Garcia was the only one of the 17 sanctioned players to initially refuse to pay a £100,000 fine, and the DP World Tour said he “did not disclose” plans to settle the fine.
Last month, however, Ryder Cup record-scoring holder Garcia changed course. He has now paid more than £1 million in outstanding fines and agreed to a suspension, paving the way for him to qualify for the 2025 DP World Tour.
Given the number of layoffs Garcia had to play, he was initially not expected to return to the Golf World Tour until the spring of 2025. But it now looks like it could take place as early as next month, with the 2017 Masters champion revealing his comeback could take place in the Middle East.
“Look at it, I think it's about nine weeks, so my first start will be… my probably first start will be Bahrain,” Garcia said from a bunker at the Saudi International Stadium .
The Bahrain Championship is scheduled to take place from January 30 to February 2, providing a convenient venue for Sergio Garcia’s comeback and just an hour from Riyadh, LIV Golf’s 2025 season opener It will be held next week.
Garcia's return to the DP World Tour is driven by his ambition to compete in a 12th Ryder Cup.
Before rejoining the tour last month, European Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald confirmed he had been discussing with Garcia the possibility of the Spaniard returning to the squad to face the United States next year.
While Garcia has regained eligibility to compete at Wentworth Circuit, a requirement for Ryder Cup qualification, his path back to the team for the first time since 2021 remains challenging.
In order to balance his commitment to the Asian Tour and LIV golf, the 44-year-old is expected to play only “two to three” DP World Tour events, while also accepting the tournament ban he has suffered for still participating in LIV golf events.
To automatically qualify for Team Donald, Garcia needs to be in the top six on the Ryder Cup qualifying list. To achieve this, he will need to perform well in limited DP World Tour events and major championships. If he falls short, his only remaining path to the team will be to become one of Donald's six captains.
“Hopefully I play so well in the majors and on the European Tour that I don't need a draft pick,” he said.