Two weeks ago, LIV Golf resubmitted an application to the Official World Golf Ranking in an attempt to have its events awarded ranking points.
What has changed since the last time the league tried to get points? That was asked to LIV Golf CEO Scott O’Neil on Wednesday ahead of LIV Golf UK, the 11th event of 14 on the league’s 2025 schedule, and his answer said a lot without saying much.
“It’s still a bit premature,” he said. “We have filed an application, and I’m in pretty good contact with Trevor Immelman. We have a call later this week. He’s been a good source of encouragement, push-back, debate, and we’ve both agreed to keep those conversations between the two of us until we take another step forward.
“I know that’s not the answer you want to hear, but that’s what we agreed to.”
The question was phrased, what has changed for the league to have a better chance of having its application accepted? O’Neil deflected answering that question and instead pointed his remarks toward ongoing conversations with Immelman, the chair of the OWGR.
Much of the OWGR’s issues with LIV stem from its mostly closed fields of 54 players, no-cut events, and shotgun starts. There was also an issue with the lack of relegation from the league: Bubba Watson and Branden Grace finished in the drop zone and were relegated from the league after the 2024 season, but both players re-signed with their former teams and returned this year.
The league has made numerous strides commercially since O’Neil replaced Greg Norman as CEO, including signing a new media rights deal with Fox. O’Neil also helped a pair of teams, Legion XIII and Torque GC, sign contracts with OEMs for equipment deals, the first of their kind on LIV Golf. Other teams have signed apparel contracts. LIV Golf has also started announcing dates for its 2026 schedule, with a return to Adelaide and the UK officially on the books, but other worldwide stops expected to return, as well, like in Singapore, Saudi Arabia and Korea, among others.
What does it all mean? It’s too soon to determine whether this new application is much different than the first, but LIV Golf could make widespread changes to its format, including relegation and promotion, in the offseason. That domino could be the one that finally allows LIV Golf to get its foot in the door for OWGR points, even if they’re marginal.
As of now, O’Neil is keeping LIV’s plans close to the vest, but if his first six months are any indication, he’s doing plenty behind the scenes to help plant LIV Golf’s footprint in the professional golf ecosystem now and in the future.
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