The debate over LIV Golf receiving Official World Golf Ranking points has followed the league almost since its launch.
When the Saudi backed circuit started in 2022, it applied for OWGR recognition, hoping its events would count toward the world rankings like other major tours.
The request was rejected in October 2023, with concerns over LIV’s closed fields, 54 hole format and the absence of a traditional cut.
Since then, the lack of ranking points has hit LIV players hard. Many dropped sharply in the standings, making qualification for major championships far more difficult.
After years of discussion and a revised application submitted in mid 2025, a breakthrough has finally arrived.
This week, the OWGR confirmed that LIV Golf events will begin awarding world ranking points from the 2026 season. While the points will be lower than those offered at regular PGA Tour events, the decision marks a major shift for the breakaway league.
Under the new system, only the top 10 finishers in LIV’s individual stroke play events will earn points. LIV tournaments will fall under the “Small Field Tournaments” category, with a virtual cut applied at 10th place. Players finishing outside the top 10 will not receive any points, and the unused points will not be redistributed.
OWGR chairman Trevor Immelman said the process had taken months of careful work.
“This has been an incredibly complex and challenging process and one which we have devoted a huge amount of time and energy to resolving in the seven months since LIV Golf submitted their application.
“We fully recognised the need to rank the top men’s players in the world but at the same time had to find a way of doing so that was equitable to the thousands of other players competing on other tours that operate with established meritocratic pathways.
“We believe we have found a solution that achieves these twin aims and enables the best-performing players at LIV Golf events to receive OWGR points.”
LIV Golf welcomed the decision and thanked the OWGR board for its efforts. The OWGR also made it clear that LIV’s position will continue to be monitored.
“As LIV Golf continues to evolve, OWGR will continue to evaluate LIV Golf against OWGR’s eligibility standards which could result in an increase in points a decrease in points or removal from the system altogether,” the news release said.
The PGA Tour responded as well.
“We respect today’s decision by the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) Governing Board and the considerable time the Board and Chairman Immelman committed to this process.”
For LIV players, the absence of ranking points had been one of the biggest barriers to major championships. Dustin Johnson slipped deep outside the top 500 in the world while players such as Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau often had to rely on exemptions or past wins to secure spots.
With points now finally available, LIV golfers have a pathway back up the rankings even if progress will be slow due to the limited allocation.
Why LIV Golf players will only earn OWGR points for top 10 finishes
Although LIV Golf has finally secured a place in the Official World Golf Ranking system, the points structure will look very different from other major tours.
Under the new system only the top 10 finishers in each LIV individual event will receive ranking points. With LIV fields made up of 57 players, that means fewer than 20 percent of the field will earn points each week.
The OWGR explained this is because LIV still falls short of several eligibility rules. As a result, its tournaments have been placed in the “small field” category, with a cut off applied at 10th place.
This is very different from the PGA Tour and DP World Tour, where more than 40 percent of players usually pick up points in a single event.
What it means in reality is that many LIV golfers could go weeks without earning anything toward their world ranking. Some may not pick up a single point across the season.
The league’s biggest names are expected to finish inside the top 10 often, but several players failed to do so even once last year.
The projected points for a LIV winner sit around 23, which is decent but still far behind standard PGA Tour events and nowhere near what majors offer. Meanwhile, finishing 10th will bring just under three points, similar to a midfield result on other tours.
For now, LIV players finally have a way back into the world rankings. But with such limited points on offer, moving up the list will still take time.
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