Phil Mickelson reveals why OWGR does not want to give LIV Golf pros any points

LIV Golf's Phil Mickelson gives his verdict on the OWGR when tweeting PGA Tour coach Peter Kostis. 

Andy Roberts's picture
Fri, 3 Mar 2023
Phil Mickelson reveals why OWGR does not want to give LIV Golf pros any points

Phil Mickelson has revealed why the heads of the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) board "don't want to give points" to LIV Golf players following a Twitter exchange with PGA Tour coach and former golf analyst Peter Kostis. 

Kostis, 75, took to the social media platform to pose a question to his followers following the PGA Tour's latest bombshell news about limiting field sizes and having no cuts in a number of designated events in 2024. 

The former long-time CBS Sports analyst now wants to know what is going to happen to all the TV and sponsor contracts, and purse sizes, of all the non-designated tournaments next season? 

Kostis tweeted: 

"Question. What happens to the TV contracts, sponsor contracts and purse sizes of the non-designated events in 2024? All of these were negotiated with a different landscape. Will sponsors and TV pay the same $ for what is perceived to be a lesser product?"

LIV Golf pro Mickelson then got involved and gave his damning verdict on the matter in regards world golf ranking points. 

Mickelson replied: 

"Peter, you probably already know this but the tv deal is based on quality of field bench marks based on OWGR to receive the full reported value. If they don’t hit them, the money gets reduced. I’m not sure if it’s cumulative for all events or a per event basis."

The six-time major champion then added: 

"If LIV players were to receive points and the players were ranked in top 100, Tour would not come close to hitting these benchmarks and the tv deal would be SIGNIFICANTLY reduced. Explains why heads of OWGR don’t want to give points but whatever."

As it stands, LIV Golf tournaments remain shut out of receiving any OWGR points.

It has today emerged in a report by the Mail that LIV Golf are considering turning their backs on the OWGR altogether and focusing their efforts elsewhere. 

Where do you stand on LIV Golf being shut out of receiving OWGR points? What do you make of the new PGA Tour changes for 2024? Share your thoughts and comments over on the GolfMagic social media channels, or head over to our GolfMagic YouTube Channel.