Tour Officials Hampered by UK Tax Rules
Aug 11, 2010; 1:21 PM ET
European Tour officials are in talks with the British government to change tax rules which could deter leading golfers from playing in the Ryder Cup in October.
"These tax rules are discouraging leading sportsmen and sportswomen from competition in Britain," Mitchell Platts, the tour's director of public relations corporate affairs, said Tuesday.
Players competing in the match between Europe and the United States at Celtic Manor, Wales, could be affected by recent rules issued by the customs and revenue agency, known as HMRC.
The agency can now tax foreign athletes not just on prize money earned but on sponsorship and endorsements connected to performances in Britain.
Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt is among the athletes who have opted against competing in certain British events because of the rules implemented after HMRC won a landmark case four years ago against American tennis star Andre Agassi. Endorsement payments subsequently were liable for tax.
Non-British players competing in the Ryder Cup - from other European companies and the U.S. - would be harder hit since they receive no prize money from the event, and with just two months left before the match, the European Tour said it was concerned.
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