'Jon is not a stupid guy' - Tour pro reacts to Rahm's LIV Golf rankings call

England's Eddie Pepperell says he "doesn't understand" the complaints after LIV Golf were finally recognised by the sport's global rankings body. 

The Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) said last Tuesday that for the first time LIV Golf players were going to start receiving points in their events. 

It was a decision that was years in the making and was expected to be met with joy by golfers who participate in the Saudi Arabia-backed tour. 

But several high-profile players, such as Jon Rahm, and their commissioner Scott O'Neil, criticised the fact that points will only be awarded to the top 10 finishers. 

Rahm said there was "work to be done" and the decision "doesn't seem fair". O'Neil criticised the transparency of the OWGR and said he hoped it was the "first step" to more changes. 

OWGR chairman Trevor Immelman said the decision was made because "it recognises there are a number of areas where LIV Golf does not meet the eligibility standards set out by the OWGR". 

Pepperell told the latest edition of The Chipping Forecast: "Well obviously I think the OWGR statement there is entirely fair and I don't really understand the complaints on the other side. 

"I mean I think I read somewhere Jon Rahm talk about this and [he said] what's the difference between the tours? 

"And I thought well if you can't see the difference then you've really got an issue and Jon is not a stupid guy he's quite smart so yeah these guys are blinded really by their position on LIV." 

Pepperell added that LIV Golf should be "grateful" to get points. 

What did Jon Rahm say?

Speaking after the first round of LIV Golf's curtain-raiser in Riyadh, Rahm said it was "fantastic" that LIV were being recognised. 

"With that said, I don't like how we're not being treated the same as every other tour.

"It seems like the rules that have been in place don't really apply to us, with only 10 of us getting points.

"It doesn't seem fair. The small fields out there throughout the course of the year, their players get full points."

He added: "While it's good for some people, it could cause some players to actually lose world ranking points instead of gaining them because finishing 11th is basically a missed cut, and we're already adding to the divisor.

"But I'm thankful that LIV Golf got their foot in the door, and there's a possibility for us to walk in the room and be recognised as a tour, as we should be."

Some LIV Golf players were delighted

America's Peter Uihlein, 36, appeared to be in the minority. 

"I might be one of the few that like it," Uihlein said in Riyadh. "We have more world ranking points today than we did yesterday.

"I saw the winner gets 23 points this week. [On the DP World Tour] In Qatar he gets 20. In my mind we're the second best tour in the world right now.

"Obviously there are things that probably need to get worked out with the top 10 or whatever, but the reality is we have more points today than we did yesterday. I'm all for it."