The Ryder Cup occurs every two years and pits 12 top American players against 12 top pro golfers from Europe. Both teams are set for the 2025 Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black, but will there be LIV Golf players competing on either team?
Here’s what you need to know.
Are LIV players allowed to play Ryder Cup?
The short answer is yes. Pro golfers who play on LIV Golf are allowed to play in the Ryder Cup. Nothing specifically bars them from automatically qualifying for a Ryder Cup team or being chosen as a captain’s pick.
But it works a little bit different for the two teams.
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While the American-based PGA Tour has banned LIV pros from playing in its events, the American side of the Ryder Cup is run by the PGA of America. There are no rules prohibiting any LIV Golf pro from playing on the U.S. team. (Brooks Koepka did so at the 2023 Ryder Cup.)
But, if you play on LIV Golf, it’s very hard to qualify for the Ryder Cup. Most Ryder Cup points awarded for automatic qualifier purposes are handed out at PGA Tour events. So U.S. LIV players can only earn points at the majors. But the captain is free to pick any LIV pro for the U.S. team as a captain’s pick.
On the European side, for a LIV Golf player to be eligible for the Ryder Cup team they must be an active member of the DP World Tour and pay substantial fines for playing in LIV Golf events.
If they meet those criteria, they can automatically qualify for the team earning points at majors and DP World Tour events, or they can be selected as captain’s picks.
LIV Golf pros on 2025 Ryder Cup teams
There are multiple LIV Golf pros playing in the 2025 Ryder Cup.
Although, for the American team there is only one: two-time U.S. Open champion Bryson DeChambeau.
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Despite playing on LIV, DeChambeau automatically qualified for the U.S. team based on his strong play in the majors.
The European team has a stronger LIV presence at the 2025 Ryder Cup, but not by much. They only have two LIV players on the team.
LIV pro Tyrrell Hatton qualified for the European team automatically after a strong year on the course.
European Ryder Cup veteran Jon Rahm, who played in the 2023 Ryder Cup just before joining LIV Golf, was selected as one of European captain Luke Donald’s captain’s picks.
