Why are so many LIV golfers playing this weekend's Dunhill Links?

The long, tumultuous tale of the fraught relationship between the DP World Tour and LIV Golf doesn't need going over here.

LIV has captured a good deal of the European circuit's best and brightest names over the years, many of whom continue to regularly play DP World Tour events while copping hefty fines for appearing at the breakaway tour's events.

This week's Alfred Dunhill Links Championship, however, is of particular note due to the sheer number of LIV players scheduled to appear at the three-day team event. 

One of the DP World Tour's signature season-ending events, the Dunhill is one of the biggest events on the post-major calendar, played at three iconic Scottish links courses over three days and playing host to a star-studded cast of celebrities and amateur players. This year, a record 17 LIV golfers will form part of the pro contingent, up from last year's 14, the full list of which is as follows:

• Tyrrell Hatton
• Cam Smith
• Dustin Johnson
• Brooks Koepka
• Bubba Watson
• Patrick Reed
• Thomas Pieters
• Adrian Meronk
• Tom McKibbin
• David Puig
• Brendan Steele
• Matt Jones
• Martin Kaymer
• Caleb Surratt
• Peter Uihlein
• Louis Oosthuizen
• Frederik Kjettrup

But why are so many LIV players electing to play a tournament that, at first glance, provides no real benefit to them? More importantly, why is the DP World Tour allowing so many of them to take part?

For the vast majority of players on the list, in particular the ones that aren't DP World Tour members anyway, the simple answer to both questions is that the Championship Committee, run by Alfred Dunhill owners Richemont, can invite whoever it wants to take part if they think it'll boost the tournament's profile. 

The Dunhill isn't a tournament typically hard up for star power anyway (Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm and Shane Lowry all took part last year), but with many of both Europe and the US's biggest stars recuperating after this year's Ryder Cup, it makes sense that the tournament threw out a few extra invites to stack the pro roster with as many notable names as possible. 

This, of course, leaves a question as to the LIV players who have come under sanction from the DP World Tour, yet still remain members – a camp that includes Dunhill participants Hatton, Meronk, Reed and Pieters. 

While it would be fair to assume that the European tour looks unfavourably on their former full-time players returning to the fold, there are actually no restrictions from either LIV or the DP World tour on their players playing the other's events – given there's no clash and the players in question accept (or, in the case of a few, have appealed) the sanctions handed down to them by the DP World Tour. 

A couple of these players, including Tyrrell Hatton and Jon Rahm, are in the process of appealing their DP World Tour sanctions – a process during which they've been allowed to play European Tour events (including representing Team Europe at the Ryder Cup).

There are no LIV events this weekend – or indeed at all for the rest of 2025. As such, provided they've paid their fines, LIV's contingent of DP World members is theoretically free to play as much European Tour golf as they wish. We also saw this in full effect the BMW PGA Championship a couple of weeks ago, during which nine LIV Golf players took part.

Indeed, there are many benefits to taking part. For the LIV golfers who wish to retain their DP World Tour membership, the post-LIV window represents a vital period in which they can play the requisite number of tournaments for them to do so. 

Finally, while LIV is famed for the huge payouts it gives its star players, for others lower on the 2025 money list or those simply trying to play their way back into form, the €5 million prize purse  – the largest on offer at any event until November's Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship – also makes for a pretty tempting financial reward.

You can check out the full list of round 1 tee times for this week's Dunhill Links here.