In professional golf, getting caught cheating is supposed to shut down opportunities, not create new ones. But Ryan Ang, who was disqualified after a rules violation on the Australasian circuit last season, is now teeing it up at a $2.55 million DP World Tour event. A befuddled golf community has taken to social media to question how a suspension on one tour ended up coinciding with a new opportunity on another. Mind you, they aren’t pleased.

As Monday Q Info reported, “It all started in February of 2025 [Late January 2025], when Ryan Ang was DQ’d from a Webex Players Series Mixed event. He was suspended from the Aussie Tour [Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia]. This week, Ryan Ang is playing on the DP World Tour, based on his Order of Merit finish last season on the China Tour, again something that likely wouldn’t have been possible if he had played the full season in Aussie [Tour].”

Ang is teeing off at the 2026 Hainan Classic, which is a DP World Tour event with a purse of $2.55 million. Last year, the Singaporean golfer was alleged to have taken a ball from his pocket and dropped it onto the fairway on the 17th hole at the Webex Players Series Murray River, claiming the new one was his actual ball in play. A fellow pro reported it to the rules official, who apparently found Ang’s original ball afterward.

Later, the golfer was suspended from the tour, but curiously enough, the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia officials decided not to make his cheating incident public. In fact, Ryan French of Monday Q Info cited an insider source to report that the officials held a player meeting where pros were “encouraged” to keep their mouths shut.

That allowed Ryan Ang to tee off in the Asian Development Tour before playing a full schedule of the China Tour. The Singaporean pro had seven top-tens across both tours, which helped him reach the sixth spot in the China Tour’s Order of Merit, earning a spot at the 2026 Hainan Classic. Because of that top-six Order of Merit finish, Ang received automatic eligibility into the DP World Tour’s China event swing, creating the pathway that ultimately placed him in the Hainan Classic field.

In contrast, before getting DQ’d from Murray River, Ang had a missed cut at the Webex Players Series Victoria and managed only two top-15s in his last eight starts. Clearly, playing at the China Tour helped him earn a DP World Tour event qualification. He is competing against Francesco Molinari, Thriston Lawrence, and the Dubai Invitational 2026 champion, Nacho Elvira. After two rounds, Ang is tied at 107th, outside the projected cut line. Ang ultimately missed the cut at the Hainan Classic at +6.

Long before the controversy, Ang had represented Singapore internationally after qualifying for the national team in 2020, calling it one of the proudest moments of his early career. “I am now able to represent the country and fly the flag high while playing a sport I love!” he said at the time.

Earlier in his development years at Singapore Management University’s School of Accountancy, where he balanced academics with competitive golf while working as a part-time teaching assistant, Ang had spoken about the values the sport taught him. “Managing my time well is one… Furthermore, it’s also taught me how to control my emotions and conduct myself properly, as how I behave on the golf course reflects my character and upbringing,” he said.

“Lastly, one of the many things competitive golf taught me is perseverance. I’ve come to realise that it takes a little extra to control my nerves and stay focused during the last few holes of a competition to emerge victorious.”

This time around, French revealed he reached out to Ang after the incident. The Singaporean International said he had made a big mistake, but didn’t specify the details. A similar incident unfolded in the DP World Tour’s developmental tour as well. The European Tour Council was swift to ban Cedric Gugler, a 25-year-old from Switzerland, who was caught improving his lie multiple times in a tournament.

However, Ryan Ang evaded punishment and public backlash at that time. A year after the rules fiasco, he may be excited to receive the new opportunity. But the golf community is not too thrilled to see him in action.

Netizens are outraged over Ryan Ang’s inclusion in the DPWT event

Even Ryan Ang might feel that he is fortunate to find his way back to professional golf. However, those who followed the story aren’t fans of his journey.

One fan wrote, “Sorry, guy should not be playing on any tour anywhere. Blatant cheating like this should be a permanent lifetime ban from competitive golf.”

The comment highlights a problem in modern-day golf. Cross-tour collaboration is almost non-existent. A player banned or suspended on one tour gets to tee off in another tour quickly. For instance, Ang, after his DQ, teed off at the Lexus Open on the Asian Developmental Tour two months later. One fan suggested a solution to stop that.

Another fan wrote, “Any suspensions for rules infractions should be handled through R&A and USGA. That will allow for uniform handling of cases, decent appeals procedures, and justice will be seen to be done. It will also protect the smaller tours from litigious lawsuits.”

The Australian Tour evaded media attention on Ryan Ang’s suspension to avoid negative publicity. However, that ended up helping the Singaporean International revitalize his career. Had the situation been handed over to the R&A, then they would have perhaps imposed a global ban on him.

Ang’s return to competition has also resurfaced discussion around another recent rules controversy involving Akshay Bhatia, after social media users questioned his putting style before PGA Tour players publicly pushed back on claims that it violated anchoring regulations.

One of the comments read, “If it doesn’t start with a certain gentleman who fended off Tiger at Riviera what are we even doing? 🤷‍♂️”

Lastly, someone said, “And with that, Q’s invites from all tours, stopped…! 🤔”

The PGA Tour had already restricted the Monday Qualifiers to only a few events from 2026 onwards. The fan believes that after Monday Q Info‘s exposé, even the DP World Tour might take action against them.