Does the Official World Golf Ranking truly reflect the current strength and talent of the game?

Will some of the best players miss next year’s Majors due to anomalies in the OWGR rankings?

By Leslie Wilson Jr.

Published: Tue 24 Dec 2024, 10:33 PM

Last updated: Wed 25 Dec 2024, 5:09 AM

The Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) has long been a standard-bearer for measuring the best in the game, but its current relevance has come under some serious scrutiny.

As it stands, the OWGR still holds significant weight in determining eligibility for Major tournaments, with the top 50 players being the benchmark. However, the ranking system’s inability to accurately reflect the current state of professional golf, especially in light of the LIV Golf League, is causing significant concern for fans and players alike.

LIV Golf's withdrawal of its application for Official World Golf Ranking points has created a challenging situation, leaving it unable to earn rankings.

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The WGR is an essential tool for players to earn a spot in all four Majors, but this system fails to account for the strength of players in alternative tours, particularly LIV.

Take, for example, Adrian Meronk, who in 2024 played in all four Majors, yet currently stands on the edge of missing out on any Major in the future, a glaring anomaly.

Urgent Challenge

This is a challenge that desperately needs addressing.

With players like Brooks Koepka ranked 87th, Patrick Reed at 124th, and Dustin Johnson sitting as low as 506th, the WGR fails to accurately capture its relevance.

Furthermore, top golfers like Sergio Garcia (439th), Martin Kaymer (995th), and Lee Westwood (3279th), not so long ago one of the world’s best golfers, simply don't reflect their ability or standing within the present-day game.

The issue, of course, lies in how the OWGR assigns points. While the PGA Tour and Korn Ferry Tour continue to dominate, other tours, including LIV, struggle to make a meaningful impact on the rankings. The result is that golf fans are being deprived of seeing the best players on the fairways.

Major tournaments, like the Masters, U.S. Open, Open Championship and PGA Championship, should feature the top golfers in the world, but this may not always be the case unless adjustments are made to how the rankings work.

For golf fans, the thrill of seeing the best compete against each other should be a given, yet the current ranking system creates barriers. Players on LIV, unless they are former Major winners, are not eligible to compete unless they qualify through other means.

Imbalance must resolve

The imbalance is clear and something that needs to be resolved, sooner than later.

In 12 months, when we look back on 2025, let's hope the World Golf Rankings are resolved, revised, and adjusted to better reflect the current landscape of the game.

Until then, it remains somewhat embarrassing for the sport's governing body to continue publishing rankings that don't correctly reflect the true strength and talent of the world’s best golfers.

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