‘Doesn’t seem fair’ – Rahm criticises LIV rankings call

Riyadh Individual – first-round leaderboard

-7 T Detry (Bel), P Uihlein (US); -6 E Smylie (Aus); -5 T Gooch (US), L Oosthuizen (SA), S Munoz (Col), A Byeong-Hun (S Kor), J Rahm (Spa), T Hatton (Eng)

Selected others: -4 B DeChambeau (US), S Garcia (Spa)

A ruling that will see only the top 10 finishers at LIV Golf events awarded world ranking points “doesn’t seem fair”, says two-time major winner Jon Rahm.

The Official World Golf Rankings (OWGR) board revealed on Tuesday its decision to award LIV players points for the first time.

But the limit means it will be different from all 24 other men’s professional golf tours that are part of the OWGR where everyone making the cut earn points.

The OWGR board said it was restricting points to the top 10 finishers in the Saudi Arabia-funded circuit because it “recognises there are a number of areas where LIV Golf does not meet the eligibility standards set out by OWGR”.

Speaking at LIV Golf’s season opener in Riyadh, Rahm said it was “fantastic that we’re being recognised in a way” but he added: “With that said, I don’t like how we’re not being treated the same as every other tour.

“It seems like the rules that have been in place don’t really apply to us, with only 10 of us getting points.

The Spaniard added he believes “there’s work to be done”.

“While it’s good for some people, it could cause some players to actually lose world ranking points instead of gaining them because finishing 11th is basically a missed cut, and we’re already adding to the divisor.

“But I’m thankful that LIV Golf got their foot in the door, and there’s a possibility for us to walk in the room and be recognised as a tour, as we should be.”

Setting out its reasons for the restrictions, OWGR said LIV Golf’s eligibility failures included an average field size of 57 for 2026 versus the minimum of 75 set out in the ranking body’s regulations and “self-selection of players with players being recruited rather than earning their place on the tour in many cases”.

LIV has described OWGR’s stance as “unprecedented”, saying someone finishing 11th in one of its events would be “treated the same as a player finishing 57th”.

Rahm was among six players, also including England’s Tyrell Hatton, tied for fourth after the first round at Riyadh Golf Club on Wednesday.

Belgian Thomas Detry claimed a share of the lead on his LIV debut.

The 33-year-old, whose most recent win came at the PGA Tour’s Phoenix Open last February, shot a bogey-free seven-under-par 65 to tie Peter Uihlein.

“First day on the job, so a little bit of a change for me, so a bit nervous,” said Detry, who is part of Dustin Johnson’s 4Aces GC.

Australia’s Elvis Smylie, another rookie, is one off the lead, with Rahm and Hatton in a group two back, while Bryson DeChambeau and Sergio Garcia are at four under.