'Ridiculous' - Cameron Smith Blasts OWGR Decision To Deny LIV Golf World Ranking Points

Former Open champion Cameron Smith has labelled the decision not to award world ranking points to LIV Golf events as "ridiculous" and suggested the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) has become "almost obsolete."

Earlier this week, it was revealed that the OWGR board had denied the 54-hole circuit's request to be awarded ranking points.

LIV players have been unable to gain OWGR points on the breakaway circuit since leaving the PGA Tour, with many spiralling down the rankings and out of contention for the Majors as a result.

The OWGR's latest decision will see this trend continue, something that has caught the ire of several of the tour's players.

"I think it [the OWGR] is almost obsolete now," Cameron Smith, who has slipped to 15th in the world, said before LIV's final regular-season event in Jeddah.

"We've got some guys out here who are playing some of the best golf in the world and they're outside the top 100, 200 in the world. It's pretty ridiculous."

Dustin Johnson is another who spoke out against the decision, suggesting that the ruling delegitimises the entire ranking system.

"I feel like you can't really use the world ranking system any more," the two-time Major champion said. "It's hard to use the world ranking system if you're excluding 48 guys that are good players. The rankings are skewed."

Both Johnson and Smith are still exempt for the Majors after their respective victories at the 2020 Masters and 2022 Open Championship but other players will find it increasingly difficult to compete in the four biggest tournaments in men's golf.

Patrick Reed, who won at Augusta in 2018, will see his five-year exemption run out next year, meaning he will not automatically qualify for the three remaining Majors of that year.

"Obviously it's disappointing," the American said. "Until the actual world ranking reflects the actual top players in the world, then to me it's just kind of a broken system. Just because we play on a different tour, it shouldn't matter."

OWGR chairman Peter Dawson clarified the decision, saying the closed-shop nature of LIV Golf meant it was not viable to accurately rank their golfers relative to the other tours.

 “This decision not to make them eligible is not political. It is entirely technical. LIV players are self-evidently good enough to be ranked," he said. “They’re just not playing in a format where they can be ranked equitably with the other 24 tours and thousands of players trying to compete on them.”

LIV Golf has also responded, blasting the decision and suggesting that the sport is “now without a true or global scoring and ranking system."

“OWGR’s sole objective is to rank the best players across the globe. This communication makes clear that it can no longer deliver on that objective," they added.