Tiger Woods' LIV Golf rivals fume as iconic golfer benefits from 'laughable' system

Tiger Woods’ LIV Golf rivals fume at decision as he benefits from ‘laughable’ system

Tiger Woods has made a huge leap in the Official World Golf Rankings, and the decision has caused quite a stir among his LIV Golf competitors.

In 2023, Woods, aged 48, only participated in three PGA Tour events and completed just two. He had to withdraw from last year’s Masters due to an ankle issue, which kept him out of action until the Hero World Challenge in November.

The 15-time major champion’s long absence from the PGA Tour led to a career-low in the world rankings. When he travelled to the Bahamas at the end of last year, he wasn’t even among the top 1,200 golfers globally.

Upon his return, it was evident that he was still finding his rhythm. The iconic golfer finished 18th out of 20 at the Hero, competing against some of the world’s best players.

Despite not performing too well at the Hero, Woods received a significant boost in the world rankings. Thanks to the ranking points available at the small PGA Tour event, his 18th place finish propelled him up 430 spots, placing him back in the top 900.

However, LIV Golf events do not offer ranking points, causing top players like Dustin Johnson and Bryson DeChambeau to drop in the rankings. Woods’ remarkable rise occurred just over a month after LIV’s most recent OWGR application was rejected.

The bosses at LIV Golf were not happy with a decision and made a strong statement about the world golf rankings. They said: “OWGR’s only goal is to rank the best players around the world. Today’s message shows that it can no longer do that.”

They also said: “Professional golf now doesn’t have a real or global scoring and ranking system. There’s no benefit for fans or players from the lack of trust or clarity as long as the best player performances are not recognised.”

Greg Norman, the boss of LIV, has been talking about this issue again this week. He used social media to complain that LIV Golf only has five players in the top-50 worldwide.

He mentioned new players Jon Rahm, Tyrrell Hatton and Adrian Meronk. Norman called the situation “laughable” and said: “Laughable. LIV would have two players in the top 50 OWGR if you exclude recent signees!”

Cam Smith, a big name in LIV Golf, also spoke up. He said: “I think it (the OWGR) is almost obsolete now. We’ve got some guys out here who are playing some of the best golf in the world and they’re outside the top 100, 200 in the world. It’s pretty ridiculous.”

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