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Greg Norman has pointed towards three alternate systems that he believes prove the Official World Golf Rankings are “laughable.”
LIV Golf was denied access to points by the OWGR board back in October over ongoing concerns about its format and meritocracy.
As it stands, LIV players are sliding down the rankings and starting to miss out on major championships without competing regularly for ranking points.
Two-time major winner Dustin Johnson is currently outside the world’s top 200, while World no. 81 Joaquin Niemann is struggling to qualify for this year’s big four events.
• LIV Golf star earns spot in Open Championship
• Dustin Johnson sends LIV warning despite OWGR fall
And LIV commissioner Norman has now taken to social media to share his exasperation over his breakaway league’s unsanctioned status.
The Aussie chief posted an image on Instagram of the OWGR top 50 compared to rankings made by Sports Illustrated, The Universal Golf Ranking and Data Golf.
LIV currently has five players in the official top 50, but three of those were the marquee signings during the recent off-season in European trio Jon Rahm, Tyrrell Hatton and Adrian Meronk.
The alternate top 50 lists include more LIV names, including Talor Gooch, who won the circuit’s individual prize last season but is down in 408 in the rankings.
Laughable. LIV would have 2 players in the top 50 OWGR if you exclude recent signees! pic.twitter.com/9EeJOxaMRN
— Greg Norman (@SharkGregNorman) February 19, 2024
“Laughable,” Norman wrote. “LIV would have 2 players in the top 50 OWGR if you exclude recent signees!”
Brooks Koepka has managed to retain his position well inside the top 50 due to strong performances in the majors, including his win at last year’s PGA Championship.
But Norman’s countryman Smith, who joined LIV fresh from is 2022 Open win at St Andrews, is down to 44th in the rankings and in danger of falling outside the top 50.
• LIV golfer bucks ‘obsolete’ OWGR trend with incredible rise
• Brandel Chamblee outlines ‘fair punishment’ for returning LIV golfers
Back in October, Smith said that the rankings are now “obsolete.” He added: “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.”
Meanwhile, Lucas Herbert, the latest addition to Smith’s Ripper GC team, told Golf Australia that the majors could become diminished without LIV players due to their rankings plight.
“You would hope that the four majors would be our best way to have the best players in the world play against each other,” Herbert said. “I think if that pathway doesn’t get created at some point, the majors become a little more obsolete than they probably are now.
“If you don’t have the best players in those tournaments, winning them isn’t as important as it used to be.”
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