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Henrik Stenson is now putting his foot down properly.
The Swede chooses to leave the European Tour and is forced to pay a heavy fine.
– It is sad that it has become like this, he tells Golf Digest.
It was in May that several big golf stars in Sergio Garcia, Ian Poulter, Lee Westwood and Richard Bland chose to leave the European Tour altogether. This is because they are all fined after playing on the much-criticized LIV tour.
Stenson’s decision
Now the Swedish golf star does too Henrik Stenson same thing and leaving the European tour entirely.
– I got a letter, so did all the other players who are involved – from what I’ve heard. The tour has chosen to take a stand against the LIV competitions that we all participated in and that has left me in a situation where I cannot make any other decision, he told Golf Digest.
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On Thursday, the European Tour issued a public statement and announced that it will penalize a total of 26 golfers who played in LIV competitions from June 22, 2022 to April 2, 2023. Fines can amount to as much as SEK 1.3 million for each time that played on the controversial LIV tour.
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“Not respecting”
For Stenson’s part, it is about a total of nine competitions played during this period. The European Tour’s fines have become possible after an arbitration court ruled that the players on the LIV tour broke the rules by playing on another tour.
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Henrik Stenson clearly shows what he thinks about the whole thing by now leaving the European Tour, but more than that he does not want to go into the infected situation.
– That I should air my opinions does not feel like the right thing for me to do right now. It will only make this whole situation worse and even more infected than it already is, he says in the interview.
– Just like when I left the role as Ryder Cup captain, I have my own opinions about what is going on. But out of respect for several people and what they do – and even some I don’t really respect – I don’t see the point in digging any deeper into this.
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In 2016, the 47-year-old became the very first Swedish men’s golfer in history to win a major when he took home the prestigious The Open. Stenson also became the first player ever to win both the PGA and European Tour standings and finals, but since last summer he has chosen to play on the LIV Tour, which is funded by Saudi Arabia.
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