Garcia in U-turn to save Ryder Cup future
Spaniard to stay with Euro tour after Rahm warnings
SERGIO GARCIA has performed a U-turn over resigning from the DP World Tour in a bid to remain eligible for the Ryder Cup.
The 42-year-old Spaniard, who is the all-time points record holder in Ryder Cup matches, has joined the Saudi-backed LIV Series and had already given up his PGA Tour membership.
He said after The Open nine days ago that he was also set to hand back his DP card.
But he told ESPN that comments by his compatriot Jon Rahm, who feared Garcia would be banned if he left the European Tour, had changed his mind.
‘When I finished The Open, I said I was most likely going to resign my membership from the Tour,’ said Garcia, who still plans to play LIV golf events.
‘Thanks to the things that Jon Rahm said, and I had a couple of good conversations with guys on the DP World Tour, I’m going to hold off on that.’
Team Europe captain Henrik Stenson was stripped of his role last week for joining the LIV tour, but Garcia is hopeful he can play in Rome next year.
‘I want to at least see what’s happening when the Ryder Cup qualification starts,’ he said. ‘See what kind of rules and eligibilities they have.
‘If I agree with what they are, I’ll keep playing what I can on the tour and try to qualify for that Ryder Cup team. And, if not, then we’ll move on.’
Meanwhile, former European Ryder Cup captain Bernard Gallacher (right) fears that LIV’s ‘confrontational’ CEO Greg Norman is not the man to broker any potential compromise between the Saudis and the established tours should that be required in future. The Scot, who captained Europe in 1991, 1993 and 1995, believes the PGA Tour and DP World Tour may be able to ‘weather the storm’ for now. But he believes they will be eventually forced to try to reach a compromise if LIV Golf’s virtually bottomless pockets were to keep attracting players.
He said: ‘A conversation needs to be had and a compromise reached, but I’m not entirely convinced that Greg Norman is the man to have that conversation.
‘I think some see him as quite a confrontational character, and you can see why.’
Gallacher added: ‘For me, there needs to be somebody in charge that is amenable to the PGA and European Tours for it to work; Greg Norman isn’t that person.
‘He’s upset the apple cart and ruffled quite a few feathers already and LIV Golf is still in its infancy. It’s only going to get worse.’