Just how far have LIV Golf players fallen in the Official World Golf Ranking?

One of the biggest questions facing LIV Golf in 2023 was its status with the Official World Golf Ranking.

A player’s OWGR standing is key for access to the four major championships, and LIV Golf events currently do not receive OWGR points. The circuit applied in July of 2022 and is awaiting word as part of an application process that can take up to, and even more than, a year.

In December, the OWGR announced a Mexican golf tour with 54-hole events will start to receive OWGR points in 2023 after a 16-month process, and the tour’s inclusion of a 36-hole cut and open qualifying were noted in the release. While LIV events are still 54-holes without a cut, the league will implement a promotion and (somewhat) relegation element to fill out its teams for 2024, meaning a few spots will be available via qualifying.

Formats and criteria aside, LIV believes its events deserve points after the formation of its “strategic alliance” with the developmental MENA Tour in an attempt to force the OWGR’s hand.

Since they joined the upstart league led by Greg Norman and financed by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, LIV players have been plummeting in the ranking, putting their major championship futures in jeopardy.

Here’s a look at the 48 players on a team roster in 2023 and how their OWGR has fallen since they joined LIV Golf.

LIV Golf OWGR movement

Player

OWGR before first LIV event

Current OWGR

Change in ranking

Cameron Smith

2

5

-3

Dustin Johnson

15

62

-47

Joaquin Niemann

19

26

-7

Brooks Koepka

19

102

-83

Abraham Ancer

22

30

-8

Louis Oosthuizen

21

100

-79

Paul Casey

31

94

-63

Bryson DeChambeau

31

131

-100

Kevin Na

34

84

-50

Talor Gooch

35

49

-14

Thomas Pieters

35

42

-7

Jason Kokrak

36

74

-38

Patrick Reed

39

65

-26

Harold Varner III

46

51

-5

Mito Pereira

50

50

0

Cameron Tringale

55

86

-31

Sergio Garcia

57

144

-87

Dean Burmester

59

71

-12

Marc Leishman

62

95

-33

Richard Bland

67

107

-40

Matt Jones

69

129

-60

Phil Mickelson

72

352

-280

Scott Vincent

91

117

-26

Matthew Wolff

77

181

-104

Lee Westwood

78

267

-189

Bubba Watson

86

201

-115

Sam Horsfield

74

134

-60

Anirban Lahiri

92

99

-7

Ian Poulter

92

150

-58

Bernd Wiesberger

94

149

-55

Sebastian Munoz

98

106

-8

Brendan Steele

122

119

+3

Branden Grace

123

221

-98

Charl Schwartzel

126

197

-71

Carlos Ortiz

119

270

-151

Sihwan Kim

139

238

-99

Pat Perez

170

239

-69

Henrik Stenson

173

175

-2

Charles Howell

169

318

-149

Martin Kaymer

215

625

-410

Jediah Morgan

239

368

-129

Danny Lee

267

268

-1

Peter Uihlein

327

411

-84

Graeme McDowell

374

399

-25

Chase Koepka

1562

1331

+231

James Piot

1751

1155

+596

David Puig

1751

1057

+694

Eugenio Chacarra

1904

1732

+172

Of the 48 players on a roster this season, all but six have dropped in the ranking. After making their first LIV starts in Mexico last month, Mito Pereira’s ranking has yet to move, while fellow newcomer Brendan Steele rose three places. Further down the rankings, a trio of players in their second year of professional golf – Eugenio Chacarra (No. 1,732), James Piot (No. 1,155) and David Puig (No. 1,057) – have all risen more than 100 spots due to a small sample size of tournaments and a handful of starts on the Asian Tour. Chase Koepka struggled through his pro career pre-LIV, and has seen his ranking rise 231 spots but still finds himself No. 1,331.

Martin Kaymer has struggled with injuries over the last year and has seen the largest drop of 410 spots on the rankings and now sits No. 625. Phil Mickelson, the face of LIV Golf, has fallen 280 spots and is now No. 352.

Only six players are still inside the top 50: Cameron Smith (No. 5), Joaquin Niemann (No. 26), Abraham Ancer (No. 30), Thomas Pieters (No. 42), Talor Gooch (No. 49) and Mito Pereira (No. 50).

The LIV Golf League returns to action this week in Marana, Arizona, at the Gallery Golf Club with LIV Golf Tucson, the circuit’s first event in the United States this season.

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Story originally appeared on GolfWeek