Sergio Garcia isn’t getting a warm welcome back to the DP World Tour. Hours after Garcia announced he is leaving LIV Golf, two-time DP World Tour winner Eddie Pepperell went after him on X.
“This has to be Sergio trolling us? Surely. Elite level sh--housery, this,” Pepperell wrote. “Or has he got dementia?”
Pepperell followed up with a second post. He said he still rates Garcia as a player but took aim at the statement itself.
“To be clear, I think Sergio Garcia is still a wonderful player. He was my favourite golfer growing up, ahead of Tiger. And I can see the value he still brings, ahead of me certainly,” Pepperell wrote. “But his statement today shows a remarkable lack of self awareness. Like, a stunning amount.”
Garcia announced Thursday on Instagram that he will play the DP World Tour next season. He is also leaving the door open to the PGA Tour.
“Next season I’ll be playing on the DP World Tour,” Garcia wrote. “This tour has been a huge part of my career from the very beginning, and I’m proud to call it home again. I’m also keeping my options open for a return to the PGA Tour.”
View this post on Instagram
Garcia left both tours on bad terms when he joined LIV in 2022. At that year’s Wells Fargo Championship, he was caught on video saying, “I can’t wait to leave this tour” about the PGA Tour. A month later, The Daily Telegraph reported he went on a similar rant about the DP World Tour.
RELATED: Sergio Garcia Asks Court to Terminate His LIV Golf Contract
Pepperell has criticized Garcia before. After Garcia’s 2026 Masters meltdown, Pepperell called him “a childish brat” on The Chipping Forecast podcast. In 2022, he called Garcia’s withdrawal from the BMW PGA Championship “pathetic.”
Pepperell finished No. 101 in this season’s DP World Tour standings. That cost him full playing privileges for next season.
The announcement comes after a New Jersey bankruptcy court cleared Garcia to end his LIV Golf contract following the league’s Chapter 11 filing. The ruling made him a free agent for the first time since he joined LIV in 2022.
Garcia said his offseason is about more than his swing. “This off season, I’m working really hard on my game and putting a big focus on a strong mindset and my mental health,” he wrote. He added that “probably the most exciting part for me is strengthening personal relationships, both new and old.”
He also addressed Augusta head on. In the final round of the 2026 Masters, Garcia broke his driver on the second tee and received a code of conduct warning, the first ever issued at the tournament. He apologized on social media two days later.
The fallout reportedly reached well beyond Augusta. The Financial Times reported that Garcia’s outburst embarrassed PIF governor Yasir al-Rumayyan and played a role in the Saudi fund’s decision to pull its LIV Golf funding. News of the PIF’s exit broke days after the Masters, and LIV declined to comment on the report.
“I left Augusta last year disappointed with myself and my actions, and I’m ready to show what I’ve learned and where I am mentally,” Garcia wrote. “Augusta has given me some of the greatest moments of my life, and I’d love nothing more than to chase another green jacket at such a special place. I’m excited to get to work and excited to grind.”
The Ryder Cup is the other big target. “It’s a big year ahead with the Ryder Cup, and I’m going to work my tail off for every chance I can get at more Majors and the biggest events in the game,” Garcia wrote. “Another goal is to make that Ryder Cup team, and to be an asset to the guys in whatever capacity that may be.”
RELATED: LIV Golfers Banned From DP World Tour, Lose Ryder Cup Eligibility
Garcia is Europe’s all-time leading Ryder Cup points scorer, with a 25-13-7 record across 10 appearances. The 2027 matches will be played at Adare Manor in Ireland.
He let his DP World Tour membership lapse for 2026 after missing the 2025 European team. The tour’s membership application window opens in November, after the DP World Tour Championship.
The PGA Tour path is longer. Garcia remains under a one-year PGA Tour suspension dating to his last LIV start, and the tour has not announced a pathway for his return.
“In golf, everything is earned and nothing is given,” Garcia wrote to close the statement. “Let’s get to work.”
