LIV Golf’s Tyrrell Hatton grabs British Masters lead, begins Ryder Cup bid

Tyrrell Hatton leads the DP World Tour’s British Masters as he vies for a spot on next year’s Ryder Cup team.

LIV Golf’s Tyrrell Hatton is teeing it up on the DP World Tour this week, playing in the Betfred British Masters hosted by Sir Nick Faldo, one of the marquee events on the European circuit.

Interestingly, The Belfry’s Brabazon Course has hosted the Ryder Cup on four occasions, most recently in 2002, when Captain Sam Torrance led the Europeans to a resounding victory. The Belfry also hosted in 1993, the last year the Americans won on European soil. So because of this course’s storied relationship with golf’s greatest competition, the qualification process for next year’s European team begins this week.

“The Ryder Cup is really important to me, and I’d love to be on that team next year,” Hatton said before the tournament.

“This is the perfect week to try and get off to a good start.”

Through 36 holes, he has done just that. Hatton fired a 7-under 65 on Friday to soar to the top of the leaderboard. He leads 38-year-old Jorge Campillo of Spain by one shot as of this writing.

Nonetheless, as a LIV golfer, how could Hatton still make the European Team? After all, the European contingent barred LIV players from competing in Rome, closing the door on stalwarts such as Henrik Stenson, Lee Westwood, and Sergio Garcia. That said, Team Europe shepherded in a new generation of talent, such as Ludvig Åberg, Sepp Straka, and Nicolai Højgaard. The move paid off, as Europe won again on home soil in Rome. But as it relates to Hatton, he has not forfeited his DP World Tour membership, while Stenson, Westwood, and Garcia have done so. Therefore, Hatton can still try to qualify for the Ryder Cup team, although receiving one of the six captain’s picks that Captain Luke Donald will make looks unlikely.

Hence, Hatton’s desire to get off to a strong start this week at the Betfred British Masters, which offers 1,500 Ryder Cup points to the field.

For its ‘Back 9’ events this fall, the DP World Tour will award 1,500 Ryder Cup points to its European members between now and the end of the year. However, 2,000 points will be up for grabs at the Rolex Series Events in 2024 and 2025—the European equivalent of the PGA Tour’s Signature Events.

Three of the 10 events left on this year’s schedule after this week are Rolex Series Events: the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth, the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship, and the DP World Tour Championship.

Whether Hatton remains to play in those remains to be seen, but to retain DP World Tour membership, a player has to compete in four events annually, excluding the majors. Hatton played in the Hero Dubai Desert Classic in January, meaning his appearance at The Belfry is his second DP World Tour event of the season. Thus, Hatton must play in two more this fall to keep his DP World Tour card.

The full breakdown for making the European Ryder Cup follows below:

• Major Championships: 5,000 points available
• 2025 PGA Tour Signature Events, The Players Championship, FedEx Cup Playoffs: 3,000 points available
• DP World Tour Rolex Series: 2,000 points available
• PGA Tour Regular Events: 2,000 points available
• 2024 DP World Tour ‘Back 9’ Events: 1,500 points available
• DP World Tour ‘Global Series’ Events: 1,000 points available
• 2025 PGA Tour Alternate Events: 1,000 points available

The Europeans emphasized marquee PGA Tour events while avoiding LIV Golf altogether. That will make things difficult for players such as Hatton, who will likely have to compete for majors next year to make the team. But the Englishman will still try to make it. He is off to a solid start at The Belfry despite the odds being stacked against him.

Jack Milko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. Be sure to check out @_PlayingThrough for more golf coverage. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko as well.