by Greg Norman pleaded directly with the four majors to change their qualification criteria and give access to LIVE golfers after the fledgling league withdrew its application for world ranking status.
The first response to the LIV Golf lobby is understood to come from the R&A this week when its exemptions for the Open at Royal Troon were announced in the summer.
Telegraph Sport revealed last year that LIV was in talks with St Andrews’ governing body and a source at the Saudi-funded circuit said on Tuesday there was “hope” Open organizers would “see sense” and ensure links Ayrshire “features the best players in the world”.
Earlier on Tuesday, LIV chief executive Norman sent an email to his players to explain the decision to abandon the traditional route into the biggest tournaments.
“We have made significant efforts to fight for you and ensure that your achievements are recognized within the current ranking system,” Norman wrote in the letter, a copy of which has been obtained by Telegraph Sport. “Unfortunately, OWGR [Official World Golf Rankings] He has shown little willingness to work productively with us.”
Norman continued to call for an “independent ranking system” but revealed that LIV will now turn its focus to convincing the bodies that run the Masters, Open, US Open and US PGA to give guaranteed spots through the order of merit LIV.
“We continue to seek meaningful communication and relationships with each of the majors to ensure that LIV golfers are fairly represented and that golf fans around the world have opportunities to see the best competition possible,” said Norman.
The irony is that it was actually the majors who voted down LIV’s request last October. The OWGR board is made up of the four majors, as well as PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan, DP World Tour chief executive Keith Pelley and DP World Tour chief operating officer Keith Waters, who represent the International Tour Federation.
But the final three withdrew themselves a few months into the process, after LIV’s submission was recognized soon after its launch in June 2022. That gave the Normans hope, but the majors considered the league to be separately too much of a closed shop and they also expressed. concerns about the team component, which is central to the Saudi-funded circuit’s long-term plan.
“We are not at war with them,” OWGR board chairman Peter Dawson said five months ago. “This decision not to make them eligible is not a political decision. It is completely technical. LIV players are obviously good enough to be ranked. They are just playing in a format where they can be ranked equally with the other 24 tours and thousands of players to compete on.”
However, LIV insiders argue that there is little guidance from OWGR on how to make the offer acceptable. They also feel like they are “slow-playing”, a point Norman made in his message to the 54 players.
“Even if immediate points were awarded at LIV Golf events, the OWGR system is designed in such a way that it would be functionally impossible for you to regain positions near the summit of the ranking, where so many of you are a member,” a he said.
“The rankings are structured to penalize anyone who hasn’t played regularly on ‘Tour Eligible’ while the field rankings disproportionately reward playing on the PGA Tour. This is illustrated by the fact that only four players are within the top 50 PGA Tour players (Jon Rahm [3]Tyrrell Hatton [17]Brooks Koepka [30] and Cam Smith [45]) and with the sharp decline of LIV players in general, despite extraordinary performances in LIV events.”
‘Not all the best players are playing in PGA Tour tournaments’
Augusta recently invited Joaquin Niemann, the 25-year-old Chilean who has won two of the last three LIV events, to next month’s major, but the Masters only mentioned his performance in winning the Open Australia in December. None of the majors have awarded measures to date based on LIV performances.
This snub has undoubtedly attracted criticism from within LIV. Last week, Talor Gooch, the American who won last year’s LIV order of merit but has not yet qualified or been invited to any of this year’s majors, confirmed that if Rory McIlroy had won the Masters and so he completed the grand slam career, his historic one. Achievement would be a “star”.
Those comments are widely derided, but Paul Azinger, the 2008 Ryder Cup captain, believes that LIV has greatly weakened the quality of competition on the PGA Tour.
“Not all the best players are playing PGA Tour tournaments,” he told Golfweek. “That’s over. Suddenly, with the LIV Tour, let’s put it this way: the PGA Tour has quickly become a qualifier for LIV and it’s a sad day for golf.”
Azinger was NBC’s lead analyst until last November and despite breaking down negotiations with the US network over a new contract, insists he is “delighted” his role is over.
“I’d rather call [commentate on] the Senior Tour is the PGA Tour to tell you the truth,” Azinger said. “To call the best senior players in the world – well, at least they are the best.”
While LIV plays its fourth $25 million event of the season in Hong Kong this week, the latest $20 million “signature event” on the PGA Tour is taking place in Orlando, with McIlroy and Co competing in the Arnold Palmer Invitational.
In the background, the PGA Tour and DP World Tour continue to talk with the Saudi Public Investment Fund, with a view to unifying the elite male professional game.
