An Official World Golf Rankings (OWGR) board member has claimed they have not heard from LIV Golf in 'weeks', as the Saudi-funded series continue their hunt for world ranking points.
Amid their lucrative prize pots and star-studded playing roster, a gaping hole in the LIV setup is their failure to secure OWGR recognition. With the breakaway league yet to meet OWGR criteria, LIV have been hosting events without world ranking points on offer.
Whilst the rebel players have had their pockets comfortably lined during their time on the breakaway series, their spots in the world rankings have taken a huge hit.
A number of LIV stars - both in management roles and playing members - have called out the ranking system on a number of occasions, but according to OWGR board member and PGA of America CEO Seth Waugh the breakaway circuit are yet to respond to their latest correspondence. He told The Times: "They had our latest response weeks ago and we haven’t heard back.
"They have made a bad assumption that this will be a quick process. It never has been. Every application has taken a year-plus as far as I’m aware. I can’t speculate [on how long it will take] because they have not responded. They might have to solve things as well, and it’s not clear whether they’re willing to.’’
The question marks surrounding LIV Golf's eligibility seemingly centre around their 54-hole and no cut tournaments, as well as the team aspect involved in their competition. If they are eventually given the green light, Waugh has informed the Saudi-backed series on how they need to adapt.
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"There are certain parts of their structure that can be solved by math, but there may be some pretty fundamental things that are harder. There’s the potential conflict with the team aspect and then access—how do you get relegated and promoted?"
Waugh is the second OWGR board member in the space of a week that has addressed LIV's application. Speaking to Sports Illustrated USGA boss Mike Whan said: "We’re not just rushing in to figure this out, because it’s different.’’
“There are some things about LIV that you could probably address mathematically and there’s a couple of things at LIV that are a little bit more challenging to just slide a player in and make sure that you’re being fair to all the other players, and all of the tours around the world.
