Patrick Reed Explains Decision to Play Unexpected DP World Tour Events in South Africa

It came as something of a surprise when American Patrick Reed committed to playing two events on the DP World Tour (DPWT) on its South Africa swing, but as the former LIV Golf player makes the transition back to the PGA Tour, it would provide a good springboard before returning to competitive golf on US soil.

Reed announced in January that he would be leaving the Saudi-funded golf tour with the intention of rejoining the US PGA Tour. 

LIV golfers effectively had to give up their PGA Tour playing privileges when they made the switch.

"After careful thought and consideration, my family and I have decided that I will no longer compete on the LIV Golf Tour," Reed wrote on social media in January.

"I am excited to announce that I am returning to the PGA Tour as a past champion member for the 2027 season and am eligible to begin competing in PGA Tour events later this year.”

Reed’s Return to PGA Tour

Reed, who joined LIV Golf in 2022, was one of the major drawcards for the breakaway tour. 

However, since LIV Golf events were not eligible for world ranking points until this year, committed players would see their world rankings plummet.

The former world number six Reed saw his ranking drop as low as 140 in 2024. 

Although Reed won the 2018 Masters, which earned him a lifetime exemption to the event, that victory only gave him entry to the other majors for the next five years.

As only the top 50 in the world rankings earn invites automatically to the majors, that would have weighed heavily in his decision to make the switch back to the PGA Tour.

With the DPWT being more lenient towards LIV Golfers, Reed has been able to play on a number of events since his switch.

In fact, Reed has already won twice on the DPWT in 2026, with his victories in the Dubai Desert Classic in January and the Qatar Masters in February, which saw him rise inside the top 20 of the world rankings for the first time in almost five years.

Insights and Rankings Impact

That’s why it came as such a surprise when Reed committed to playing two successive weeks in the Rainbow Nation as he teed it up in the South African Open at Stellenbosch and the Joburg Open. A tie for 29th and a tie for 10th did not even help his world rankings as he has dropped from 17th to 20th over those two weeks.

In an exclusive interview with SportsBoom.com, Reed revealed why he made the decision to come to South Africa.

“A lot of my friends had told me about South Africa and that I needed to come here and play. I didn’t go to any game reserves or anything, just spent time relaxing away from the course,” Reed said.

On whether playing Stellenbosch Golf Club and Houghton Golf Club would help in his preparation for The Masters at Augusta next month, Reed said: “Well, I mean, Augusta is a completely different golf course, obviously, a different beast.

“But really this one here, you have to hit the ball in the right kind of quadrants, and there at Augusta it's kind of the same thing. You have to hit the ball in the right spots, and if you don't, you're going to kind of struggle. But really, it's completely different golf, these two golf courses, compared to, I guess what I’m going to have to face at Augusta National.”