BROOKLINE, Mass. – Greg Norman, CEO of LIV Golf, said the new course will be applied for the official World Golf Ranking points review on Monday.
Norman said the LIV Golf Invitational Series has a “very compelling” application after working closely with the OWGR Technical Committee to understand the process.
During an interview with Fox News Saturday night, Norman also asked if PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan, one of eight members on the OWGR Board of Governors, would evade voting on LIV Golf’s motion.
“It will be interesting to see if Jay Monahan backs out of this vote based on what he said on TV [CBS Sports announcer] Jim Nantz the other day,” Norman said. “So it’s very interesting and it’s sad to have that extra pressure because our tour is a good tour. It’s supported, it has an incredible field. Our point should be that once we get the OWGR points, everything else will take care of itself.”
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During an interview with Nantz during the RBC Canadian Open finals on June 12, Monahan defended his position on suspending 17 players who have dropped out of the tour to join LIV Golf, funded by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund .
Additional PGA Tour players, including 2020 US Open winner Bryson DeChambeau and 2018 Masters winner Patrick Reed, are expected to join the 48-man field for LIV Golf’s next event. It will be the first to be played in the United States from June 30th to July 2nd at Pumpkin Ridge in Portland, Oregon.
Monahan said players who attend future LIV golf events without the release of a conflicting event would face the same penalty as the 17 who were suspended.
“Why do you need us so badly?” asked Monahan from the LIV Tour on CBS Sports. “Because these players have chosen to sign lucrative multi-year contracts to play the same players over and over again in a series of exhibition matches. They see that in comparison to what we’re seeing here today, and that’s why they need us so badly. You have real, pure competition The best players in the world are here at the RBC Canadian Open, millions of fans are watching, and in this game it’s real and pure competition that creates the profile in the presence of the world’s best players.
“And that’s why they need us. This is what we do. But we will not allow players to drive free from our loyal members, the best players in the world.”
Other members of the OWGR Board of Governors include DP World Tour CEO Keith Pelley, USGA CEO Mike Whan, R&A CEO Martin Slumbers, PGA of America Executive Director Seth Waugh, Augusta National Golf Club Executive Director Will Jones and Keith Waters, who runs the International Association the PGA tours.
Players participating in LIV Golf who are not eligible to play on other tours will not earn OWGR points. The governing bodies of the four major championships use the OWGR rankings to set exceptions for the largest golf events.
The USGA decided to keep LIV golf players who had already qualified for this week’s tournament at The Country Club in the field, but Whan said earlier this week he could anticipate a day when it would be difficult for LIV golf players is more difficult to do so. Players would still be eligible to compete at the US Open via open qualifiers.
“I could see a day ahead,” Whan said. “Do I know what this day looks like? No I do not know. To be honest what we are talking about [LIV Golf] was different two years ago and two months ago it was different than today. We’ve been doing this for 127 years, I think [the USGA] gotta look at this over the long term and see where these things go. So we’re not going to be a knee-jerk reaction to what we’re doing.”
Even if LIV Golf were to become a recognized tour, it would likely receive reduced points given its current format. LIV golf events include 48-man fields and 54 holes; PGA Tour events consist of 72 holes and fields accommodating up to 156 players.
During the Fox News interview, Norman asked why the PGA Tour is so critical of LIV Golf when they also have sponsors who have done business with the Saudis.
“Look, I’m disappointed that people are going this route, honestly,” Norman said. “If you want to look at it through a prism, why does the PGA Tour have 23 sponsors doing over $40 billion in deals with Saudi Arabia? Why is it okay for the sponsors? Will Jay Monahan go to every single one? the CEOs of the 23 companies that invest in Saudi Arabia and suspend and ban them? The hypocrisy in all this is so loud. It’s deafening.”