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Ian Poulter has become the latest LIV Golf player to publicly denounce the Official World Golf Rankings (OWGR).
LIV’s plight has seen some of the league’s most high-profile star slide down the rankings with players unable to access points on the Saudi-backed breakaway league.
Two-time major champion Dustin Johnson is now well outside the top 300 in the world rankings, while last year’s LIV champion Talor Gooch is ranked 586th.
The OWGR board denied LIV accreditation back in October and commissioner Greg Norman informed his players last month that the circuit was withdrawing its latest application.
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“We have made enormous efforts to fight for you and ensure your accomplishments are recognised within the existing ranking system,” Norman said. “Unfortunately, OWGR has shown little willingness to productively work with us.”
LIV bosses have called for a new ranking system independent from the OWGR, but star names continue to miss out on points that are crucial for major qualification.
And Poulter, who has fallen from 89th to 484th since becoming one of LIV’s first big name signings, has hit out at what he believes is a “media driven world rankings analogy.”
Now you Doug 🤦🏼♂️ … Same old media driven World rankings analogy.
Scottie best player in the world right now by a long way. It’s seriously impressive.
But the Top 10 are not the real unofficial Tops 10 because the rankings are so far irrelevant now.— Ian Poulter (@IanJamesPoulter) April 21, 2024
The Ryder Cup legend was responding to a tweet from Doug Ferguson of the Associated Press, who made a tongue-in-cheek joke about Gooch when referring to Scottie Scheffler’s dominant showing at the RBC Heritage.
• Golf legend worried LIV exodus would damage Ryder Cup
• Two-time major champion explains shock retirement
“Scheffler with a 3-shot lead. If he holds on, his last seven wins will have come against fields that had at least 8 of the 10 in the world ranking. No Talor Gooch, but still pretty good,” Ferguson wrote.
The Englishman replied: “Now you Doug … Same old media driven World rankings analogy. Scottie best player in the world right now by a long way. It’s seriously impressive. But the Top 10 are not the real unofficial Tops 10 because the rankings are so far irrelevant now.”
When it was confirmed that LIV had given up its OWGR pursuit, the league’s biggest signing Jon Rahm claimed the system was no longer fit for purpose.
“I’m going to be honest, I didn’t know they were still trying to get world ranking points,” Rahm said. “But the one thing I can say is I’m going to back to what I said two years ago in the DP World Tour Championship.
“I didn’t think it was a good system back then. And if anything, the more time that goes on, the more it proves to be wrong.”
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