LIV rebel Stenson quits DP World Tour to avoid £500k fine - "I'm sad to leave"

12 May 2023 , 10:05

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LIV Golf rebel Henrik Stenson has quit the DP World Tour (Image: Getty Images)

Henrik Stenson has resigned from the DP World Tour in order to avoid racking up fines for playing in LIV Golf events.

Stenson is one of 26 golfers to have been sanctioned after an arbitration panel ruled in their favour last month. The likes of Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter, Richard Bland and Sergio Garcia all resigned their memberships after the Tour handed out initial punishments and Stenson has become the latest to walk away after further sanctions were announced.

"I just want to thank everyone on the European Tour. I'm sad to leave," Stenson said. The 47-year-old opened up about his resignation in more detail in an interview with Golf Digest, claiming the Tour had "left me with no decision to make really".

"It is sad that it has come to this," he said. "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.

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"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."

Ian Poulter and Lee Westwood are also among the LIV Golf players to quit the DP Tour (Getty Images)

And while Stenson did not reveal exactly how much he had been fined by the Tour, he did admit it was a significant figure. He explained: "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."

Matthew Cooper