Sergio Garcia, Ian Poulter, Lee Westwood ineligible for Ryder Cup after resigning Tour membership
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(From left) Sergio Garcia, Ian Poulter and Lee Westwood, as well as Richard Bland, have resigned from the European Tour.
PHOTOS: AFP, USA TODAY SPORTS
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LONDON – Sergio Garcia, Ian Poulter, Lee Westwood and Richard Bland will be ineligible for the 2023 Ryder Cup after the DP World Tour confirmed on Wednesday that they had resigned their Tour memberships.
Their resignations came a month after the DP World Tour, formerly the European Tour, won its legal battle to be able to suspend and fine players who featured in conflicting LIV Golf events without permission.
It said in a statement the players had been hit with £100,000 (S$167,000) fines for serious breaches of its “Conflicting Tournament Regulation” committed last June, after playing in the first Saudi-backed LIV Golf event in England.
Spain’s Garcia and the English duo of Poulter and Westwood have played in 28 Ryder Cups between them. They also have 53 European Tour victories in total.
“The DP World Tour would like to thank the four players for the contribution they have made to the Tour and in particular to Sergio, Ian and Lee for the significant part they have played in Europe’s success in the Ryder Cup over many years,” it said in the statement.
“Their resignations, however, along with the sanctions imposed upon them, are a consequence of their own choices. The Tour has a responsibility to its entire membership to administer the member regulations which each player signs up to.”
The DP World Tour added it would soon provide further updates on other sanctioned members.
Twelve players, including Westwood, Poulter and Bland (above), appealed against sanctions imposed on them by the European Tour.
PHOTO: USA TODAY SPORTS
The 2023 Ryder Cup takes place at the Marco Simone Golf and Country Club near Rome from Sept 29 to Oct 1.
Garcia, 43, is the Ryder Cup’s record points scorer with 28.5, while Westwood has played a record 11 matches, a European record he shares with Nick Faldo, being part of seven winning teams.
Westwood called it a “sad day”, according to the Daily Telegraph. “I could not see any other option with all the punishments hanging over me,” the 50-year-old said of his resignation from the DP World Tour.
“I don’t agree with the direction (chief executive officer) Keith (Pelley) and his board have taken but I want to move on.”
Poulter, another Ryder Cup stalwart, has played a key role in some of Europe’s biggest successes in the biennial contest against the United States. The 47-year-old notably inspired Europe’s remarkable comeback in the “Miracle at Medinah” in 2012.
Englishman Bland became the oldest first-time winner in European Tour history aged 48 when he won the 2021 British Masters. REUTERS, AFP
