OTTERSHAW, England — Richard Brand, a long-time (and now former) member of the DP World Tour, was not a big fan of the “strategic alliance” that former European Tour CEO Keith Pelley and the PGA Tour reached in November 2020. At a press conference at Fox Hills Country Club outside London on the eve of the Asian Tour International Series – England Championship, Brand, who recently won the Senior PGA Championship and the U.S. Senior Open, made no secret of how deeply he felt about the alliance.
Brand in particular, who won the first victory of his then-unremarkable European/DP World Tour career at his 478th try before switching to LIV Golf, is targeting the annual deal whereby the top 10 players on the DP World Tour Race to Dubai standings who do not yet have a PGA Tour card will receive an exemption across the Atlantic for the following season.
“I think it's a completely wrong idea to play with an American,” Brand told Golf Digest minutes after the initial outburst. [PGA Tour commissioner] Does Jay Monahan care about the DP World Tour? No, he doesn't. To him, the “10 Player” contract is all about getting the best DP World Tour players to the PGA Tour. [the PGA Tour] I don’t care about the DP World Tour. They never care.”
Brand wasn’t done yet. The 51-year-old Briton, like many on the DP World Tour, believes Pelley should have chosen the “Saudi option”, betting on the future of the DP World Tour, which involves a proposed financial agreement with the oil-rich Middle Eastern nation’s Public Investment Fund, which has assets estimated at $925 billion, instead of eventually entering into a partnership with the PGA Tour.
“Let’s face it, anyone who knows anything about world golf knows that the DP World Tour made the wrong decision three or four years ago when they had the opportunity to play the Saudis,” Brand said. “I think most players realize that.”
Since Brand switched to LIV Golf, he has lost eligibility to play on the PGA Tour or Champions, although he can earn a tour card with his wins in two senior golf majors this year.
Brand also was outspoken when he learned of the latest changes to Europe’s Ryder Cup qualifying system, which emphasizes performance in major championships (5,000 points) and the elite PGA Tour (3,000 points), and he said it was “like another nail in the coffin of the DP World Tour” and he started to act again.
“It's sad,” Brand said. “I understand the strength of the United States, but it basically means that no one who plays DP World full-time can play in the Ryder Cup. You can't play. Obviously, the world rankings have become what they are, and now the Ryder Cup has become what it is.”
(For the record, DP World Tour Rolex events and regular PGA Tour events are worth 2,000 points; DP World Tour “Back Nine” events are worth 1,500 points, and DP World Tour Global events and PGA Tour Opposition events are worth 1,000 points.)
For the 2025 European team, the six players with the highest points will qualify to play at Bethpage, with Luke Donald having six players named to the squad.
Even then, his goal had not yet been achieved. Brand's next goal was the Presidents Cup, especially since New Zealander Ryan Fox (not yet a member of the PGA Tour) was left off the 2022 International Team.
“When you look at a guy like Fox, who was No. 2 on the DP World Tour two years ago, and he can't play,” Brand said. “I mean, really? It seems like it's just a PGA Tour event. The Ryder Cup is just a PGA Tour event now. It doesn't mean much to the up-and-coming guys in the game. You just look at the world rankings, how many guys from the DP World Tour are in the top 100 in the world? Maybe two? So I think it's a sad day for the DP World Tour, to be honest with you.”
