LIV Golf players to receive Open Championship berths after historic agreement reached
LIV Golf players to receive Open Championship berths after historic agreement reached
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Golf's civil war appears to be nearing an end with each passing day, and it has now been revealed that players from the breakaway LIV Golf series will, for the first time, be able to qualify for the Open Championship with points from the Saudi Arabia-funded league. The R&A is set to extend an olive branch to LIV, according to the Telegraph, in what is a significant blow to the Official World Golf Rankings. Previously, major fields - such as the Open Championship and US Open - have been constructed using OWGR points, though those aren't attainable through LIV.
As a result, players have ended up missing out despite being eligible based on ability, meaning major championship fields have potentially been weakened. Now, however, the R&A, which runs the Open Championship, has followed the lead of the United States Golf Association (which made a similar gesture to LIV players earlier this week regarding the US Open and will allow LIV players to enter. The move signifies a softening in the golfing world's stance towards LIV. Previously, former LIV CEO Greg Norman was banned from attending the 150th Open at St Andrews, despite him being a former chairman of the R&A, due to his ties with the Saudi breakaway league.
Starting with this year's Open Championship at Portrush, Ireland, LIV players will be able to qualify using points they earn at the 54-hole closed-entry events. Norman is no longer the league's CEO and Commissioner, however, having been replaced by Scott O’Neil, and it seems his replacement is already getting to work in legitimising the league. In recent months, LIV has signed deals with FOX Sports to broadcast its events in America and Europe, and on Friday morning it was announced a similar deal had been reached with ITV to bring golf back to free-to-air TV in the UK.
With those agreements in mind, it seems the civil war between LIV and the PGA Tour is slowly but surely coming to an end. On Thursday, it was announced that PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan had visited the White House with Player Directors Tiger Woods and Adam Scott to meet with President Donald Trump. While there, they issued a plea to the newly-inaugurated President to play a role in bringing the sport back together, writing in a statement: "We know golf fans are eagerly anticipating a resolution to negotiations with the Public Investment Fund and want to thank President Trump for his interest and long-time support of the game of golf.
