LIV Golf Events Will Get OWGR Points, But What's The Catch?

Reinhold Matay-Imagn Images

LIV Golf has spent years attempting to boost its legitimacy by lobbying for its events to be eligible for points that count toward the Official World Golf Ranking. The league has finally gotten some recognition, but it was forced to compromise with a deal that may end up being too little too late.

The Official World Golf Ranking is responsible for putting together the definitive list of the best players on the planet, and it determines those standings with the points that are handed out at tournaments organized by the 24 accredited organizations it classifies as “Eligible Golf Tours.”

The PGA Tour is the most prominent member of that group, and the top of the OWGR standings have been historically dominated by the golfers who belong to it due to the nature of a system that doles out points based on the strength of the field.

Those rankings have not been very kind to the players who have seen their position in the OWGR plummet after taking their talents to LIV Golf, which has spent the past few years engaged in a lengthy and unsuccessful battle to gain recognition from the governing body.

However, it finally got a partial victory just days before the start of its fifth season of operation.

Golfers who finish in the Top 10 in LIV Golf events will now be able to earn OWGR points

The OWGR has a fairly exhaustive set of criteria when it comes to determining which circuits can be considered an Eligible Golf Tour, and it appeared LIV Golf had given up on being welcomed into the fold a couple of years ago.

Some people assumed the league’s decision to abandon its 54-hole format in favor of traditional 72-hole tournaments prior to the start of the 2026 season was designed to gain favor with the powers that be. However, that was less of a hindrance compared to issues with its field size, a lack of cuts, and a lackluster approach to the “performance-based, meritocratic eligibility” that’s listed as key criteria for recognition.

LIV Golf has managed to make some strides on those fronts, and on Tuesday, the OWGR announced it was satisfied with those efforts to the point where it has decided to hand out points for the first time. However, the move was accompanied by a pretty big qualifier, as its events will be classified as “small field tournaments” where players will only be rewarded for finishing in the Top 10.

Official World Golf Ranking Board Announces Decision on LIV Golf Application.

Read more here – https://t.co/31gNGJmhXg #OWGR #OfficialWorldGolfRanking pic.twitter.com/l6Ijo2fm66

— OWGR (@OWGRltd) February 3, 2026

This is certainly a step in the right direction for LIV Golf, which seems to be inching toward a reckoning later this year after losing Brooks Koepka to the PGA Tour (which issued a pithy statement in response to the development) thanks to a pathway that opens up the door for other big names to follow in his footsteps.

However, it does not appear the league is thrilled with the outcome, as it released a statement that made it pretty clear it’s less than satisifed with the compromise.