LIV Golf loses bid to earn ranking points for players
The Saudi Arabia-backed LIV Golf league has lost a bid to earn ranking points at its events.
The decision by the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) board means that playing on the LIV Golf tour – in its second season – can only lead to financial reward rather than meaningful points in the world rankings.
“We are not at war with them,” Peter Dawson, chairman of the OWGR board, said.
“This decision not to make them eligible is not political. It is entirely technical.
“LIV players are self-evidently good enough to be ranked. They’re just not playing in a format where they can be ranked equitably with the other 24 tours and thousands of players trying to compete on them.”
LIV Golf see players compete over three rounds rather than four, and in a condensed season compared to rival PGA and DP World tours.
The Saudi Arabian wealth manager Public Investment Fund this year agreed with the various tours to combine much of the top level of golf into one entity that would see players able to move more freely between tours and majors.
The committee that rejected LIV’s application comprised leaders from Augusta National, the PGA of America, the US Golf Association and The R&A, which run the four majors.
Only Brooks Koepka was picked by either Team Europe or Team USA from the LIV Golf roster for last month’s Ryder Cup.