Henrik Stenson RESIGNS DP World Tour membership then reveals BIG fines!

LIV Golf's Henrik Stenson resigns from the DP World Tour.

12 May 2023

Henrik Stenson RESIGNS DP World Tour membership then reveals hefty fines!

Henrik Stenson has revealed he has officially resigned his DP World Tour membership in light of receiving hefty fines for his involvement on LIV Golf.

Stenson, 47, was sacked as 2023 European Ryder Cup captain and replaced by Luke Donald last season after it emerged he was moving over to the Saudi-backed league. Incredibly, Stenson went on to win that week in his first LIV Golf start in Bedminster.

Henrik Stenson RESIGNS DP World Tour membership then reveals BIG fines!

The Swede, who won 11 times on the European Tour including two Race to Dubai titles in 2013 and 2016, is understood to have accepted a signing-on fee to join LIV Golf in the region of $50m.

In an interview with Golf Digest's John Huggan ahead of LIV Golf Tulsa this week, Stenson revealed great sadness in confirming his departure from the DP World Tour but that he was left no other alternative given the hefty fines that were landing on his doormat.

Stenson told Huggan:

"It is sad that it has come to this. But it is what it is and it certainly wasn’t unexpected. They left me with no other choice so I have resigned. That’s it. I don’t really feel like it will do any good to dig into this too deeply. I’m appreciative of what the Tour has done for me over the years. But they have chosen how they want to view the future. And we have obviously done the same. Unfortunately, they don’t go together at this point. When Richard Bland, Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter and Sergio Garcia resigned last week, the Tour said they would have a statement the next day. Then the next day they said the statement would actually come next week. There were rumours that would happen today and those rumours were right. I received a letter, as did all the other players involved, I hear. The Tour has taken a stand on the LIV events we all played in and that left me with no decision to make really."

Stenson also told Huggan he estimates his fines add up to around £50,000 to £75,000 per LIV Golf event that he has competed in, which stands at 10 tournaments prior to this week in Tulsa.

If that's the lowest amount he estimates then that's a total of £500,000, which is the exact figure James Corrigan was quoting earlier this week.

Stenson said:

"I haven’t added up the numbers on how much I was fined. It was anywhere between £50,000 and £75,000 per LIV event, which added up to a substantial amount. I don’t feel like me spilling the beans and airing my views on all this is actually going to be what I should do. Doing that is only going to make the situation even more infected than it already is. As was the case when I resigned the Ryder Cup captaincy, I have my views on a lot of things that have gone on. But out of respect for a lot of people and what they do -- and even those I don’t totally respect -- there is no point in me digging any deeper. There is less than half a year until the Ryder Cup so it is best I don’t say much other than to say I’ve resigned."

Corrigan is tonight reporting that Martin Kaymer is likely the next big name set to resign his DP World Tour membership.

This is as a result of the DP World Tour's latest news that they have banned and fined 26 players for competing on LIV Golf and Asian Tour events.

READ ALL ABOUT THAT HERE

Corrigan writes:

"Martin Kaymer, the two-time major winner, has not yet resigned but he is believed to be on the brink after being informed he is banned for eight Tour events and cannot play in the Porsche European Open in Germany later this month."

Stenson now officially becomes the fifth LIV Golf player to terminate his DP World Tour membership following Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter, Sergio Garcia and Richard Bland.

Garcia is still the only one not to have paid up his initial £100k fine.

Stenson ranks fifth in all-time European Tour career earnings with €29m.

Westwood is second on €38m, with Garcia in third on €30m.

Rory McIlroy leads the way on €45m.

Here's the full career money list

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