Augusta National president Fred Ridley has all but ruled out the possibility of LIV golfers working their way into the Masters through their own rankings, while pointing to the Saudi-backed tour’s “shutdown” as a possibility. questionable.
Golfers who compete on the LIV Tour and win the Masters are still eligible to play in the first major of the year. One of the LIV members, Joaquín Niemann, received a special invitation to participate in this Masters. Others have had their roads to Augusta blocked after plummeting in the world rankings. LIV withdrew its application to join the system this year after failing to meet Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) standards.
LIV hopes the Grand Slam will offer some spots to players based on their performance on the Rebel Tour. Speaking on the eve of the Masters, Ridley was calm about the possibility.
“I think it would be difficult to build any kind of points system that has any relevance to the rest of the golf world because they are basically, not entirely, but to a large extent, a closed shop,” Ridley said. Said when talking about LIV. “There is some relegation, but not a lot. It all depends on the new players they sign. OWGR expressed these concerns.
“I don’t think that prevents us from subjectively considering these players based on talent, performance. Our goal is to have the best golf courses in the world, the best players possible.
“What I will say is that if we feel that there is a player or players, whether they play on the LIV Tour or any other tour, that they deserve an invitation to the Masters, we will exercise our discretion in terms of special invitations.”
Ridley also pointedly made a pointed reference to the divisive state of elite golf. According to reports, television viewers in the United States are down 20% this year due to differences in the way the PGA Tour and LIV events operate.
“Of course, the fact that the best players in the world don’t meet often doesn’t help,” he added. “Regardless of whether there is a direct causal relationship [on broadcast figures] I have no idea. But I think it would be nice if they could be together more often. “
Ridley urged all tours to accept technical modifications recommended by golf officials on both sides of the Atlantic. In the modern era, shot distance has been a common concern at Augusta National. “I certainly hope they can [implemented],” Ridley said. “I think if they don’t adopt it, it’s going to put a lot of pressure on the game that it doesn’t need right now.”
