REED'S WELL ON THE WAY TO A FINE START

PATRICK REED is on course to pay off his $1million in fines for playing on LIV Golf this season after taking the halfway lead at the Hero Dubai Desert Classic.

- FROM NEIL MCLEMAN in Dubai

"Go ahead and win early and that will take care of it," said the American.

DP World Tour members are always refused permission to play on the Saudi-backed tour and are slapped with penalties of up to $100,000 [£74,000] for each of the 14 tournaments. Europe Ryder Cup stars Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton (inset) are refusing to pay and have appealed the sanctions. But former Masters champion Reed, who banked an estimated $40m for joining LIV in 2022, is willing to pay the price to play around the world. The first prize in the opening Rolex Series event of 2026 is $1.53m.