The LIV Golf League is strongly considering a change to its existing format that will require all players who fall into its “relegation zone” to play a qualifying event to earn their spot back, even if they are one of the team captains.
The move is viewed as a way to appeal to the Official World Golf Ranking, which previously denied an application for accreditation, citing playing pathways to the league as well as player turnover and field variance between events as being reasons that LIV’s format doesn’t work.
After announcing in the spring of 2024 that it would no longer seek OWGR approval, LIV Golf has changed course and is now seriously engaged in trying to come up with changes. Sportico recently reported that new CEO Scott O’Neil and newly installed OWGR chairman Trevor Immelman discussed the issue at the Masters.
Immelman, the 2008 Masters champion who is now a CBS analyst, took over at the Masters for outgoing chairman Peter Dawson. He oversees a board of directors that includes members from all four major championships plus members of the PGA Tour and DP World Tour.
Last week, Immelman told the Associated Press that there have been discussions but nothing formal to this point.
“They have not put any application in,” Immelman told the AP. “Whether that happens or not, I guess time will tell. I have enjoyed getting to know Scott O’Neil over the last few months. We’ve spoken on the phone a couple of times. We met in person at the Masters, just really introduction stuff. We’re in the same position we have been without any application from their side.
“The ball is in their court.”
O’Neil took over for Hall of Famer Greg Norman in January and has struck a more conciliatory tone with the greater golf hierarchy. His attempt to get LIV Golf world ranking points is a departure from last March when the league announced via press release that it would forego further dialogue without ever submitting any new proposals after being rejected in October 2023.
The U.S. Open and later the British Open became the first major championships to offer LIV Golf players access to their tournaments via the LIV Golf individual points list. The top player among three (U.S. Open) and five (British Open) not otherwise exempt earn spots in the respective championships. Joaquin Niemman has earned LIV’s spot in the U.S. Open.
“I’ve said this many times; the only reason why we're not trying to figure out OWGR and LIV is because LIV no longer pursued it,” USGA CEO Mike Whan told Sports Illustrated’s John Schwarb at Oakmont Country Club during a media opportunity in advance of next month’s U.S. Open. Whan has one of the seven OWGR board seats.
“If LIV wanted to really pursue OWGR, that dialogue was continuous but that dialogue discontinued. We didn't chase it.
“In terms of our pathway, we want the best players in the world to play in this championship. I’m sure that LIV quietly saw our pathway and said, ‘Really, that’s it? There’s one player who can play their way in as long as they’re the top three?’ But we were saying if a player gets hot on that tour and kind of shows that kind of prowess relative to the LIV schedule, there’s an opportunity. I’ll admit it’s a pretty small opportunity.
“Meanwhile, a lot of LIV players play in our qualifiers and probably will continue to do so. We’ve always had a pretty strong LIV showing in U.S. Opens. It wouldn’t shock me if that continues. But yeah, if there’s a player that's No. 1 on LIV leading into the U.S. Open and that’s a player that has otherwise qualified, we’re interested in that person showing how good they could be relative to that field.”
The PGA Championship has no direct qualification for LIV players but invited six players—Niemann, Sergio Garcia, Patrick Reed, Dustin Johnson, David Puig and Tom McKibben—who were not otherwise in the field. There are 16 LIV players in the field. The Masters has also so far not given any direct access to its tournament through LIV Golf League play.
LIV Golf officials would not comment on any forthcoming changes.
But during the LIV Golf Mexico broadcast two weeks ago, analyst Jerry Foltz talked about the changes to the relegation system that would see all six players regulated, regardless of stature. This past year, both Branden Grace and Bubba Watson were allowed back via “business” reasons. This past year, LIV had just two spots available, one through its Promotions event and one through the Asian Tour’s International Series.
It is unclear if LIV Golf is going to make other changes that will appease the OWGR or the ranking body is willing to forego them in order to include LIV players.
A meeting of the OWGR board is scheduled for the British Open at Royal Portrush in July and indications are that LIV will attempt to have a new application ready by then.
As for current issues confronting the LIV bid, Whan said:
“I can only speak to you as one board member, but I have said in an OWGR board meeting, I don’t need world ranking points to create the greatest field in the U.S. Open. I feel as a board member, it’s important that we are fair to the other 26 tours that are in OWGR, the other 8,700 athletes that are playing.
“I don't want to so quickly rush to figure out 54 guys that we somehow don’t treat the 8,700 correctly, and that’s what we tried to convey, that there’s a lot of things I think we could address and figure out with an OWGR, but there’s a few things we couldn’t, and these are things you guys could think about—if you want to make some changes, you apply.”
This article was originally published on www.si.com as LIV Golf Considers Major Change in Quest for World Ranking Points.