Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter, and Sergio Garcia officially resign their DP World Tour memberships: All you need to know

Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter, Richard Bland, and Sergio Garcia have officially resigned from their DP World Tour memberships, now making them ineligible for the Ryder Cup which will happen in September.

The news of resignation was confirmed in a released statement from the DP World Tour, which read:

"The DP World Tour today confirmed it has received membership resignations from Sergio Garcia, Ian Poulter, Richard Bland and Lee Westwood who were sanctioned for serious breaches of the Tour’s Conflicting Tournament Regulation committed last June.

"The DP World Tour would like to take this opportunity to thank the four players for the contribution they have made to the Tour and in particular to Sergio, Ian and Lee for the significant part they have played in Europe’s success in the Ryder Cup over many years."

The European Tour's statement further stated that the sanctions on these players and their resignation were a consequence of their own decisions.

"As we have consistently maintained throughout the past year, the Tour has a responsibility to its entire membership to administer the member regulations which each player signs up to. These regulations are in place to protect the collective interests of all DP World Tour members."

Last month, the DP World Tour won its legal fight against LIV Golf players over the suspension of the defected players after they played in a couple of events on the Saudi-backed Tour. This meant that the European Tour could continue to impose sanctions and fines on players competing on the rival circuit.

Earlier this year, players like Patrick Reed were seen competing in the DP World Tour's Hero Dubai Desert Classic due to his stay on suspension. With LIV-associated players being banned from PGA Tour events and LIV events barred from OWGR, competing in European Tour events was one of the few ways to earn ranking points.

The statement further read:

"The independent panel appointed by Sport Resolutions recognised this, determining that our Conflicting Tournament Regulation and its application in the circumstances did not go beyond what was necessary and proportionate to the Tour’s continued operation as a professional golf tour and that we have a legitimate interest in protecting the rights of our full membership by enforcing it."

This resignation also means Westwood, Garcia, and Poulter will not be eligible for the Ryder Cup as one needs to be a member of the European Tour to represent Team Europe in the event.

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Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter, and Sergio Garcia's performance in DP World Tour and Ryder Cup over the years

Prior to their announcement, Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter, and Sergio Garcia had participated in 28 Ryder Cups collectively. They were already esteemed as honorary lifetime members of the DP World Tour with 50 titles between them.

Garcia has been a part of every Ryder Cup since 1999 when he was just 19 years old. The Spaniard has won the most matches (25) and scored the most points, (28.5) for the European team in 9 appearances.

For Poulter, his greatest moment in the Ryder Cup came in 2012 when he made five back-to-back birdies in a four-ball, scripting Europe's greatest comeback.

Lee Westwood said it was a sad day for him. He was quoted saying via The Telegraph:

"I could not really see any other option with all the punishments hanging over me."

The 50-year-old Englishman has won 25 titles on the DP World Tour, has appeared for a record 11 times in the Ryder Cup, and was World No.1 in 2010.