There have not been many more outspoken critics of LIV Golf over the last four years than Brandel Chamblee.
While many have softened their stance towards LIV Golf as time has gone on, Brandel Chamblee has tended to remain extremely critical and dismissive of the breakaway league.
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The OWGR are awarding points for top 10 finishes from this season!
However, LIV do appear to have found an unlikely ally following the OWGR’s decision to award the league with some world ranking points this week.
It initially appeared to be a big win for LIV when it was announced on Tuesday that the OWGR would start awarding points for their events from the start of this season.
Brandel Chamblee reacts to the OWGR’s decision on LIV Golf
However, some have criticised the OWGR following the news. Scott O’Neil said the decision was unfair, with only the top 10 players at each event receiving points.
And speaking on 5 Clubs, Chamblee appears to agree with the LIV CEO as he issued his verdict on the decision.
“The Official World Golf Rankings should be in the business not of governance, it should be agnostic, it should be ecumenical, it should be blind, pick your phrase. If you’ve got a problem with LIV’s format, and a lot of us do, that’s a governance issue, that’s not a measurement issue,” he said.
“Every player in LIV should be ranked, if you really want to have an accurate measurement of who’s playing the best golf in professional golf right now. Of course, a lot of people in the world of golf don’t like that.
“We can talk all day about whether or not we like or dislike LIV Golf, clearly I don’t, but I’ve come full circle on whether or not they should receive world ranking points, because I sit down and I think what is the core job of a ranking system? It is to accurately rank who the best golfers in the world are playing professionally, and it should be agnostic about the format or participation.”
Where Chamblee and LIV will still disagree
LIV will argue that Chamblee’s comments are particularly significant.
If someone as critical of LIV as Chamblee says that every player should be receiving some ranking points, the league will argue that there is no debate to be had.
Of course, there is likely to be an area where Chamblee and LIV still disagree. That concerns just how many points players should get for LIV performances.
As things stand, the player who finishes 10th in Riyadh will receive around the same number of points as the person who finishes 29th at the WM Phoenix Open.
That seems to be a fair reflection considering that the strength in depth is arguably a lot greater on the PGA Tour.
But O’Neil claimed that LIV’s best 25 players stand up against the PGA Tour’s best 25. So he would obviously feel that a lot of players are still being harshly treated.
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