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Golf Chapultepec. Mandatory Credit: Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports, 20.02.2020 17:12:02, 14071805, NPStrans, First Round, PGA, 18th, Sergio Garcia PUBLICATIONxINxGERxSUIxAUTxONLY Copyright: xOrlandoxRamirezx 14071805
USA Today via Reuters
Golf Chapultepec. Mandatory Credit: Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports, 20.02.2020 17:12:02, 14071805, NPStrans, First Round, PGA, 18th, Sergio Garcia PUBLICATIONxINxGERxSUIxAUTxONLY Copyright: xOrlandoxRamirezx 14071805
At 21, Angel Ayora has only started his journey as a pro golfer. He became a full-time member of the DP World Tour in 2025. And the Spanish youngster worked hard by playing 31 events throughout the season, looking for his first win in Europe. That is probably what impressed Sergio Garcia & Co. as they were looking to add a fellow countryman to their roster. Unfortunately, playing for LIV Golf was never on Ayora’s checklist.
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In an interview for Today’s Golfer with Ben Parsons, Ayora admitted, “I had the chance to go there. I told [Garcia] it was a pleasure for me to be a part of his team, but I told him my dream is to play on the PGA Tour, so I’m going to try to keep this path.”
The decision is more significant because it came at a time when he was a fresh graduate of HotelPlanner Tour (the developmental circuit for the DP World Tour). He was young and had a two-season contract to join Garcia’s team. He didn’t need to think much before making up his mind: he would stay on the DP World Tour.
“I want to be at the top 50 in the world, and I want to play the majors and everything, so I think the right path for me is to stay here on DP and trying to get a PGA Tour card and play there. That’s what I want to do, so I’m going to fight for that,” the youngster said in the recent interview.
Not the first time he spoke about rejecting LIV’s offer. Back in December 2024, right after rejecting the offer, speaking to El País, the youngster from Malaga said, “I prefer to be remembered for the history I’ve made than for the money I’ve earned.”
Elaborating on his decision, the Spaniard said he rejected LIV’s offer because he felt it wouldn’t be conducive to his growth. Ayora felt the four-day grind at the DPWT would benefit him more than guaranteed money despite missed cuts.
In the same El País interview, Ayora added, “The LIV is a constant stream of money, but it’s not what I was looking for… I don’t want to be remembered as the young kid who went to the LIV. I want to be one of the best Spanish golfers of all time.”
It seems Ayora wants to follow the same path as Marco Penge, as he aspires to earn his way into the PGA Tour. Ayora got incredibly close to getting his card in 2025 itself as he finished 20th on the R2DR leaderboard.
Ayora also mentioned that he wants to be in the top-50 in the world. With LIV Golf’s OWGR status still unconfirmed, Scott O’Neil & Co. are continuing to lose out on great talents. They have already faced quite a few rejections from PGA Tour pros in the last couple of months.
Akshay Bhatia snubbed an offer from Phil Mickelson to join the HyFlyers GC. Si Woo Kim rejected the offer to join the Korean Golf Club (Iron Heads GC). Previously, Viktor Hovland and Ludvig Aberg also brushed aside any approach for LIV Golf and stayed in the PGA Tour.
Sergio Garcia called up Angel Ayora and asked him to join LIV Golf this season.
Ayora politely declined. He says he has other dreams instead…
Interview with the Spaniard for @TheTodaysGolfer: https://t.co/ldbDLqjYnx pic.twitter.com/JbsqRZVRKH
— Ben Parsons (@_benparsons) January 19, 2026
Among the league’s new signees, there are Thomas Detry (2025 WM Phoenix Open winner), Victor Perez (three-time DP World Tour winner), Byeong Hun An (two-time DP World Tour winner), and Laurie Canter (two-time DP World Tour winner). Youngsters like Elvis Smylie and Michael La Sasso have also joined the Saudi-backed league.
That said, Ayora has gotten on the path to earning a PGA Tour membership early this year. Let’s look at how he has been performing.
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After rejecting Sergio Garcia, Angel Ayora sets his sights on PGA Tour membership in 2027
Angel Ayora was prolific on the European Tour last season. In the 31 events he played, he only missed the cut five times. Along the way, the Spaniard also secured ten top-10 finishes. He maintained an average finishing position of 34th throughout the season and ended 20th on the Race To Dubai Rankings.
The youngster is managed by Javier Ballesteros, son of Ryder Cup legend Seve Ballesteros.
The 21-year-old has had a great start to the 2026 season as well. He has already played four events, with his best performance being a 8th place finish in the Nedbank Golf Challenge. Playing against a strong field that included Rory McIlroy, Tommy Fleetwood, and others, he finished at T13 at Dubai Creek Resort. After his great finish in the 2026 Dubai Invitational, Ayora will be eager to put on a good show on his debut at the Hero Dubai Desert Classic.
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