When the Official World Golf Ranking sanctioning body denied LIV Golf’s request for ranking points last year, there were three items that were mentioned:
- Only 54-hole events.
- Lack of a cut line.
- Lack of a qualifying school or feeder circuit
In the past month, talk of LIV going to 72 holes has picked up. During Masters week, Phil Mickelson said he felt it was inevitable.
Earlier this week, LIV Golf CEO Greg Norman said he’s open to it, but there were plenty of business and logistical factors to take into account before adding another day and round to each tournament’s calendar could be done.
But based on an Owgr decision this week, it appears as if expanding to 72 holes might not be enough.
On Thursday, the OWGR announced it sanctioned the Clutch Pro Tour to earn ranking points.
JUST IN: The Official World Golf Ranking has announced that the Clutch Pro Tour has been approved for OWGR status following a 17 month review process.
Was this the announcement you were expecting? pic.twitter.com/jzvVobh9Fy
— NUCLR GOLF (@NUCLRGOLF) April 25, 2024
The Clutch Pro Tour, which feeds into the Challenge Tour and then the DP World Tour in Europe, holds 54-hole events but does meet the other two qualifications that LIV didn’t have.
“The Clutch Pro Tour provides access to its official tournaments, conducted over 54 holes with a 36-hole cut, via its 2024 qualifying series held in the UAE and, for its 2025 season, an annual open qualifying school,” the OWGR wrote in its decision.
Plenty of fans connected the dots to LIV’s plight.
This just makes it even clearer that Norman is just in a pissing match with OWGR.
He could get it done, but he likes the persecuted underdog story for LIV.
— Dr. Fried Egg, PhD. (@TheBlattz) April 25, 2024
In March, Norman officially pulled the plug on LIV’s application for OWGR points, writing to LIV golfers that the OWGR “had shown little willingness to productively work with us. A resolution which protects the accuracy, credibility, and integrity of the OWGR rankings no longer exists.”
LIV did hold a three-day qualifying school-type event last winter but has not adopted a cut for its events.
Cover Image via X
