Luke Donald has told Sergio Garcia that the regulations do not permit the Spaniard acting as an assistant captain at this year’s Ryder Cup and that his only chance of being involved in New York is as a player.

Garcia has recently paid outstanding fines to the DP World Tour totalling more than £1 million for jumping ship to the LIV Golf League and after resigning from his home circuit two years ago the 44-year-old has now rejoined.

Yet while this U-Turn means he will be eligible to represent Europe at Bethpage Black, as it stands, a little-known rule ensures that he cannot be appointed as an assistant, or, in the future, even as captain.

Donald was asked earlier this week about the chances of Garcia – the Ryder Cup’s all-time record points scorer and a good friend to the Englishman – playing a role in the blue and gold team room if he fails to qualify by right or is picked as a wildcard.

But after suggesting a few months ago that he thought this could be a possibility if Garcia was back in “good standing on the Tour”, the Europe skipper now realises that this would be against the Tour’s regulations.

“The rules will have to change if Sergio is to be an assistant,” Donald said. “So I haven’t thought much about it, because that scenario is not currently allowed.”

The Tour introduced a rule in 2018 that stated ‘players cannot be a European Ryder Cup Captain or a Vice-Captain if they decline membership of the European Tour or fail to fulfil their minimum event obligation in any season”.

A Saudi-funded rebel league was not even a rumour at the time and the new stipulation was implemented to persuade big names about letting their membership lapse in non-Ryder Cup years.

However, because Garcia and other Europe legends, such as Lee Westwood and Ian Poulter, handed in their cards in 2023 after the Tour won a court hearing for the right to issue sanctions, they are ineligible to be in the management staff.

Depending on the results of negotiations between the Saudi Public Investment Fund and the PGA Tour and DP World Tour, this draconian measure could well be dropped, but that is highly unlikely to occur in the next nine months.

So unless Garcia – who is expected to make his first regular Tour start in 30 months in Bahrain in three weeks’ time – can, as the world No 441, defy the odds to earn a 10th Ryder Cup berth, he will once again be on the outside looking in. And compatriot Jon Rahm would be just one European heavyweight aghast at such a situation unfolding.

“I think it would be really stupid of anybody not to lean on Sergio Garcia’s experience in the Ryder Cup,” Rahm said. “I mean, he is the best player Europe has ever had, won the most points and has shown it time and time again. If he were able to be a vice-captain, I absolutely would lean on him.”

Rahm himself joined LIV soon after making these comments and has also been sanctioned by the Tour. However, despite not yet paying the fines, the two-time major champion is allowed to carry on playing on Tour after appealing.

Rahm, as well as fellow LIV players Tyrrell Hatton, Adrian Meronk, Thomas Pieters and Patrick Reed, are competing in the Tour’s Dubai Desert Classic next week.

Donald is also in that $9 million field. The former world No 1 has been here at the Abu Dhabi Golf Club this week, overseeing The Team Cup, a match between Great & Ireland and Continental Europe that is effectively a Ryder Cup dress rehearsal.

And Donald will have been impressed by Tommy Fleetwood’s form as GB&I have taken an almost unassailable 11-4 lead going into the concluding Sunday. Fleetwood has won three out of three matches. Justin Rose’s team need only two more points from the 10 singles to grasp the trophy from Francesco Molinari’s Continentals.