Joost Luiten wants the DP World Tour to make it harder for LIV Golf players to come back. The six-time DP World Tour winner told Today’s Golfer that returning players shouldn’t get their old status handed back to them.
“[The DP World Tour] should make it harder for guys to come back. Four years ago they didn’t give a shit about the DP World Tour,” Luiten said. “They made a decision to go after the money. And now all of a sudden, the money is gone and they want to come back and act like nothing happened. I don’t think that’s right.”
His comments came after the DP World Tour announced Monday that any player who signs with LIV for 2027 will be barred from tour membership and Ryder Cup eligibility. Players who walk away from LIV are free to return.
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Luiten said his biggest issue is with tournament invites going to former LIV players. He believes those spots should go to tour regulars and young players.
“Why give them invites? If I apply for an invite if I’m not in a tournament, I’m not going to get it because it’s all going to the LIV guys. There’s only a certain amount of invites,” Luiten said. “Invites should be for young talent coming through and not guys that took the piss against this tour and now they want to come back and they get invites. I’m not a big fan of that.”
He also wants players who gave up their membership to lose their exemptions.
“There should be a rule that if you gave up your membership you lose all your exemption rights as well. Then you have to stay a member if you want to ever come back to this tour,” Luiten said. “A lot of the guys gave up their membership and now they come back like nothing happened and then they become a member again and they get all the rights that they had before they left.”
Luiten said the path back should run through Q School.
“If they think that they are that good then show it at Q School and beat the guys. That’s how every other guy that wants to play on this tour has to go,” Luiten said.
RELATED: Jon Rahm Is Leaving LIV Golf After Rejecting LIV 2.0 Terms
Rory McIlroy sees it differently. Speaking at the Bloomberg New Economy Forum in New Delhi on Tuesday, McIlroy said he would welcome LIV players back.
“I think a rising tide lifts all boats,” McIlroy said. “And I think having some of these players back is beneficial for the business of the tours.”
McIlroy also backed the DP World Tour’s new LIV rule in his press conference at the DP World India Championship on Wednesday.
“As I said, the DP World Tour are well within their rights to change the rules and regulations,” McIlroy said. “This is the way to protect their business and to make the tour as strong as possible.”
Luiten, 40, sits 67th in the Race to Dubai rankings with three events left in the 2026 season.
