The DP World Tour will refuse membership to golfers who sign up for LIV Golf 2.0 for the 2027 season, the tour’s chief executive, Guy Kinnings, confirmed on Monday. Unlike in recent seasons, the tour will not grant conditional status to players who join the breakaway league’s new venture. Golfers must apply for DP World Tour membership by 16 November.
Kinnings was blunt about the choice facing players. “Players need to make a choice,” he said. “We have rules and regulations, which are there to protect our tour and which our members must all abide by. Players who are not willing to comply with our rules and regulations should not be seeking to join our tour.”
The stance has significant consequences for the Ryder Cup. Golfers must be DP World Tour members to compete for Europe in next year’s contest, which is scheduled for 17-19 September at Adare Manor in Ireland.
Rules tightened after a more flexible season
This season, the DP World Tour allowed some golfers to play on both tours, granting conditional status to more than 10 LIV golfers. That group included two-time major champion Jon Rahm, Tyrrell Hatton, Tom McKibbin, Adrian Meronk, David Puig and others.
Rahm’s position has since shifted. Last week, his attorney, John Beck, told a bankruptcy hearing that the Spanish golfer will not be part of LIV Golf 2.0. Beck said Rahm and the league were working to finalise a separation agreement by Thursday.
Bankruptcy and a rescue deal
LIV Golf and its related entities voluntarily filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on 8 September. According to court records, the league reported between $100 million and $500 million in assets and $500 million to $1 billion in liabilities.
On 5 October, LIV Golf filed a restructuring support agreement with the US Bankruptcy Court for the District of New Jersey. The deal indicated that the league would receive a $300 million investment from BC Partners, provided certain conditions were met. BC Partners’ initial investment is $4 million.
One of those conditions is the “execution of New Player Agreements consistent with the LIV 2.0 business plan that include players required by BC Partners.” It remains unclear which players, and how many, must sign up for the deal to go through.
The agreement extended the deadline for current LIV golfers to commit to the league until 25 October. BC Partners could extend or waive that deadline, according to sources.
League pushes ahead
LIV Golf is seeking the bankruptcy court’s authority to terminate its existing player contracts, a matter scheduled for a hearing on Wednesday. The league argues that this step is necessary to execute new LIV Golf 2.0 agreements, along with a proposed compensation and player ownership structure.
A source with knowledge of the restructuring said that conversations with players “remain fully on track, and the league continues to progress toward a transaction with BC Partners.”
BC Partners chief executive Ted Goldthorpe was equally upbeat. Speaking at the Sportico Invest Conference in London last week, he said: “We’re super committed. As [LIV Golf CEO Scott O’Neil] said, we’re going to start hiring back employees and planning for next year’s events. All systems go.”
Goldthorpe added: “The next 22 days will be about signing up the players, and I feel very good about that. We’ve had a lot of constructive dialogue with them. We obviously have a deadline now, but that’s the next big step for us.”
Court records show that Sergio Garcia, a LIV Golf captain, has been released from his contract. Attorneys representing other golfers, including Bryson DeChambeau, Cameron Smith, Cameron Tringale, Matthew Wolff and Marc Leishman, have also asked the court for clarification on the status of their contracts with LIV Golf.