European golfers who defected to LIV Golf could now face huge fines of up to £1million.
Last month, in a brutal blow to defectors, an arbitration panel ruled that the DP European Tour were permitted to impose sanctions on members who had played in rebel events. The saga had initially exploded last year following the inaugural LIV tournament at The Centurion Club in June, with the likes of Ian Poulter and Lee Westwood issued £100,000 fines and bans for participating without permission.
But any subsequent punishment was put on hold as a number of LIV stars challenged the ruling. A hearing took place in February, with the three-person panel deliberating for almost two months before favouring the DP World Tour's bid to be able to uphold their ‘conflicting event’ regulation
And according to Mail Sport, DP members are now set to be penalised in the most severe way possible. Their former bosses are proposing issuing financial sanctions for every single LIV event they've taken part in, with amounts varying depending on how each 54-hole competition was perceived to have impacted the DP World Tour.
So far, there have been four Saudi-backed tournaments in 2023, including the most recent bonanza in Adelaide. Greg Norman's 2022 series included eight events, meaning the fines for some players could be in the region of £1million.
Along with Westwood and Poulter, other Ryder Cup heroes in Sergio Garcia and Graeme McDowell have competed in all 12 LIV tournaments. And the impending penalties will severely test Norman's promise that his organisation would cover the cost of any litigation.
Prior to The Centurion Club event, in which 17 DP World Tour stars took part, he pledged: "It’s not a threat, we anticipated it. All the players I’ve told: 'We’ve got your back'. We’ll defend, we’ll reimburse and we’ll represent – simple as that."
The downsides of players signing for LIV for extortionate amounts is also becoming apparent in the world rankings. With their events not recognised by the OGWR, the majority of Norman's men were unable to play the US Masters in April.
That notion was then widely questioned though, when Brooks Koepka, Phil Mickleson, and Patrick Reed all finished inside the top six. No LIV representative has captured a major since golf's civil war ignited last year.
