After the most successful LIV Golf event to date in Boston last week, some golfers at this week’s BMW PGA Championship – the flagship event of the DP World Tour – were not pleased with some of their peers. theirs for occupying a position in the field.
Jon Rahm and Billy Horschel, both of whom voiced their support for the PGA Tour against LIV Golf, named the LIV golfers participating in this week’s course at Wentworth Club.
“There are many players who have been key players for the European Tour and Ryder Cup golf tournaments who have had a lot of collective years on the European tour,” Rahm said. “They come, I don’t necessarily think it’s a bad thing. What I don’t understand is that some players have never shown any interest in the European Tour, never showed any interest in playing the event, given the chance. because they can get world ranking points and hopefully become majors next year.”
Rahm went on to explain that he has no problem with Ian Poulter, Lee Westwood, Graeme McDowell or Ian Poulter playing this week’s event, but he is frustrated when other players – such as Abraham Ancer and Talor Gooch, for example (Rahm did not name) – taking the position.
“It doesn’t hurt me, but it upsets me that someone who has played 20 DP World events this year can’t get a chance to play a top event because some people have already won it… given the chance as Rahm added, “They don’t care. They don’t know the history of the event. They’re only here because they’re trying to get world ranking points and trying to finish in the top 50 [in the world] and it’s as clear as day. “
Rahm reiterated the same thing later in another interview.
Why should PGA Tour golfers care about what LIV golfers are doing on the DP World Tour? Well, the answer to that is complicated, but Rahm referenced it in his answer. Currently, LIV players do not have enough points from the official World Golf Rankings, and as a result they will start to drop down to OWGR, which is one of the main ways to earn a place in the championships. big enemy next year.
Those players, like Gooch and Ancer, would play on the PGA Tour, but they were banned from doing so. The DP World Tour does not currently have such a ban, although they have been asked not to play before the morning hours on Wednesday and ask not to wear their LIV golf equipment.
“Abraham Ancer, Talor Gooch… You’ve never played this tournament, you’ve never supported [European tour]. Why are you here? “
“Those guys, when they signed that deal and the money they got, they had to be smart enough to understand that they might not be able to go on either tour, they might not get the world ratings. world,” Horschel added later. “The money they received was included, and that’s why they signed those transactions.
“Honestly, I feel like a slap in the face to the rest of the members of this tour when they come to play the biggest wallet on the DP World Tour and that they’re going to take the money out of the guys’ pockets. boys this week. I don’t think that’s right in my opinion.”
Horschel doesn’t play most of his golf on the DP World Tour, and he says he’ll have even more say if players try to play on the PGA Tour. Rahm and Horschel both issued warnings from several members of the former DP World Tour.
“I wouldn’t call Lee Westwood and Ian Poulter hypocritical because they never said they wanted to play less,” Horschel said. “Those guys who have openly stated that they want to play less, those are hypocrites. Just to be clear about it. Not all of them have. And there are a few hypocrites here. this week because they want to play less, but they’re playing a different event that isn’t a LIV event.”
Rory McIlroy, who is both the biggest voice on the PGA Tour front, and the most influential person on the DP World Tour because of his association with the Ryder Cup and because he’s the best player on the field, will spoke on Wednesday. However, he did give a preview of what’s to come after winning the Tour championship two weeks ago.
“I hate what it’s doing to the game of golf,” McIlroy said. “I hate it. I really do. It’s going to be very difficult for me to go to Wentworth in a few weeks and see 18 of them there. That doesn’t sit well with me.”
