DP World Tour pro Frank Kennedy has finally broken his silence following his disqualification from the Final Stage of Q-School in Spain. The 21-year-old was ordered to leave the tournament during the fourth round over allegations of “serious misconduct.” According to the tour, the ruling was made under Rule 1.2a. Afterward, Kennedy took to social media late Monday to address the incident.
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“I am hugely disappointed to have been disqualified from the Final Stage of DP World Tour Qualifying School,” Kennedy posted on Instagram. “Reports today say this was for deliberately damaging the course. I did not intentionally or deliberately damage the putting surface, and any comments saying otherwise are wholly incorrect.”
According to Ryan French of Monday Q Info, who first reported the incident, multiple sources told him that Kennedy had taken “a divot” out of the green near the 11th hole. One player even described the damage as a one-foot-long divot located four feet behind the hole. While Kennedy doesn’t deny causing the damage, he describes it as “accidental contact.”
“On the 11th green, I missed a birdie putt and tapped in. In frustration, as I was walking off the green, I swung my putter, and it accidentally caught the surface,” he added. “My playing partner and I repaired it straight away, and we were both satisfied it was properly fixed before we moved on. I should have called a referee to check the repair, and I’ve learned from that.”
He was disqualified under the Rules of Golf, Rule 1.2a, which outlines the standards of behavior expected from the players and gives officials the authority to enforce them. Under this rule, players should uphold the spirit of the game by acting with integrity, showing consideration for others, and taking good care of the course by replacing divots, repairing ball marks, and raking bunkers.
While simply failing to meet these expectations does not carry an automatic penalty, officials can disqualify a player if they determine that they have committed serious misconduct. This includes behavior that falls far outside the expected standards of golf, such as deliberate dishonesty, interfering with another player’s rights, endangering others, or intentionally causing serious damage to the course, particularly a putting green. In Kennedy’s case, the Qualifying School Rules Committee ruled that the damage to the 11th green amounted to serious misconduct.
“I have always respected and followed the Rules of Golf,” Kennedy claimed. “If accidental contact like this, repaired at once, is a disqualification offense, I will respect that. But it isn’t clear to me that it is, and many senior players I’ve spoken to this evening were surprised by the decision.”
Although it remains unclear which senior players Kennedy spoke to, former PGA Tour pro Michael Kim was far from impressed with the 21-year-old’s conduct on the course. According to Ryan French, Kennedy engaged in a lengthy argument with officials after being informed of his disqualification. French added that sources told him Kennedy’s father was seeking an “injunction” to force the tour to allow his son to continue competing.
Kim responded: “I’ve played with many golfers that have temper tantrums on the golf course that would make 5-year-olds cringe. I hear the excuse ‘they’re great off the golf course’ or ‘I’m a passionate player; it’s who I am all the time’. But at a certain point, it’s a work environment. At no work setting would breaking computers, loudly cursing, etc. ever be ok.”
In the meantime, the DP World Tour reviewed the decision at Kennedy’s request and upheld it.
“Following a request from Frank Kennedy and his team to review the evidence and the decision to disqualify him from the DP World Tour Qualifying School Final Stage, a review has been completed,” the DP World Tour’s statement said. “The ruling to disqualify him under Rule 1.2a of the Rules of Golf – made by the Qualifying School Rules Committee for serious misconduct for damaging the 11th green during the fourth round – stands.”
Kennedy had opened the tournament with rounds of 72, 66, and 64. He had made par on the par-5 11th and was sitting at 15-under, tied for 28th, when he was disqualified. His exit consequently allowed seven players to advance to the fifth round, which features the top 60 players and ties.
They were Haydn Barron, Lukas Boandl, Jerry Ji, Philipp Katich, Luis Masaveu, Antoine Pouguet, and Jesper Sandborg. The top 15 players and ties will, of course, earn playing privileges on the DP World Tour for the 2027 season, an opportunity Kennedy will now miss following his disqualification.