Cameron Smith has lamented golf's "irrelevant" world rankings system amid the sport's ongoing civil war.
LIV Golf rebel Smith claimed victory on home soil at the Australian PGA Championship last weekend and currently sits in third, behind Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler.
Smith's win at The Open had propelled him to second spot earlier this year and his good form continued at a host of LIV events, although they remain ineligible for world ranking points.
And after receiving just 10 points for his win in Australia, Smith admitted: "I’m still third on the list somehow, but as time goes on I think those rankings become more and more irrelevant, especially with not getting world ranking points in those LIV events.
"It’s a shame that a big event like the PGA and the Open get so little points, especially for us Aussie guys who don’t really get an opportunity, especially the guys coming up, don’t really get an opportunity to win a lot of points.
“I feel like I’m playing some really, really solid golf and yeah, it’s a bit of a pain in the bum.”
Next up for Smith is the Australian Open and he is expected another decent reception from the home crowd, despite continued criticism for the Saudi-backed LIV Golf circuit.
He added: “I think the keyboard warriors are really the only ones to worry about, to be honest. Everyone down here loves it. The guys I think genuinely just want to see good golf and hopefully, we give them that out here in Melbourne.”
While Smith's ranking stayed the same, fellow LIV Golf star Sergio Garcia saw himself drop out of the top 100 for the first time since 1999.
Garcia's ranking has been on the decline since joining the new competition, which prevented him from being able to play on the PGA Tour as the row rumbles on.
He insisted he had no regrets about joining up recently although his hopes of playing in three of the four majors any time soon are appearing increasingly slim.
