DP World Tour continue fight against LIV Golf with Indian Pro Tour alliance

The DP World Tour and the PGA Tour have announced their newest alliance to continue the fight against the LIV Golf Tour.

Both tours have revealed a new partnership with the TATA Steel Professional Golf Tour of India to create a pathway for India's top players to compete on the best tours in the world.

The strategic partnership will provide benefits for the PGTI members. The leading player in the 2022 TATA Steel PGTI Rankings will earn DP World Tour membership beginning with the 2023 campaign.

The next highest-ranked non-exempt player in the top ten on the rankings will earn a spot in the Final Stage of the DP World Tour Qualifying School, while a further three players will earn spots in the Second Stage.

"Our global pathway system enables players from different international Tours to compete on the DP World Tour, and we are delighted to extend that opportunity to players from the TATA Steel Professional Golf Tour of India," said Keith Pelley, the CEO of the DP World Tour.

"We have already seen some terrific players from India establish themselves and win on our Tour, and this partnership will give many more the chance to follow in their footsteps, as well as potentially go on to play on the PGA Tour too."

PGTI players will also have access to 60 spots in the two Challenge Tour events to be played in India next month - the Duncan Taylor Black Bull Challenge and The Challenge Presented by KGA.

Both tournaments will take place at Karnataka Golf Association in Bangalore and were announced as part of the Challenge Tour’s 2023 Road to Mallorca on Wednesday.

Six Indian players have previously won on the DP World Tour. Jeev Milkha Singh and S.S.P Chawrasia have won four times each, while Arjun Atwal is the only Indian to win on both the PGA Tour and the DP World Tour.

"It’s hard to believe over two decades have passed since Arjun Atwal made history as the first Indian golfer to win on both the European Tour and PGA Tour," said Jay Monahan, the commissioner of the PGA Tour.

"This partnership, which further builds on the additional playing opportunities in the men’s professional game, will help make similar dreams come true for many Indian golfers to come."

This announcement comes two days after the two main allies expanded their relationship with the Korea Professional Golfers’ Association. On December 5, they also started a partnership with the Japan Golf Tour Organization.

Both the DP World Tour and the PGA Tour evidently judge these global relationships as extremely important following the rise of the LIV Golf Tour and their own alliance with the MENA Tour of the Middle East and North Africa.

The breakaway series, commissioned by Greg Norman and financed by the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia, joined forces with the MENA Tour to enhance their bid for Official World Golf Ranking points.