‘I Want to Be at the Majors’: LIV Golf Pro Fumes at Biased OWGR Treatment Amid DP World Tour Return

In October 2023, the dreams of LIV golfers came crashing down. The OWGR governing board rejected the league’s plea to get recognition in OWGR, citing many reasons, such as the 54-hole gameplay, no-cut format, and relegation and qualification systems. After the rejection, many golfers were disappointed by the decision. The most recent one to voice his displeasure with the OWGR snub is Joaquin Niemann.

The golf pro is returning to the DP World Tour this week! He is all ready to compete in the Dubai Desert Classic to gain some OWGR points, move up the ladder, and hopefully get a chance to compete in the 2024 majors. The 25-year-old has expressed his dissatisfaction with the current world ranking system, which he believes does not reflect the true potential of the players.

Many golfers, such as Talor Gooch, have openly and boldly voiced their displeasure and inhibitions with the OWGR system, and joining them, Niemann said, “It is pretty unfair right now what the world rankings show. It says the top 100 players in the world right now, but I don’t think this is the right ranking.” The LIV golfer also pointed out that the OWGR “system is not working well.”

Before he joined the breakaway league, his world ranking was in the top 20, but it soon went downhill. The Chilean golfer bounced back in Dеcеmbеr in the top 60 when he won the Australian Open, jointly sanctioned by the DP World Tour and PGA Tour of Australasia. As a result, he also earned a spot to compete in the 2024 Open Championship, but the other three majors are still left.

Joaquin Niemann is on a quest to earn a spot on golf’s biggest stage

His current ranking is 70th, and it doesn’t guarantee him a spot in the remaining three major tournaments of this season. But the golfer is looking forward to turning around his fate in Dubai. While talking about why he opted to return to the DPWT, he said, “I am going to Dubai for the DP World [Tour] just because of [ranking] points, nothing else, and to try and get into the Masters. I don’t really need to play other Tours, the only reason is because of the majors.”

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The golfer claimed that playing in the Middle East as of now is the ‘easiest path’ for him to reach the major tournaments. He also accepted that his playing on the DPWT might create some “drama” or “they are not going to like me playing on that Tour, I am going to go there, try to play well, get my points, and get out of there.”

It is still unclear how the LIV Golf League will get most of its players into the top four teams of the year! There are a few golfers, such as Brooks Koepka, Phil Mickelson, Sergio Garcia, and Dustin Johnson, who fans will get to see in April at Augusta. Although at the time of the OWGR snub in October, it was mentioned that the decision would be revisited in January or February, with Martin Slumbers stepping down, LIV’s OWGR dream might just stay that way! What’s your thought on this? Do let us know in the comments below!

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