DP World Tour Pro Criticises Pro-Am Schedule

DP World Tour pro Matthieu Pavon has criticised the tour's scheduling of pro-ams and claimed it is leading to players withdrawing from events.

The Frenchman aired his complaints on Twitter, where he wrote: “I’ve been on tour for 6 years now but still don’t understand how you can put afternoon pro-am followed by morning tee times 🤷🏻‍♂️ @DPWorldTour and after you wonder why some players are pulling out from them…”

Pavon, who is in the field for this week’s AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open, tees it up at 7.30am on Thursday following the Wednesday pro-am, which appears to have been the final straw as he chose to speak out on the issue. However, sympathy was in short supply on his perceived plight.

Nevertheless, the 30-year-old’s point was backed up by fellow DP World Tour pro Romain Langasque, demonstrating the criticism has at least some support among other players, who responded: “Good point! @DPWorldTour it is something you need to work seriously on!!!”

Pavon’s comments echo those of another player who drew an online backlash for his criticisms on scheduling, albeit in a wider context. In August, James Hahn also used Twitter to vent on the PGA Tour’s schedule from tournament to tournament, even suggesting it is one of the reasons players are choosing to join the LIV Golf.

That time, though, Hahn struggled to find sympathy even among figures in the game, with the likes of Presidents Cup International Team captain Trevor Immelman, Sky Sports commentator Ewan Murray and five-time European Tour winner Barry Lane criticising his argument.

Considering the backlash to Hahn's complaints followed by a similar response to Pavon's criticism, if Twitter is anything to go by, the perception is clear - regardless of the tour in question, inconvenient scheduling is considered a largely trivial matter for players in an otherwise privileged position.

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