LIV Golf CEO and Commissioner Greg Norman (left) reportedly told players they would eventually receive OWGR points.Pictures
LIV Golf was “displeased to say the least” to learn that the Official World Golf Rankings had been published. rejected his request for points after more than a year of deliberations and “didn’t hesitate to respond,” according to GOLFWEEK’s Adam Woodard. Yesterday, LIV “shared a lengthy statement condemning the ranking system saying it had lost trust and clarity by not rewarding LIV player performance.” Woodard noted that the statement, however, “did not address the reasons given…why the request for world ranking points was rejected” (GOLF WEEK, 10/10). In Washington DC, Des Bieler highlighted the OWGR’s decision, which “could be revisited if LIV makes certain structural changes”, meaning that a number of prominent players who defected to the league from the PGA Tour “will continue to fall in the world rankings”. In turn, this will “make it more difficult for them to continue to compete in high-level events” such as the Masters, without existing exemptions, unless major tournaments “change some of their qualifying criteria.” OWGR Chairman Peter Dawson, in a letter to LIV Golf CEO and Commissioner Greg Norman and Acting COO Gary Davidson, said the issue was “two of the unusual aspects of LIV: its guarantees of inclusion for several high-profile players and its relative lack of annual turnover, and its team competition format. The OWGR Board of Directors “has determined that the current structure is not consistent with the underlying principles of fairness and meritocracy on which the OWGR system is based” (WASHINGTON POST, 10/10).
NOT ALL CHANGES ARE GOOD: The WALL STREET JOURNAL Beaton and Radnofsky noted that LIV’s format, which was an “attempt to shake up the game by adding a team feature to its tournaments”, proved to be a “handicap in its attempt to obtain ranking points for individuals.” The issue of earning OWGR points was “crucial” for LIV from the start of its PGA Tour challenge. Following the surprising merger between the PGA Tour and LIV’s Saudi backers, the new league was “already facing a bleak future” and the OWGR’s decision could “put even more pressure on its fate” . Now, LIV stakeholders “face uncertainty on many fronts.” The agreement between the PGA Tour and Saudi Arabia’s PIF “paved the way for a potential detente that could potentially see these players re-enter the Tour” in the coming years. But this deal is “far from a sure thing,” as the parties have yet to “reach a final agreement, months after the company’s announcement” (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 10/10).
A LONG, winding ROAD: Ron Green Jr. of GLOBAL GOLF POST noted that world ranking points have been “a source of contention” since LIV’s inception. As the new golf league recruited players, part of its sales pitch was “assurance that LIV events would qualify for ranking points.” “, which are “critical for most players to qualify for major championships.” Dawson said LIV only “officially contacted the OWGR about qualifying for points after playing its second event in 2022.” Dawson acknowledged that the current ranking system “is suffering because LIV players do not qualify for points outside of major championships.” Dawson also said that the OWGR “needs to discuss the format of some PGA Tour events with respect to receiving points” and that the potential agreement between the PGA Tour, DP World Tour and PIF “could also affect the ranking system” (WORLD GOLF POST, 10/10).
OTHER POINT OF RESTRAINT: In Jacksonville, Garry Smits writes that the OWGR decision will ensure two things: “more bitterness over the past of LIV officials and a greater drop in LIV player rankings.” When LIV debuted in June 2022, 14 players who participated in the first event or would eventually join LIV were among the top 50 players in the world. Today, Cam Smith went from number two in the world to number 15.th while no other LIV player is in the top 50 (FLORIDA TIMES-UNION, 10/11).
ANGST TOPIC: GOLF’s Sean Zak noted that “the OWGR wrinkle in LIV’s ecosystem” has “been a point of angst for many of its players whose rankings have dropped over the past year.” The duration of this decision depends “mainly on the sustainability of LIV Golf itself”. Zak: “As long as it exists in its current format, some of the best golfers in the world will struggle to stay in the top 100.” It’s possible that changes “could be made.” The league is “free to make adjustments to its qualification system.” And he “clearly demonstrated his ability to make decisions on the fly.” But with a plan for 2024 already in place, its implementation “would probably take another year” and “nothing in the world rankings is changing quickly” (GOLF, 10/10).
SEEN FROM TWO FAIRWAYS: SI’s Michael Rosenburg wrote that the OWGR’s decision was “highly predictable” and also a “significant victory for the PGA Tour as it continues negotiations to take control of LIV Golf.” Rosenburg: “If this surprises anyone on the LIV Tour, it’s their fault.” Many LIV players were convinced that OWGR “should give LIV points, because their tour has a few top players who clearly deserve them.” But the “rules as written make it very easy to punish LIV Golf.” Rosenburg noted that if the PGA Tour-PIF deal falls apart, LIV “will still end up prevailing in the rankings fight.” It will “find a way for players who don’t have guaranteed offers to qualify for LIV events.” He can add discounts if necessary. He can “modify or even eliminate” the team format. LIV can “eliminate all reasons to prevent LIV from obtaining points”…but even then, the OWGR Board will “take its time to grant approval” (IF, 10/10).
PLAY LIKE HE LIES: Brendan Porath of FRIED EGG GOLF writes that “the responsibility and blame lies with the league.” It’s an “appropriate word – a lie – because that appears to be what Greg Norman told these players in the rush to get this operation going.” They were told “that the OWGR points would come, everything would be taken care of, they could not be refused and major exemptions would follow.” But this thing was “put together so quickly and with such abandon that planning for the points, or more precisely, planning for the potential outcome of no points, was seemingly negligible” (FRIED EGG GOLF, 10/11).
