Call players’ bluff, insists Monty

Colin Montgomerie wants the European Tour to “hold firm” over its Finals Series regulations following player threats they will be forced to quit the tour unless something changes.

Former British Open champion Ernie Els is one of the top players annoyed at a regulation which requires players to compete in two of the first three Final Series events to be eligible for the season-ending DP World Tour Championship.

The South African will not fulfil that criteria and therefore will not be in Dubai next week, where European Tour chief executive George O’Grady is due to reveal how the schedule “evolves and moves forward”.