Paul McGinley blasts LIV Golf players for trying to play on DP World Tour

Former Ryder Cup captain Paul McGinley does not agree with the LIV Golf players who want to play on the DP World Tour, too.

Lara Kuipers

16 Apr 2023

Paul McGinley, a former European Ryder Cup captain, vice captain, and player, has seemingly called out the LIV Golf players who still want to play on the DP World Tour.

"You know, in all probability, I may well have gone to LIV at 46, 47 years of age," McGinley said, per the Daily Mail. "If I’m offered $20, $30 million to go and play in a rival league, I’d have done it."

However, McGinley also added where he would've differed from players, such as Lee Westwood and Ian Poulter who at ages 49 and 47 did just that.

"But I wouldn’t have done the LIV Tour then come back and played the European Tour as well. I think that’s greedy. You can’t be on both buses. As great as those players were from Ryder Cups, and as great as they have been for European Tour and, you know, they’re personal friends of mine, I have a disagreement with them."

Westwood and Poulter headlined the group of LIV Golf members who appealed the DP World Tour's decision to fine and suspend players following their decision to compete in the inaugural LIV Golf event without a release from the DP World Tour.

It was announced that LIV Golf had lost its arbitration case to the DP World Tour last week ahead of The Masters.

And on the topic of the Ryder Cup, which is increasingly looking like it will be LIV Golf-less, McGinley was clear on his stance when it comes to an iconic Ryder Cup player like Poulter:

"Next to Seve [Ballesteros], he’s probably been the most influential player from a European perspective in Ryder Cups. It’s phenomenal what he’s done for us. And it’s sad that he’s probably not going to be a captain, or certainly not in the foreseeable future. Everybody had him down to be captain in New York.

I’m not going to close the door to that, but it’s odds-against now. There’s consequences with big decisions. And these are big decisions. The Ryder Cup is partly owned by the European tour.

"These guys are involved in an entity that is now harming the European tour, financially. So, unfortunately, they’ve removed themselves from the Ryder Cup, as far as I’m concerned."

Earlier this week, McGinley also spoke about the only scenario that he can see where a LIV Golf player would blend in well with the rest of the European Ryder Cup team.

This year's Ryder Cup is set to be held at Marco Simone Golf and Country Club in Rome, Italy from Sept. 25-Oct 1.

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