Henrik Stenson will find that the doors have closed to the DP World Tour’s biggest events, despite paying a fine of more than £1m to return to the circuit.
The Tour has confirmed that Stenson – the Swede who jumped ship to LIV Golf in highly controversial circumstances in 2022 when Europe’s Ryder Cup captain – has signed the forms, that LIV has sent in the cheque and that, after serving at least a two-month ban, he will be eligible to compete in its tournaments again.
After being relegated from LIV in August, it seems Stenson is coming home. However, the arms will not be outstretched.
In the wake of the story broken by Bunkered on Monday, Telegraph Sport has discovered that because of an unpublicised rule change brought in for the 2026 season, Stenson will no longer be guaranteed entry to tournaments such as the Dubai Desert Classic, the Scottish Open and the BMW PGA Championship.
The revelation only emphasises the tensions that still exist between Wentworth HQ and the breakaway league, regardless of the peace talks that both they and the PGA Tour insist they remain committed to.
While Stenson would previously have had an exemption for these Rolex Series events as he is in the legends category, that classification has been drastically downgraded by the Tour.
Any player in the top 40 on the Tour’s career money list who also fulfilled four other criteria had enjoyed a privileged position in Category 5, but they will now be demoted to Category 11a, which is a long way down the pecking order.
Stenson is in seventh on the career money list – having accumulated more than £28m in earnings on the circuit – and as a former Open champion who played in five Ryder Cups more than satisfied the other criteria.
The same would apply to Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter and Paul Casey among others, but because of Stenson’s predicament, they have all been served notice that if they decided to rejoin, they, too, would not necessarily be able to play in the tournaments that matter most.
With LIV only paying their players’ fines until December 31, it was anticipated that some of Ryder Cup heroes would also rejoin, but so far none have done so. And they must now wonder what would be the point.
Stenson still could play his way into these elite fields, or could receive sponsors’ invitations. However, it is understood that at least one LIV player has already been turned down for an invitation to the Desert Classic in January and there is clearly no will on the Tour’s behalf to lay out the red carpet for the original defectors. Anything but.
Many will see this rule change as a clever means of keeping the likes of Stenson out of the main spotlights – and many others will contrast this treatment with that dished out to Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton.
The pair were allowed to appear at the Ryder Cup in September despite not having paid their fines or serving their suspensions for playing on LIV.
The reason given was because they have appealed the sanctions levelled against them – but the appeals were launched more than a year ago and there is still no date for the hearing.
For its part, the Tour is denying that it is putting up any barriers. “The repositioning of this category for the 2026 season was part of a full review of the entire category structure,” a spokesperson told Telegraph Sport. “It was approved by the Tournament Committee in October 2024 and effectively returned the category to its position prior to the 2019 season.”
The Tour also points out Padraig Harrington is in the legends category and his status will be similarly affected. However, it is widely accepted that the three-time major-winner will receive sponsors’ invitations as and when he wants them.
Will the same apply to Stenson? Definitely not, says a Tour insider. “Stenson can play but now on our terms,” the source said. “It should be remembered that he let us down and embarrassed us when we needed him and after he had signed the contract to be captain in 2022.”
All this could be moot, as Stenson will have the opportunity to reappear on LIV – and presumably in the Majesticks team of which he is co-captain – in 2026 if he comes through their qualifying event. Yet he may choose not to enter.
The 49-year-old is way past his best, as he showed by his relegation four months ago and it is almost certain that the Majesticks will soon sign a replacement.
LIV did bring someone new on board on Tuesday. Henni Zuel, the former Ladies European Tour prodigy, has left Sky Sports and joined the broadcasting team of the Saudi-funded circuit.
