Sergio Garcia Says He Won't Resign DP World Tour Membership After Joining LIV Golf

Sergio Garcia has changed course and will not resign his membership with the DP World Tour.

"When I finished the Open Championship (last) Sunday, I said that I was most likely going to resign my membership from the (DP World) Tour," Garcia told ESPN's Michael Collins. "That obviously meant not being eligible for the Ryder Cup because you have to be a member.

"But thanks to the things that Jon Rahm said. And I had a couple of good conversations with guys on the (DP World) Tour. I'm gonna hold off on that. I want to at least see what's happening when the Ryder Cup qualification starts. See what kind of rules and eligibilities they have in there. If I agree with what they (are), I'll definitely keep playing whatever I can on the Tour and try to qualify for that Ryder Cup Team. And if not, then we'll move on. But it is definitely something that is in my mind."

Rahm went public with his desire to have Garcia and other LIV Golfers be eligible to compete in the Ryder Cup. The Spaniard called on the PGA Tour and DP World Tour to work with LIV Golf rather than create an adversarial relationship.

"Hopefully a simple solution is found. … It’s such a beautiful sport that it is a pity there are certain fights between the DP World Tour, the PGA Tour and LIV Golf," Rahm said. “I understand the reasons why golfers who play LIV Golf do it and it’s a shame they have to relinquish their status on the PGA Tour and the DP World Tour."

The PGA Tour already indefinitely suspended any player who joined LIV Golf, which is funded by the Saudi Arabian government. The suspension will leave American players who joined LIV unable to compete in the Ryder Cup unless they are chosen as a captain's choice. Several players have resigned their membership with the PGA Tour rather than take the suspension.

While the DP World Tour is yet to take the same hardline stance, no guarantees have been given to LIV players. Garcia said he spoke to DP World Tour CEO Keith Pelley but was offered no reassurance he would be eligible to continue competing on the tour.

"I told Keith Pelley, 'I wanna keep being a member of the DP World Tour. I wanna play my minimum, still support the tour, still have my eligibilities to make Ryder Cup teams,'" Garcia said. "He said, 'That's great but we gotta do what's best for us. We'll see what that is.'"

European Ryder Cup captain Henrik Stenson was stripped of his captaincy after joining LIV last week.

LIV Golf has offered star golfers massive signing bonuses—some well into nine figures—to join the fledgling league. While the controversy surrounding the tour's Saudi backing has led to several sponsorships being pulled from defecting players, the monetary windfall for golfers has been seismic.