Brooks Koepka and Louis Oosthuizen latest to suffer OWGR drop
South African golfer Louis Oosthuizen is the latest to suffer a drop in the Official World Golf Rankings (OWGR) as he fell to world no. 51 recently.
Oosthuizen has been enjoying a spot in the top 50 since 2014. However, his chances to maintain his position came under jeopardy after he signed with the controversial LIV Golf series.
The Saudi-backed league currently cannot offer its players OWGR points, which hampers their position in the ranking list and ultimately their participation in major tournaments.
In the case of Louis Oosthuizen, his fall to the world no. 51 spot negatively impacts his eligibility for the Masters at the Augusta National next year. Former champions automatically get a qualification for the Masters. However, Oosthuizen's best performance in the tournament is a runner-up finish in 2012.
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The South African golfer had his hopes on another route to qualify for the Masters, which is to sit in the top 50 till the last day of the calendar year. However, he can't rely on that option now.
Since the PGA Tour has banned golfers who have defected to the LIV Golf series, Louis Oosthuizen's chances of climbing back into the top 50 are limited. His last opportunity to do that is this week when he will take part in the DP World Tour's Alfred Dunhill Championship.
One major that Oosthuizen can compete in is next July's Open Championship, barring that no changes in the eligibility criteria take place. He bagged his only major title when he won the Open Championship in 2010.
Whether he will feature in the PGA Championship and the US Open is left to be seen since he has never won those two events.
Louis Oosthuizen followed fellow LIV Golf player Patrick Reed who faced a similar freefall in the OWGR rankings after spending a whopping eight years in the top 50. However, currently world no. 67, Reed is still eligible for the Masters since he secured the green jacket in 2018.
Brooks Koepka in a better position than Louis Oosthuizen despite fall in OWGR rankings
US golfer Brooks Koepka is also riding in the same boat as other LIV Golf players, including Louis Oosthuizen. However, he is facing the choppy waters slightly better than Oosthuizen.
Koepka moved out of the top 50 for the first time after an eight-year spell following Adrian Meronk's win at the Australian Open. His most recent win in the 2019 PGA Championship exempted him from taking part in the Open Championship till 2023 and the Masters up till 2024.
He has a life-time exemption from the PGA Championship. Being a previous US Open champion, he can still participate in major tournaments till 2028.
The OWGR ranking system has been receiving intense backlash from both the PGA Tour and LIV Golf players. In fact, in October, former pro Mike Clayton gave several suggestions regarding the selection criteria for the major tournaments and recommended scrapping the OWGR system altogether.
According to Golf Monthly, he said:
"Top 40 PGA Tour, top 20 DP World Tour, top five to 10 LIV, top two Japan. Winners of big tournaments – take your pick. Canadian Open, Australian, British PGA, Irish Open, Memorial, Players... winners past 10 years. Masters can do what they want."
LIV Golf is looking for strategies to qualify for the OWGR in the interim. A letter pleading with OWGR chairman Peter Dawson to grant it eligibility was signed by 50 of its players in September. In an effort to earn OWGR points, it also created a strategic partnership with the MENA Tour for development, but thus far, its efforts have been fruitless.