The European Tour will be known from next year as the DP World Tour, with its total purse for the first time exceeding $200 million, it was announced on Tuesday.
The news was confirmed at a press conference at DP World’s Flow Pavilion at Dubai Expo 2020, with Keith Pelley, chief executive of the European Tour group, describing the rebrand as "undoubtedly a momentous" development in the tour's "proud history".
As part of the significant increase in prize money, the season finale, the 2022 DP World Tour Championship, will be increased to $10m – the first time a tournament on the tour outside of the majors and the World Golf Championships boasts an eight-figure prize fund. Meanwhile, all sole-sanctioned DP World Tour events will have a minimum $2m purse.
There will be a "minimum" 47 tournaments next season spanning 27 countries, with the campaign beginning this month with the Joburg Open in South Africa. The tour then moves to the UAE from January 20 for three tournaments, starting with the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship, one of five Rolex Series events on the calendar.
“Today’s announcement is undoubtedly a momentous one in the proud history of our tour,” Pelley said. “The launch of the DP World Tour in 2022, coinciding with both of our 50th anniversaries, will herald a new era in global golf, and crucially it will benefit everybody involved - all our players, caddies, fans and partners - as well as making an important contribution to wider society.
“The entire ecosystem of our tour will be strengthened because of this hugely significant deal, and that was essential to us and to DP World, who have been an incredible supporter of our tour as well as golf more widely, from grassroots through to the elite professional game."
Addressing the name change specifically, Pelly said: “Our name in many ways was a misnomer. We are a world tour. We will always remember our heritage and those who have gone before us, but we also rejoice in our global footprint.”
DP World’s association with the European Tour dates back more than a decade, first as presenting partner of the Race to Dubai finale, which was introduced in 2009. In 2012, the tournament was renamed the DP World Tour Championship. DP World became an official partner of the European Tour in 2015.
"Our long-standing partnership has provided an excellent platform to engage with customers, prospects, and stakeholders, and build our brand," said Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, group chairman and CEO of DP World. "We have relished the opportunity to support the tour in growing the game of golf and improving access to the sport at all levels. The key to this success has been and will continue to be the shared vision and values that underpin the partnership.
“We both have a global mindset, are committed to inclusivity, and invest in new technologies to stay competitive – attributes which today become the fundamental principles of the DP World Tour. As the leading provider of smart logistics solutions worldwide, we will use our people, assets, and connectivity to help grow the tour further and change what’s possible in golf."
For the first time, the circuit will also feature three tournaments co-sanctioned with the PGA Tour - the Genesis Scottish Open, as well as the Barbasol Championship and the Barracuda Championship in the United States - a result of the strategic alliance between professional golf’s two lead tours.