Frank Kennedy has denied "deliberately" damaging the course after he was disqualified from DP World Tour Q School.

The Englishman, 21, was in contention to earn a DP World Tour card at Infinitum Golf in Tarragona, Spain. After four rounds of the six-day marathon, Kennedy held a share of 28th place at 15 under par. The top 20 earn member status for next season.

But tour officials confronted Kennedy after his round about an incident on the 11th green. It was alleged that the former amateur standout, who won on the HotelPlanner Tour aged 18, took a divot out of the putting surface after making a par.

As first reported by Ryan French of Monday Q Info, Kennedy was disqualified for "serious misconduct after causing deliberate damage to the course."

Kennedy, however, disputes that version of events. He said he "swung his putter in frustration" and "accidentally caught the surface." Kennedy says he immediately repaired the damage, and he has made a formal request for the tour to review the decision.

"I am hugely disappointed to have been disqualified from the Final Stage of DP World Tour Qualifying School," Kennedy said in a statement. "Reports today say this was for deliberately damaging the course.

"I did not intentionally or deliberately damage the putting surface, and any comments saying otherwise are wholly incorrect.

"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."

Kennedy hopes to have the decision overturned before the fifth round begins on Tuesday. It is unclear whether the DP World Tour has obliged his request to reconsider. He says he will take the final outcome on the chin.

"I have always respected and followed the rules of golf," he added. "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. Thank you to everyone who has sent messages of support. They mean more than I can say."