Henrik Stenson joins LIV Golf, stripped of Ryder Cup captain title
Yet another prominent men's golfer with a major victory on his resumé is leaving the PGA Tour to join the controversial LIV Golf Series. As a result, he is being removed from his position as the captain of Europe's Ryder Cup team.
According to ESPN's Mark Schlabach, Ryder Cup Europe said a new captain would be named "in due course" and among the possible replacements could be England's Luke Donald, Scotland's Paul Lawrie and Sweden's Robert Karlsson. Schlabach further noted that at the recent Open Championship, "a handful of PGA Tour players" told ESPN that Stenson was prepared to give up his Ryder Cup captaincy to sign a multiyear contract with LIV Golf that could be worth as much as $40 million.
There have already been other members of the European Ryder Cup team to defect to LIV Golf, including Paul Casey, Sergio Garcia, Ian Poulter and Lee Westwood.
Stenson is a one-time major victor, capturing The Open Championship in 2016. He has six career PGA Tour victories, with his most recent one coming at the 2017 Wyndham Championship.
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