PGA Tour star admits he may face punishment for playing in LIV Golf event

Martin Trainer, winner of the 2019 Puerto Rico Open, took part in the LIV Golf Promotions Events and has spoken about the possibility of a punishment from the PGA Tour

Golf celebrity Martin Trainer acknowledged that his participation in the LIV Golf Promotions event could result in a fine from the PGA Tour.

Trainer became a professional in 2013 and has only ever won once on the PGA Tour. His lone victory on the Tour since going pro came at the Puerto Rico Open in 2019. The 32-year-old’sstatuson the PGA Tour is still unknown going into the New Year after placing 178th in the FedExCup standings the previous season.

Trainer is currently featuring at the Q School event in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida as he looks to earn his tour card for the new season. And he recently featured at the LIV Golf Promotions Event in Abu Dhabi earlier this month, finishing in ninth place in the tournament on four-under-pair and three shots adrift of the leaders.

The top three players in the Promotions Event earned a spot in the LIV Golf league for the 2024 season. Kalle Samooja, Jinichiro Kozuma, and Kieran Vincent finished in the top three places in the tournament and will be competing for LIV Golf next season. The PGA Tour has stated that it will suspend Tour players if they compete in what they describe as an “unauthorised tournament”. Jon Rahm was recently given an indefinite suspension after he agreed to join LIV Golf in a £450 million deal.

It remains to be seen if a LIV Golf qualifying event will be deemed to be an “unauthorised tournament” in the PGA Tour’s view. Trainer says that he does not think he will get a suspension, but admits it’s possible he may still be given a punishment by the PGA Tour. “We’ll see what happens,” Trainer said, via Golfweek. “They [PGA Tour] might fine me. It was a strange situation because I was trying to keep my card and then I didn’t and weighing options, and so that’s how I got stuck in that pickle. I don’t think it will be a suspension, probably a fine.

As the winner of the Puerto Rico Open four years ago, Trainer will still be eligible to compete in some events on the PGA Tour in 2024. Despite this, Trainer admitted that the possibility of earning a regular spot on a major tour was the motivation behind his decision to enter the LIV Golf Promotions Event.

Trainer said, “It was just an opportunity.” “I can play a few European Tour events, I’ll get into some PGA Tour events, and I have some status on Korn Ferry. That and this week [Q School] provided two opportunities to attempt to obtain full status on a significant tour. Trainer was tied for 54th place on level par after the first three rounds of the Q School competition, 12 shots behind the leaders. It is unclear if Trainer will be one of the six players who will receive tour cards from the Florida tournament.