The DP World Tour will not allow golfers who play on LIV Golf 2.0 to hold membership during the 2027 season, a decision that strips those players of Ryder Cup eligibility, according to CBS Sports. Because European Ryder Cup selection requires DP World Tour membership, any player who continues with LIV will forfeit a chance to play for Europe at Adare Manor in Limerick, Ireland, next fall.
The Main Development
DP World Tour CEO Guy Kinnings told BBC Sport that players must now “make a choice.” “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 tour will also require players to disclose which circuits they intend to compete on for the upcoming season. Failing to report plans to play LIV Golf will be grounds for revoking DP World Tour membership outright.
The move comes after the tour granted conditional releases to nine LIV Golf players during the past season, allowing them to compete in both leagues. That arrangement will no longer extend to 2027 for golfers who stay with LIV.
What It Means For Ryder Cup Eligibility
Only Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton played for Europe among LIV-affiliated golfers under captain Luke Donald at Bethpage Black in 2025. The new ban threatens to shrink that pool further unless players leave LIV.
Several notable LIV golfers still hold DP World Tour playing privileges for 2027 if they choose to use them, including Hatton, Tom McKibbin and Adrian Meronk, who recently won the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship.
Rahm, a two-time major champion, has already signaled through his lawyer that he has no interest in continuing with LIV Golf 2.0, saying he found the terms of the league’s new vision unacceptable.
Context Around LIV Golf’s Status
The ban lands as LIV Golf’s future remains unsettled. Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund withdrew support at the end of the season, and the league went through Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings in the United States, according to Sky Sports. LIV has since secured an initial funding commitment of $300 million from BC Partners Credit to help relaunch as LIV 2.0 in 2027.
Rahm is reported to be owed up to $150 million for the remainder of the contract he signed nearly three years ago, a figure that underscores what any departing player would be walking away from financially.
What’s Next
Players now face a decision before the 2027 season begins: stay with LIV Golf and lose Ryder Cup eligibility, or return to the DP World Tour and preserve a path to Adare Manor. The tour has not detailed a specific deadline for players to disclose their plans, but membership status for 2027 will hinge on those declarations.
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