Keith Pelley, CEO of the DP World Tour, has hit out at the media for circulating a "tremendous amount of fiction" after breaking his silence on the fallout caused by the LIV Golf Series.
The DP World Tour announced a series of sanctions against its members who teed it up at the Centurion Club for the first event on the Saudi-backed breakaway circuit fronted by Greg Norman.
They included a £100,000 fine as well as suspensions from the Genesis Scottish Open, the Barbasol Championship, and the Barracuda Championship, all of which are co-sanctioned events with the PGA Tour.
In addition, Pelley took aim at "what is transpiring across all media platforms" as rumours continue to run rampant about what's to come in golf's power struggle that shows no signs of abating.
"There's been a lot of speculation, a lot of rumours swirling," Pelley said. "There’s been very little fact and lots of fiction. Factually, I can tell you we're partners with the PGA Tour in our strategic alliance that has been very beneficial since we signed that back in November 2020.
"There is a tremendous amount of fiction and you have to be careful with what is transpiring right now across all media platforms and I encourage everyone to again deal with the fact.
"The one fact is that we will always concentrate on doing the best for our membership, our sponsors, and our stakeholders, and for our players and our members that is prize fund and playing opportunities."
Despite the strategic alliance, which was formed in November 2020, the two traditional tours have reacted differently to the Saudi threat. While players on the LIV Golf roster have been banned from three events on the DP World Tour, Jay Monahan dealt out more severe punishment, suspending any members - past, current and future - from competing in any PGA Tour-run tournaments.
In addition, Monahan proposed a number of changes to next season's schedule, including an additional eight big-money limited-field events and a return to a calendar-year season, with the FedEx Cup to run from January to August.
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