Whatever becomes of LIV Golf 2.0, the DP World Tour has decided it won’t let those who compete in the rebel circuit’s new version have it both ways. In a statement to BBC Sport, DP World Tour CEO Guy Kinnings said the European circuit, which had previously reached agreements with LIV players to allow them into its tournaments, will no longer do so in 2027, effectively banning them from playing.
“Players need to make a choice,” Kinnings told BBC Sport. “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 DP World Tour had reached agreements that included granting conditional releases to LIV players in part to allow players like Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton to maintain their Ryder Cup eligibility. The DP World Tour oversees the European team, like the PGA of America oversees the American side. This détente included Hatton and Rahm agreeing earlier this year to a settlement that required them to pay their outstanding fines for competing in the formerly Saudi-backed league in exchange for European Tour eligibility. Those deals applied only to the 2026 season. With LIV struggling to survive as it goes through bankruptcy in hopes of reinventing itself, the DP World Tour will no longer let LIV players have their cake and eat it too.
The deadline to apply for membership on the DP World Tour is Nov. 16, while the deadline for players to commit to LIV Golf 2.0 is Oct. 25. The DP World Tour will now ask players to disclose which tours they intend to play in 2027, and that will be taken into account when deciding if they are to be given membership on the European circuit. Players like Rahm, Hatton, and Tom McKibbin, who played on LIV but also had “status” on the DP World Tour under certain categories, will no longer be allowed to double-dip. Players like Joaquin Niemann don’t have status and would need to either go through DP World Tour Qualifying School or strike a deal with the DP World Tour to play a set number of events on sponsor invitations. Such deals would also be available only to players not playing on LIV 2.0. If a player signs a deal with the DP World Tour and also tries to play on LIV, their membership or contract would be terminated.
The DP World Tour’s ban comes as it renegotiates its alliance with the PGA Tour. PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp has not yet said when, if or how he will allow defectors to return to the PGA Tour.
LIV Golf filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in September as it looks to restructure after the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund announced it was withdrawing funding from the league after the 2026 season. Last week, LIV and its new investor, BC Partners, formalized a restructuring support agreement under which the London-based private equity firm will fund LIV 2.0. BC Partners announced an “initial committed investment” as part of a targeted $300 million in cumulative financing to help the league, which the court must approve.
A day after the RSA was filed, Rahm’s attorney told a New Jersey bankruptcy court that the two-time major winner will not be part of LIV 2.0. In the days since Rahm’s intentions were made clear, Adrian Meronk and David Puig have also announced they won’t be taking part in the reboot. Hatton has not yet said publicly what he plans to do. Sergio Garcia’s representation asked the court for clarity on his LIV contract and subsequently had it terminated.
Rahm and Hatton are key members of the European side, which will look to win its third Ryder Cup in a row next September. Garcia has said he told captain Luke Donald that he plans to try to make the team but would also be interested in an assistant captaincy if he doesn’t. The DP World Tour’s decision to stop granting releases, ending any LIV players’ Ryder Cup eligibility, adds another obstacle for the breakaway league as it looks to retain talent and get its reboot off the ground.
At a London conference last week, BC Partners credit head Ted Goldthorpe said he and his company are very “committed” to LIV Golf and expect to have a “critical mass” of players by the Oct. 25 deadline. While many, including the PIF, have wondered if BC Partners is only interested in LIV for the purposes of a tax write-off, Goldthorpe said that “wasn’t the driving force behind the investment.”
The next hearing in LIV”s bankruptcy case will take place on Wednesday, Oct. 14.
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