It is fair to say that the DP World Tour is enjoying a key stage in its season, with many of their best players featuring much more regularly ahead of the finale to the Race To Dubai.
Of course, the weekend saw Billy Horschel and Rory McIlroy involved in a play-off at the BMW PGA Championship, with the American being the one to win at Wentworth for a second time in his career after making an eagle on the second extra hole.
There are some standout events still to come before the season concludes, with the Alfred Dunhill Links and Andalucia Masters ahead before the final two events in the United Arab Emirates. And there are set to be some big names involved, including some of those who have moved to LIV Golf over the last couple of years.
Obviously, the DP World Tour has had a difficult time since LIV was established. Not only did they lose a number of their star players and biggest stalwarts, but they also had to deal with the PGA Tour responding by making it even more appealing to the world’s best players to play in their biggest events.
What the PGA Tour must now look to do after the BMW PGA Championship
There is a partnership between the PGA Tour and the DP World Tour, which sees event such as the Scottish Open boast a world-class field. But speaking on The Smylie Show after the outstanding finish at the BMW PGA Championship on Sunday, Smylie Kaufman suggested that the PGA Tour should look to strengthen the links even further.
“Just a conversation I wanted to get into, and we continue to talk about a global tour, we continue to see the value in what the DP World Tour can bring. Obviously, we recently saw in the news the DP World Tour is having LIV Golf tour players play in the next event, but also the fines has been a big talking point on Jon Rahm refusing to pay the fines, and I just think there’s a larger conversation on this,” he said.
“The DP World Tour seems to be tied at the hip with the PGA Tour, they don’t seem to be interested in joining up with LIV Golf. And with that being said, I just feel like the PGA Tour really does need to lean more into, they’ve already got the Scottish Open, let’s find a way to get these events more a part of our global schedule.
“If we’re not leaning into these big-time events, because listen, they’re finishing up before football, which I think is a great time to go play in the fall over there, because you’re not competing against football, you had these great, iconic venues, fantastic events, and I think the guys would enjoy playing if it was something that was more of a global schedule.”
A tricky balancing act
The DP World Tour should certainly have few complaints if they get the likes of Scottie Scheffler and Xander Schauffele featuring at more of their events. Ultimately, the DP World Tour has become more of a feeder tour for the majority of the year, with the likes of Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry focused on the signature events on the other side of the pond. It is also significant that their best players earn cards onto the PGA Tour at the end of each season.
It is a fine balancing act, with the tour surely likely to prefer offering an opportunity to those who play the majority of their golf in Europe. It would be a shame if some of those in the field at Wentworth lost out so a number of PGA Tour stars could get involved.
But Horschel’s regular involvement has played its part in attracting fans to the BMW PGA Championship, which was already one of the most prestigious events on the calendar. So having a situation where players such as Scheffler and Schauffele are involved for a number of weeks would be helpful.
However, if the last few years have taught us anything about the sport, it is surely that reaching an agreement that all parties are happy with is a lot easier said than done – even if it appears to benefit most of the golfing community.
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