Branden Grace was among LIV Golf’s first signings in 2022. Four years later, he is heading back to the DP World Tour, the circuit players once left behind. But not everyone is welcoming the return. DP World Tour winner Ewen Ferguson criticized players who had spoken against the tour before returning, prompting fans to connect his comments to Grace. Ferguson did not name his target, however, so that link remains speculation.
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Scotland’s Ewen Ferguson, a three-time DP World Tour winner, posted on X on October 23, hours after Grace announced his return. He didn’t name Grace or any other player.
“I have to say, some of the Liv players coming back to play DP is actually cool as some really good players, but hilarious how some of them slammed the tour for so long, not one good thing to say about it, now it’s the best thing since sliced bread and feels like coming home,” he wrote on X.
The closing phrase, “feels like coming home,” matches the wording in Grace’s own statement from earlier that day. That’s why many fans have connected the two. But Ferguson didn’t say who he meant. Ferguson opened his post by calling the returning players “really good,” then criticized their earlier dismissal of the tour.
Grace, the 38-year-old golfer, confirmed he will play the DP World Tour full-time in the 2026/27 season. Here is his full statement:
“Returning to the DP World Tour feels like coming home. Some of the proudest moments of my career have happened on this Tour, from my four-time win breakthrough season in 2012 to winning the Investec South African Open in front of home fans. I am hungrier than ever to compete and write the next chapter of my career on the global stage.”
On his LIV years, he added: “My time on the LIV Tour was a memorable chapter, especially getting to travel the world and compete alongside some of my closest friends in the game. The camaraderie, team spirit, and lifelong friendships we shared on and off the course are memories I will always cherish as I take this next step in my journey.”
Nothing in that statement criticizes the DP World Tour. No report of Grace has found publicly slamming it, so the “not one good thing to say” line is Ferguson’s general swipe, not a response to anything Grace is on record saying.
Grace owns nine DP World Tour titles and 15 professional wins worldwide, including two on the PGA Tour. He reached world No. 10 and went 5-0-0 for the International Team at the 2015 Presidents Cup. His 62 at the 2017 Open Championship is the lowest single round in men’s major history.
He also won a LIV event in Portland in July 2022 and reportedly earned about $38 million on the circuit. His exit follows Louis Oosthuizen’s earlier this week and leaves Southern Guards with only Charl Schwartzel and Dean Burmester. Ian Poulter and Australia’s Lucas Herbert announced departures the same day.
LIV filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in September after Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund pulled its funding. Players face an October 25 deadline to commit to the relaunched “LIV 2.0,” though the agreement with investor BC Partners lets the firm waive it.
The DP World Tour has said players who commit to LIV 2.0 will be banned from its events in 2027, which also ends their Ryder Cup eligibility. LIV’s lawyers have accused the tour of interference in the bankruptcy case. The deadline to apply for DP World Tour membership is November 16.
Six-time DP World Tour winner Joost Luiten was blunter in an October interview with Today’s Golfer. He said the tour should make returns harder:
“[The DP World Tour] should make it harder for guys to come back. Four years ago they didn’t give a s— about the DP World Tour. 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,” Luiten said. He added: “I don’t think that’s right.”
Luiten’s complaint is partly practical. He argued that returning players will take limited tournament invites from those who stayed loyal. His tone is far harsher than Ferguson’s, but the underlying point is similar.
For fans, the returns mean deeper fields. Grace and 2010 Open champion Louis Oosthuizen, who has said he will return in January 2027, add star power to a 2026/27 season that begins in late November. Ferguson himself called it “actually cool” to have good players back.
The unresolved part is the locker room. Players who stayed with the tour through the LIV years, like Ferguson and Luiten, haven’t hidden how they feel. How that plays out once the season starts is the storyline to watch.