Sergio Garcia Reveals the $2 Million Cost of His LIV Golf Exit

Sergio Garcia answered Eddie Pepperell’s dementia jab not with insults, but with a receipt.

The 46-year-old Spaniard revealed that fines tied to his LIV Golf departure cost him nearly $2 million to remain a member of the DP World Tour.

Garcia made the disclosure in an exclusive interview with GolfMagic after Pepperell publicly questioned his sincerity.

Pepperell had responded to Garcia’s announcement that he would return full-time to the DP World Tour in 2027 by posting on X: “This has to be Sergio trolling us? Surely. Elite level s***housery, this. Or has he got dementia?”

The Englishman added that Garcia’s statement showed “a remarkable lack of self awareness.”

Garcia, however, chose a measured response when GolfMagic asked for his reaction.

“I’ve always liked Eddie. I hope that he finds his game, obviously he’s been struggling and when that happens you take your frustration on whatever you can,” Garcia said.

Then he pivoted to the financial reality that shaped his relationship with the DP World Tour.

“It became a little more difficult when it was costing me almost $2 million to play on Tour because of the fines, but I understand their position,” Garcia said.

The fines were imposed after Garcia left the DP World Tour to join LIV Golf in 2022.

He was one of several high-profile players who defected to the Saudi-backed league, which offered massive signing bonuses and prize purses.

The DP World Tour responded by fining and suspending members who played LIV events without releases.

Garcia, along with Lee Westwood and Ian Poulter, became some of the most outspoken supporters of the breakaway league.

Only Garcia managed to win on LIV, with victories in Spain in 2024 and Hong Kong in 2025.

But now, with LIV Golf reportedly scaling back or facing an uncertain future, Garcia has decided to return to the circuit he once called home.

He described the DP World Tour as “a huge part of my career” and said he was “proud to call it home again.”

He also left the door open for a possible return to the PGA Tour.

Garcia’s announcement included an apology for his conduct at the Masters in April, which earned him the first code-of-conduct warning in the tournament’s history.

Pepperell, 35, finished 101st in the Race to Dubai this season — one spot short of securing full playing status for 2027.

Although he remains a DP World Tour member, he will likely miss some of the circuit’s biggest events next season.

Pepperell acknowledged Garcia’s talent despite his criticism.

“To be clear, I think Sergio Garcia is still a wonderful player. He was my favourite golfer growing up, ahead of Tiger,” Pepperell wrote.

“And I can see the value he still brings, ahead of me certainly.”

Garcia was less diplomatic when addressing Pepperell’s suggestion that his return was a joke.

“If Eddie doesn’t think that the Tour kind of went down a little bit the last few years, then obviously he doesn’t want to see the reality of it,” Garcia said.

He added: “We are hoping to help out as much as we can and make sure that the DP World Tour keeps growing.”

The exchange highlights the lingering tension between players who stayed loyal to the traditional tours and those who left for LIV.

Garcia’s past comments have complicated his latest description of the DP World Tour as home.

In 2022, during a rules dispute at the Wells Fargo Championship, he declared: “I can’t wait to leave this tour.”

He also reportedly described the DP World Tour as “s**t” during the BMW International Open in 2022.

And he argued that fellow professionals should have accepted Saudi money.

Garcia maintains that financial sanctions, not a lack of affection, made his continued membership difficult.

“I understand their position,” he said of the DP World Tour’s fines.

But the nearly $2 million price tag was a burden he could no longer carry while playing elsewhere.

Now, with his LIV chapter closing, Garcia is trying to rebuild bridges.