Louis Oosthuizen calls for first change to golf when LIV and PGA Tour merger

06 July 2023 , 15:07

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Louis Oosthuizen opened up on the proposed merger (Image: AP)

Louis Oosthuizen has called on LIV Golf to be sanctioned by the Official World Golf Rankings (OWGR) ahead of its proposed merger with the PGA Tour and DP World Tour.

After a year-long feud, LIV Golf is set to work with its rivals after the PGA Tour reached a groundbreaking agreement with the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia (PIF). The deal will see the three leading circuits work in unison under one entity named 'NewCo'.

It remains to be seen what the agreement means for the future of professional golf and the running of the three tours.

There is of course plenty to be worked out, most notably the scenario surrounding world rankings.

For all of its growth over the past year, the one real kink in the armour of LIV Golf has been its lack of ranking points. Having only formed last summer, and failing to meet OWGR requirements, the breakaway league has been hosting events without points being on offer.

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And whilst LIV players have seen their earnings go up, the majority have seen their world ranking position head in the opposite direction. Having began the 2022 season inside the world's top 10, South African star Oosthuizen now finds himself dwindling in 348th.

As a result, the former Open champion believes the first order of business for NewCo should be to work with OWGR to grant the breakaway league ranking recognition. Speaking ahead of LIV London, he said: "Yeah, look, there's a lot of things that need to happen.

Louis Oosthuizen opened up on the proposed merger (AP)

"I think the first thing is somehow getting World Ranking points to LIV or changing the system completely. I think the system at the moment is really, it's not a real reflection of what's going on out there. That can change, and we can somehow get back to getting points and things,"

Oosthuizen became one of the shock names to leave the PGA Tour last summer, having been one of the world's best players for some time. Opening up on his decision to make the Saudi switch though, he admitted he was close to calling it quits on the Tour a year earlier, with LIV arriving at the perfect time.

"To be part of something new, and I've had a good career in golf, and I was sort of on my final stages there on the PGATour, was thinking about maybe even stopping after 2021, and then this opportunity came that was completely different to what I'm used to, being part of a team aspect, and knowing that I'm going to have these two that's good friends of mine in the team was an opportunity I didn't want to let go, and I thought, why not."

Joshua Lees