19 January 2024 , 11:13
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LIV Golf's Joaquin Niemann was praised by former Masters champion Adam Scott following his return to the DP World Tour for this week's Dubai Desert Classic at Emirates Golf Club.
Niemann is competing in his second DP World Tour event in as many months, after being crowned champion of the Australian Open in December. The LIV star joined a star-studded list of winners down under, one of those being Aussie native Scott.
Per Golf.com, the pair then shared an exchange whilst in the Middle East this week, with Scott commending the Torque GC star for his victory in Sydney a few weeks earlier.
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"Well done, down there," Scott told Niemann. "Nice list of names on that trophy. Especially 2009.” The year the PGA Tour Policy Board member was referring to was of course the one he prevailed in, as he pipped fellow Australian Stuart Appleby by five shots.
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Last year's win for Niemann ensured it earned him a spot in the field at this week's Rolex Series event in Dubai, an opportunity the Chilean could not turn down. The former world top-20 golfer had drifted as far out as 87th in the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) prior to his win in Australia thanks to his move to LIV Golf.
He now sits 70th in the list, but with Torque GC captain currently ineligible for this year's Masters, a break into the top-50 is a must. Speaking to Mirror Sport prior to this week's outing in the Middle East, Niemann admitted the key motivator behind his entry was to earn some much-needed ranking points for a spot at Augusta.
Joaquin Niemann is back in DP World Tour action (Getty Images)"It is pretty unfair right now what the world rankings shows," he claimed. "It says the top 100 players in the world right now, but I don’t think this is the right ranking...I am going to Dubai for the DP World [Tour] just because of [ranking] points, nothing else and to try and get into the Masters...
"This is not me trying to get other players' place because I am there, it is because the system is not working well. I want to be at the majors and I think the easiest path is to go and play Dubai. I don’t know if it is going to create drama or they are not going to like me playing on that tour, so I am going to go there, try to play well, get my points and get out of there."
Niemann is not the only one to raise question marks over the current state of the OWGR system, with PGA Tour loyalist Scott voicing his concerns. On Wednesday, the Aussie was quizzed on whether he had received any feedback in regard the rankings from his peers having taken on a Player Director role on the Tour.
In response, the ex-green jacket winner the evidence of a struggling system is there to see, and fears the ranking could well become 'irrelevant'. "I don't need to receive that feedback because I can see it. I mean, I know and I'm not sure it's right," he said.
"I mean, I think they are in a tricky spot at the moment, like everything in professional golf is kind of up for debate and discussion. They need to find a good system. Otherwise, I fear the World Rankings can become irrelevant."