LIV Golf burst onto the scene back in June 2022 and since then, they have been able to acquire numerous top-class golfers including the likes of Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton.
Rahm jumped ship from the PGA Tour to join LIV Golf in December 2023, while Hatton made the move just one month later.
Since then, both players have represented Europe at the Ryder Cup.
Rahm and Hatton forged a fearsome Ryder Cup partnership for Europe at Bethpage Black back in September.
Both players gelled exceptionally well with one another and it felt like they were born to be Ryder Cup partners.
The two Europeans were in superb form, with Rahm describing his Ryder Cup teammate Hatton as ‘spectacular’.
However, the fact that they were able to represent Europe at the Ryder Cup in the first place was highly controversial according to one LIV golfer star.
LIV golfer Martin Kaymer questions Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton’s Ryder Cup participation
Martin Kaymer has won two major championships and has played on four European Ryder Cup teams throughout his career.
Do you think LIV Golf players should be allowed to participate at the Ryder Cup moving forward?
However, Kaymer has really struggled with his game over the past five or six years.
That obviously played a part in the German being one of the first players to join LIV Golf back in 2022.
When speaking to Flushing It, Kaymer suggested that those who joined LIV Golf after the initial influx of players moved to the Saudi-backed league were given an easier ride.
He said: “The thing is, at the beginning, I think we got the most heat, for leaving certain tours and coming here. And the guys who joined earlier, I think, they had the best or the biggest benefits from everything. Which, there’s no judging or right or wrong. Time developed, and therefore certain things played in their hands. Sometimes you do feel like, and this is not towards Tyrrell or Jon, but sometimes you feel like they have different rules for different people. I just find it very strange and I would like to understand it.
“How can there be, like, a lawsuit going on, and then you play the Ryder Cup? It’s very strange for me as a non-lawyer. But again, I’m happy for them because I see the point of view from the athlete. It’s great to compete wherever you want to play and everybody’s welcoming you with open arms. So, that is obviously an amazing situation to be in.”
Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton appealed DP World Tour sanctions
A loophole was found within the DP World Tour’s rules and regulations that enabled Rahm and Hatton to actually play on the European Ryder Cup team at Bethpage Black in September.
Sanctions imposed on the duo by the Tour for teeing it up in LIV Golf events meant that neither would be eligible to represent Europe at the Ryder Cup.
However, Rahm and Hatton lodged an appeal against those sanctions, thus enabling them both to play at Bethpage.
A ruling has still not been made by the Sports Resolutions arbitration panel.
Rahm and Hatton are yet to pay outstanding fines imposed by the DP World Tour for playing in LIV Golf tournaments.
And Kaymer is clearly confused as to why the goalposts shifted.
There is a conspiracy theory that the DP World Tour hierarchy chose to bend the rules to suit themselves, due to the fact that Hatton and Rahm are hugely important figures for the European Ryder Cup team.
That would certainly make sense, and nothing will be set in stone until the Sports Resolutions arbitration panel have made their final decision.
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