Next week marks the DP World Tour’s (formerly the European Tour) flagship event — the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth. It’s that Tour’s equivalent of The Players Championship on the PGA Tour.
DP World Tour boss Keith Pelley isn’t real thrilled at some of the entrants in that field — namely a bunch of LIV defectors. To make it even more interesting, The Defender Of The Faith (aka Rory McIlroy) is in the field to support the DP World Tour, after all, he is from Northern Ireland. And Rory’s not too thrilled about the LIVers invading the field.
“I hate what it’s (LIV) doing to the game of golf. I hate it. I really do. Like it’s going to be hard for me to stomach going to Wentworth in a couple of weeks’ time and seeing 18 of them there. That just doesn’t sit right with me,” McIlroy said after winning the Tour Championship.
All 18 have been suspended by the PGA Tour but the DP World Tour has been forced to allow them to compete, pending a full court battle next February in the U.K.
Pelley dashed off a memo to players this week and expressed what he termed “strong opposition” to having The Defectors in the field at Wentworth.
Part of Pelley’s memo read: “They will not be given any on course competitive disadvantage – i.e. unfavorable tee times – but they will not be required to play in the pro-am on Wednesday and will not be in TV featured groups.”
You may or may not recall that this past July, defector Ian Poulter and two others got into the Scottish Open pending those hearings next year. Until that hearing, LIV players can participate in DP World Tour events. Naturally, LIVers, for the most part, are desperate for Official World Ranking points — thus the flood of Defectors into the field at Wentworth.
In the meantime, this week the DP World Tour heads to Denmark for the Made in HimmerLand championship staged at the posh Himmerland Golf and Spa Resort.
McIlroy Commits To Italian Open:
Speaking of FedEx champion Rory McIlroy, Rors has committed to play in the Italian Open next month (Sept. 15-18) and there’s a reason the world’s No. 3 will be in that field.
The event is being staged at the Marco Simone Golf Club outside Rome, site of the next Ryder Cup matches so Rory will be on a scouting trip, so to speak.
Joining him in the field will be U.S. Open champion Matt Fitzpatrick.
LPGA Tour Heads To Sylvania, Ohio:
This week’s stop on the LPGA Tour is the Dana Open at the Highland Meadows Golf Club in Sylvania, outside Toledo, Ohio.
All five of this year’s major champions are in the field — Chevron winner Jennifer Kupcho, U.S. Open champ Minjee Lee, In Gee Chun (Women’s PGA), Brooke Henderson (Evian) and Women’s Open champion Ashleigh Buhai.
