LIV Golf: League withdraws world ranking bid as Jon Rahm criticises system
LIV Golf: Jon Rahm criticizes system, league withdraws world ranking application
Jon Rahm has become one of the big names joining LIV Golf.
LIV Golf: Jon Rahm criticizes system, league withdraws world ranking application
Jon Rahm plays in LIV golf tournament
Image source, Getty Images
Legend,
Jon Rahm joined LIV Golf in December 2023, making him one of the most high-profile individuals to join LIV Golf.
Masters champion Jon Rahm says the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) is not a “good system” after LIV Golf withdrew its application.
A letter from league CEO Greg Norman told players they would not seek world ranking points. “It is clear that the current scoring system is not the best path forward for LIV as a league, and for LIV golfers,” Norman said.
The Saudi Support League was denied OWGR recognition in October. Rahm, a two-time major winner and No. 3 in the world, is one of the players who moved from the PGA Tour to LIV Golf.
“He goes back to what he said two years ago. I didn’t think it (OWGR) was a good system at the time,” Spaniard Lam said ahead of the LIV Golf Hong Kong Tournament, which starts on Friday.
“On the contrary, the more time passes, the more things turn out to be false,” the 29-year-old added. When LIV Golf first filed in July 2022, a month after its launch, OWGR expressed concerns about the format of the new league.
His same 54 players will participate throughout the season, playing in a 54-hole, shotgun, and no-cut tournament. Norman’s letter to LIV players, seen by BBC Sport, said: “There is no longer a resolution to protect the accuracy, validity and integrity of the OWGR rankings.”
A LIV player can only improve his world ranking through the DP World Tour, Asian Tour, or other satellite tour events, which is one of the factors that determines his eligibility for major championships. With LIV Golf players unable to earn tournament points, many big names who have left the U.S. PGA Tour have fallen down the rankings, and Rahm is one of four LIV players currently ranked among the top players in the league. It’s a person. 50.
Fellow major league player Bryson DeChambeau said game officials need to find a “collective way” to solve the problem. “We need to focus on getting our best players into the big tournaments,” the American said.
“All the governing bodies, everyone will come together and sit down and think about this. Because we have to do this for our fans. ”
LIV and PGA Tour players compete in major tournaments, and many of his LIV players have earned spots in tournaments based on their previous performance.
Major players can make exceptions and issue their own invitations. It’s the same as this year’s Chilean Joaquín Niemann, who received a special invitation to next month’s U.S. Masters and May’s PGA Championship. “Now they’re giving players a chance before they even know the decision is going to be made,” Rahm said. “I think this will open the door a little bit. “If someone in this world doesn’t think ‘Joaco’ (Niemann) deserves to be in the top 10, or doesn’t know that he’s the best player in the world, what game should I watch?” I don’t know, do you?
Meanwhile, the British Open officials have not made any concessions to LIV Golf, making it difficult for them to qualify for the tournament based on the world rankings.
Former major winners Rahm, Cameron Smith, Dustin Johnson, Brooks Koepka, DeChambeau and Phil Mickelson have already secured spots in this year’s British Open, to be held at Royal Troon in July. There is. DeChambeau said players should be invited to major tournaments based on their performance the previous year.
“They do that at the (PGA) Tour Championship, right? It’s very simple,” he said.
Merger negotiations between the PGA Tour and the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund, which funds LIV Golf, are still ongoing.
