Jon Rahm, Tyrrell Hatton eligible for 2025 Ryder Cup despite joining LIV Golf

Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton, both members of the victorious European Ryder Cup team at Marco Simone last fall, are still eligible for the 2025 team at Bethpage Black under the DP World Tour’s current guidelines. The pair left for LIV Golf earlier this year but have a pathway to be on the team, DP World Tour CEO Guy Kinnings told reporters.

The newly appointed Kinnings dispelled previous concerns — which were even voiced by Rory McIlroy — that Rahm and Hatton’s defections to LIV Golf might prevent them from representing Europe in Long Island, N.Y., next year.

Rahm and Hatton must simply remain DP World Tour members to be eligible for the Ryder Cup, Kinnings said. That means the pair will incur fines every time they tee it up in a LIV Golf event, but if they pay those penalties and play in the minimum number of DP World Tour events each calendar year to retain membership (four), they can still be on the team.

“I think there’s been a slight misconception because the reality is, under the current rules, if a player is European, and is a member of the DP World Tour, and abides by the rules as they currently are — so if you don’t get a release and you accept the sanctions — there is no reason why players who’ve taken LIV membership and maintained DP World Tour membership, could not a) qualify and or b) be available to for selection,” the CEO said.

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The change from 2022

Rahm and Hatton’s eligibility situation is in direct contrast with that of several other LIV players who chose to withdraw their DP World Tour membership last year. Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter and Sergio Garcia resigned from the tour last year, effectively ending their Ryder Cup careers to avoid paying large fines. Meanwhile, Rahm and Hatton (and other European LIV members such as Adrian Meronk and Thomas Pieters) have kept their memberships.

According to The Telegraph’s James Corrigan, Kinnings consulted the DP World Tour rules department to ensure that Rahm and Hatton could play in the four required events while also serving their LIV-related penalties. Since LIV Golf plays 14 events each year, Rahm and Hatton need to serve a 14-week ban to carry out their suspensions. But instead of serving those suspensions at the end of the LIV season, Rahm and Hatton can serve them whenever LIV has an off-week but the DP World Tour does not, as revealed by Kinnings. As long as both players pay the appropriate fines — which will likely total more than $1 million each — they will be eligible to either qualify for or be selected for the European Ryder Cup team.

“It’s not a loophole,” Kinnings said. “Rules are for all of the membership and it’s important for people to know how those apply and they apply to every member.”

What are the future implications?

Not every player will want to battle constant fines and suspensions to…