Four years ago, LIV Golf crashed into the sport with a checkbook and a promise to change the game. The DP World Tour, then still finding its footing in the new reality, watched some of its own walk out the door. Fast forward to October 2026, and the tour’s loyal members have not forgotten. Joost Luiten has made it clear that the LIV Golf players who left should not expect a warm welcome back.

In a post shared by Essentially Golf on October 16, Luiten was asked about LIV Golf’s claim that the DP World Tour’s policy on its players was anti-competitive. He did not hold back in his response.

“I don’t give a sh** about them. Whatever they do on their tour, I don’t care. So, I don’t look at the rounds they golf they play and, you know, I’m not going to talk about how that tour is because I’ve never played on it, but, um, I think it should be hard to come back to this tour.” Luiten said.

He was not offering a legal opinion on whether the policy breaks competition rules. He simply said he doesn’t follow LIV and won’t comment on a tour he has never played on. But he made his main position plain: coming back should not be easy.

In an earlier answer to the same question, Luiten laid out his reasoning in more detail. This is where he got specific about what returning players should and shouldn’t keep.

“I’m not a big fan of letting them back,” he said. “I said what I said in that in that thing and… um, if you gave up your membership, you should have given up your rights to come back to this tour as well and… even if though you you had some exemptions, I think you shouldn’t be able to pick those up so that’s my my opinion on it. Other people might have a different one which is fine um but I think you know we should be a little bit harder to them.”

An exemption allows a player to enter certain tournaments based on previous wins or other qualifying achievements.

Luiten believes players who left the DP World Tour should not get their old privileges back automatically. He knows other players may disagree, but he feels the tour should be stricter with those who want to return.

His comments came after a US bankruptcy court hearing on October 14, 2026. During the hearing, LIV Golf attorney Rob Fitzgerald challenged the DP World Tour’s stance on players returning to the European circuit.

DP World Tour CEO Guy Kinnings had said players would have to choose between the DP World Tour and the proposed LIV Golf 2.0. However, LIV Golf attorney Rob Fitzgerald argued that this policy raised concerns about fair competition. He also accused the DP World Tour of trying to stop LIV Golf from signing new players.

Bankruptcy Judge Michael B. Kaplan expressed concern over the comments. However, the remarks did not amount to a ruling that the DP World Tour had violated competition law.

Luiten had expressed similar opposition to the return of former LIV players earlier in the week. In comments to Today’s Golfer, he stated, “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.”

This belief also stems from the idea that the DP World Tour is “extremely consistent” and “still going strong.” If things go well, the tour might do better than LIV.

Luiten’s position centres on the treatment of players who remained on the DP World Tour while others moved to LIV Golf. Luiten believes returning players should not automatically regain the status and privileges they previously held.

He also raised concerns about tournament access. Luiten believes invitations for returning LIV players could reduce opportunities for current DP World Tour members, including younger golfers trying to establish themselves. “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 stated. Fair.

He understands LIV pros like Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter, and others, have done plenty for the Tour, but “Do you have to give those guys their spots instead of young kids that might make this tour even better in the next 10 or 20 years and now they might not get a chance to come on?” In Luiten’s argument, most players have already reached their prime.

Should they be granted more liberty than the up-and-coming golfers?

In fact, Luiten suggested that players who surrendered their membership and playing rights should have to qualify again rather than receive an easy route back. His proposal was reported in coverage of his comments, but the exact wording is not reproduced here.

The DP World Tour’s proposed approach for 2027 adds another dimension to the dispute. Under the reported policy, players who join LIV Golf 2.0 would not be able to retain DP World Tour membership. Former LIV players who do not join the new setup could still have a route back, subject to the tour’s applicable requirements.

The approach could provide some former LIV players with a more accessible return to the DP World Tour than to the PGA Tour. However, membership eligibility does not automatically guarantee tournament entry, exemptions or invitations.

The disagreement shows the difference between the DP World Tour’s rules and Luiten’s view. The tour sets its own rules for membership and playing in events, but Luiten believes players who left for LIV Golf should have to earn their way back.

With LIV Golf’s legal fight and plans for 2027 still ongoing, the issue remains unresolved. The big question is whether former LIV players should get their old privileges back or meet new requirements before returning to the DP World Tour.