Ex-LIV Golf star banned by PGA Tour despite quitting Saudi-backed league

Bernd Wiesberger has revealed that he is banned from competing in two PGA Tour events later this year due to his past LIV Golf loyalties, despite never being a member of the American-based circuit.

Having played in the opening two seasons of the LIV setup, Wiesberger opted to leave the breakaway league and return to the DP World Tour for 2024. The former Ryder Cup star saw his DP World Tour fines settled, and served a suspension before returning at the Dubai Desert Classic in January.

Since then he has played in a further eight events on the European-based circuit, and would have had hopes of playing on American soil later this year with the ISCO Championship and Barracuda Championship included on the DP World Tour schedule.

The two events are officially sanctioned by the PGA Tour, and despite also including their European partners, Wiesberger has been informed that he is unable to compete in both tournaments later this summer, having previously competed on the Saudi-backed circuit.

Revealing the ban on social media, he tweeted: “Same here. Just received a letter by the pgat banning me from playing the isco and barracuda. Never been a member either. Who knows what’s going on over there…” Wiesberger was responding to comments from his former LIV colleague Henrik Stenson.

In an interview with Mirror Sport, Stenson discussed the Champions Tour’s decision to not offer starts to U.S. Senior PGA champion Richard Bland, who is also a member of the Saudi-backed series. He said: “Richard Bland won the Senior PGA a week ago he found on social media that ‘well you aren’t going to get any starts on the Champions Tour because you play LIV’.

“I mean Richard has never even been a member of the PGA Tour but just because he plays LIV he is not able to play on the Champions Tour, it is how I understand it. Behind the scenes it is not as if everyone is holding hands and singing songs together, so there is still things to be worked out… It has not been ideal, but hopefully brighter minds than us can come to a solution.”

The PGA Tour remain in negotiation with the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia (PIF) over ending their dispute with the LIV setup, but one year on from the announcement of an initial framework agreement, a deal is yet to be finalised. Members of both sides met in New York City on Friday in the hopes of moving negotiations along.

Tiger Woods was in attendance at the meeting in New York, with fellow star – and his business partner – Rory McIlroy also involved in proceedings, have joined the meeting via video call from the Memorial Tournament in Ohio. McIlroy balanced the off-course discussions with this week’s event, where he sits in a a tie for seventh after 36 holes at three-under-par.