LIV Golf has yet to acquire accreditation from the Official World Golf Ranking, although another 54-hole circuit on the Clutch Pro Tour has given the green light for ranking points.
LIV Golf’s Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) hopes may have received a boost on Thursday, when the ranking system sanctioned a fellow 54-hole circuit on the Clutch Pro Tour.
The Clutch Pro series, also known as the Mizuno Next Gen Series, is a development series that provides a road for professional golfers in England to the Challenge Tour, which is one level below the DP World Tour. Despite its 54-hole format, the circuit’s 36-hole cut and routes to other tours have earned it approval from OWGR.
“After a 17-month application process, the Tour moved continuously toward the standards required to become an OWGR Eligible Golf Tour,” the ranking system said in a statement.
“The Clutch Pro Tour will become an OWGR Eligible Golf Tour beginning in Week 17, which ends on April 28, 2024, and its official Tier 1 tournaments will be eligible for inclusion in the ranking in accordance with OWGR standards. The Clutch Pro Tour offers entrance to its official tournaments, which are 54 holes long and have a 36-hole cut, through its 2024 qualifying series in the UAE, as well as an annual open qualifying school for the 2025 season.
“It also offers possibilities for local and regional talent, culminating in a no-cut, season-ending Championship. As such, the Clutch Pro Tour adheres to long-standing OWGR Eligibility and Format Criteria. The Clutch Pro Tour has played an important role in the United Kingdom, especially since the EuroPro Tour’s shutdown. Its organization has extended playing chances and avenues for players to advance to the European Challenge Tour and the DP World Tour.”
For those in control of the LIV arrangement, OWGR’s decision demonstrates that their 54-hole format will not be a barrier if they relaunch a push for ranking status. Their issue appears to be with LIV events, such as no cut line, as well as their promotion and relegation system, with the league’s roster sometimes referred to as a ‘closed shop’.
Earlier this year, the breakaway league announced that they had given up on their quest for ranking points, with LIV CEO Greg Norman blasting the OWGR system in a message to his playing membership. According to Sports Illustrated, the letter from Norman read: “We have made tremendous efforts to fight for you and guarantee your accomplishments are recognized within the present ranking system.
“Unfortunately, OWGR has demonstrated little inclination to work successfully with us… “The rankings are structured to penalize anyone who has not played consistently on a ‘Eligible Tour,’ with field ratings disproportionately benefiting play on the PGA Tour,” Norman continued.
“This is demonstrated by the fact that just four players in the top 50 are non-PGA Tour players: Jon Rahm (3), Tyrrell Hatton (17), Brooks Koepka (30), and Cam Smith (45), as well as the precipitous decrease of LIV players in general, despite outstanding accomplishments in LIV events.
“Even if LIV Golf events were immediately awarded points, the OWGR system is built in such a way that you would be unable to restore positions near the top of the standings, where so many of you belong.” Since switching to Saudi Arabia in the summer of 2022, LIV players’ names have dropped down the world rankings.
Only two members of the Saudi-backed series qualified for this month’s Masters based on their world rankings, but they were two of the league’s newest additions, Tyrrell Hatton and Adrian Meronk. In total, 13 LIV stars competed in the inaugural major of the year, five fewer than the previous year.
