The DP World Tour disqualified a pro Monday during the fourth round of its Q-School for "serious misconduct."
Frank Kennedy, a 21-year-old from England, was DQ'd following an incident where Monday Q Info's Ryan French, citing multiplesources, reported Kennedy "took a divot out of the 11th green. One player described it as a one foot divot about 4 feet behind the hole."
Kennedy was tied for 28th at 15 under following the first four rounds of the six-round event. The top-60 players made the cut after 72 holes, and then the top 15 and ties would receive DP World Tour cards via Category 18. The remainder of players will receive HotelPlanner Tour status.
Kennedy made par on the 11th, a par-5, and signed for a 3-under 69 in the fourth round. French reported
Kennedy argued for a long time in scoring before being DQ'd.
This is from this morning on the 11th, the hole in question that Frank Kennedy was eventually DQ’d for.
— Monday Q Info (@acaseofthegolf1) November 10, 2026
Assuming this is the correct area, although it is repaired well, you can see when it happened it was likely a significant gouge/divot. pic.twitter.com/2NSiiIIf4D
He took to social media late Monday and expressed his disappointment with the penalty, eventually saying he wanted DP World Tour officials to review the punishment.
"I am hugely disappointed to have been disqualified from the Final Stage of DP World Tour Qualifying School," Kennedy posted late Monday on social media. "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. 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. 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."
DP World Tour officials did review the incident and released the following statement: "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 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."
Rule 1.2a declares that players are expected to play in the spirit of the game by acting with integrity, showing consideration to others and taking good care of the course. It unequivocally states a governing body's authority to disqualify a player for any serious misconduct that is contrary to the spirit of the game.
"I have always respected and followed the Rules of Golf," Kennedy continued in his statement. "If accidental contact like this, repaired at once, is a disqualification offence, 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."
His DQ moved the cut line and allowed seven players – Haydn Barron, Lukas Boandl, Jerry Ji, Philipp Katich, Luis Masaveu, Antoine Pouguet and Jesper Sandborg – to earn a tee time in the final two rounds.
Kennedy, who is ranked No. 777 in the world, became the third-youngest winner in HotelPlanner Tour history by capturing the Euram Bank Open in 2024. He finished No. 62 in points on the HotelPlanner Tour this year.
Cameron Jourdan is an assistant editor of Golfweek, covering college and amateur golf, the PGA Tour and plenty more. Follow Cameron on X/Twitter (@Cam_Jourdan) or Instagram (@GolfweekJourdan).
This article originally appeared on Golfweek: DP World Tour DQs pro from Q-School for 'serious misconduct,' player responds
