Patrick Reed has joined fellow LIV Golf rebel Lee Westwood in personally attending a crucial hearing that will decide his future on the DP World Tour.
Jet-setting Reed finished T25 at the Saudi International near Jeddah on Sunday, a week on from his epic tussle with Rory McIlroy at the Dubai Desert Classic. But he has now flown some 3,000 miles from the Gulf State to give evidence to a three-person Sports Resolutions arbitration panel during a five-day hearing in London.
The pivotal hearing is set to determine whether LIV players can be suspended and fined by the DP World Tour and effectively whether European defectors to the contentious Saudi-backed breakaway can qualify for the Ryder Cup.
Maligned American Reed is set to argue his case alongside Westwood on why LIV players should not be imposed with sanctions for playing in the enterprise's events.
The duo are among 12 players appealing the £100,000 fine and two-tournament suspension given to players who ignored the European circuit's 'conflicting event' release rejection to tee it up at LIV's inaugural event at the Centurion Club outside London last June.
Those punishments were stayed after an appeal from Ian Poulter, Adrian Otaegui and Justin Harding, meaning LIV players have been free to compete during a fractious seven months on the DP World Tour.
However, The Times reports that Otaegui has now withdrawn from the proceedings. Otaegui, who won the Andalucia Masters in October, has joined fellow Spaniard Sergio Garcia, Charl Schwartzel and Branden Grace in pulling out of the case.
But former Masters champion Reed - awarded honorary DP World Tour membership in 2019 - has now been called to give evidence in the legal dispute, on top of the written statements already made by the 12 appellants. And he was keen to testify in person rather than over video link as he explained the significance of the hearing.
“I am in London to testify in person to show my respect for the honourable panel of judges and because of the importance of this proceeding not only for me, an honorary life member of the DP World Tour, [but] all LIV players and the game of golf in general,” he told The Times.
Reed combines a hectic schedule DP World Tour with LIV commitments - but blockbuster skirmishes like 'Tee-gate' with McIlroy in the desert could soon become a thing of the past if the panel rules in favour of the formerly known European Tour.
Given last year's punishment for those who took part at the Centurion Club, the Tour's right to impose sanctions could effectively add up to a ban for LIV players for the rest of the year.
But a ruling in favour of LIV would prove a landmark moment for Greg Norman's breakaway tour. Reed and co. would be able to compete for elusive world ranking points without fear of sanctions from the DP World Tour, and more European-based players could therefore be tempted to join the mega-money invitational series. A verdict on the legal dispute is expected in the coming weeks.
