The DP World Tour disqualified a player for serious misconduct during Monday’s fourth round of its final stage of Q-School.
Frank Kennedy, a 21-year-old from Manchester, England, was tied for 28th at 15 under through 72 holes of the 108-hole tournament when he was disqualified for what DPWT officials described in a statement as “serious misconduct after causing deliberate damage to the course.”
Monday Q Info’s Ryan French reported the specifics after speaking to several sources who witnessed the behavior, saying Kennedy took a “1-foot divot” out of the 11th green. French added that Kennedy argued extensively in the scoring area after receiving his DQ.
Golf Channel reached out directly to Kennedy and was awaiting comment when Kennedy posted his own statement to his Instagram on Monday evening.
Kennedy said he was “hugely disappointed” in both the DQ and the DP World Tour’s assertion that the damage was “deliberate.” He did, however, confirm that he damaged the green during a moment of “frustration,” albeit accidentally.
“I did not intentionally or deliberately damage the putting surface, and any comments saying otherwise are wholly incorrect,” Kennedy said. “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.
“I have always respected and followed the Rules of Golf. 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. So, I have asked the DP World Tour for clarification and a review, and I will respect the outcome of that review. While that happens, I won’t be commenting further.”
Kennedy parred the hole, the par-5 11th at Infinitum Golf’s Hills Course, then double-bogeyed the next hole. Otherwise, he had put together a solid round, a 3-under 69 with seven birdies.
Kennedy’s DQ also moved the cut line from 12 under to 11 under, keeping tournaments alive for seven players: Luis Masaveu, Jerry Ji, Lukas Boandl, Haydn Barron, Jesper Sandborg, Antoine Pouguet and Philipp Katich.
The top 60 players and ties advanced to the final 36 holes, after which the top 15 and ties will received DPWT cards via Category 18. Everyone else who finishes 108 holes will earn some sort of HotelPlanner Tour status.
Italy’s Matteo Cristoni leads final stage at 24 under, a shot ahead of Josele Ballester and Marcus Helligkilde. Other notables currently inside the top 15 and ties include Cameron John (21 under), Ben An (20 under), Americans Joshua Lee (20 under) and Jhared Hack (19 under), and Tom Lewis (19 under).
Amateur Dean Greyserman, a recent Stanford grad, is among those within three shots of the cut line, as are Pablo Larrazabal, Edoardo Molinari and Cameron Adam.
Kennedy was an accomplished amateur, most notably winning the 2023 Lytham Trophy at 17 years old. He also made the semifinals of the British Amateur that summer and decided to turn professional later that year.
Two years ago, Kennedy became the third-youngest winner in HotelPlanner Tour history by capturing the Euram Bank Open. He played this past season on that tour, finishing No. 62 in points, meaning he has only Category 8 status on the HotelPlanner Tour for 2027.
He is currently ranked No. 777 in the Official World Golf Ranking.