LIV golfers want 'fair court' over ranking points, says Graeme McDowell
- Published
Former US Open winner McDowell played at last weekend's LIV Golf event in Bangkok
Graeme McDowell says it is only fair that Official World Golf Ranking allows LIV Golf players the chance to earn ranking points.
The Saudi-backed series is not currently recognised by OWGR, who ruled that points would not be up for grabs at LIV events in October.
This is despite an alliance with the Middle East and Africa Tour, which LIV says allows its players to earn points.
"All we want is a fair court," said former US Open winner McDowell.
"To recognise exactly what it is that we're doing out here.
"It's impossible to ignore the talent that's out here. The only assurances that we get from LIV is that we are ticking all the boxes that we can tick and continue to do what is necessary for the OWGR to look at us the right way."
OWGR ruled that LIV players would not be able to earn ranking points in October events, including in Jeddah this weekend, because it received insufficient notice to conduct a review of the series' new "strategic alliance" with the Mena Tour.
"Like I said, I feel like LIV tried to do everything they possibly can to be legitimate in the eyes of OWGR," added McDowell.
"I mean we've got some quality quality players out here and to me the world rankings, you know.
"The word 'official' has to go away from OWGR if they don't take care of the players out here."
Former world number one Dustin Johnson, who won $18m (£16.2m) upon being crowned winner of the inaugural LIV Golf championship, was ranked 15th when he resigned his membership of the PGA Tour to join the new series in June, and has since slipped to 24th.
He was among the 48 LIV players who last month wrote to OWGR chairman Peter Dawson requesting ranking points to be attributed to past and future events.
"We're going to get world ranking points, right now it's a matter of when, and I mean just the longer it takes obviously the more irrelevant it becomes for us," Johnson, the two-time major winner, said.
"Because if you wait too long all our rankings are going to drop so much that it's not even going to really, it's not going to matter.
"Hopefully they do the right thing and we'll know something here in the next week or so and hopefully do the right thing and give us points and this will all be over."
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