World Ranking Committee Changes 'Sanghu Habak'
More Points for Winners, None for Lower Ranks
Bonus Points for Winning Twice or More in 52 Weeks
LIV Golf Still Classified as 'Ineligible Tour'
'Sanghu Habak' (Top-heavy distribution).
Starting next year, the world ranking points for men's golf will change. The Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) announced on the 21st (local time) that "the criteria for awarding world ranking points will be changed in 2024." Outstanding players will receive more points than before, while those with lower performance will receive fewer or no points. Peter Dawson, chairman of OWGR, said, "The ranking adjustments have been made carefully. They will be applied from January 1 next year."
First, winners of tournaments with 80 or fewer players currently receive 17-18% of the total points awarded for the entire tournament, but from next year, they will receive 21%. Conversely, the bottom 15% of players will not receive any points at all. Tournaments with 80 or fewer players include the newly designated premium events on the PGA Tour starting next year. These tournaments feature 78 or fewer top-ranked players competing without a cut.
Winning these tournaments will grant abundant points, significantly boosting world rankings, but finishing last means risking a drop in the rankings. The recently held Hero World Challenge is an example. Only 20 players participate in this event. Although 'Golf Emperor' Tiger Woods (USA) finished 18th, he received a large amount of world ranking points due to the strong field, which greatly improved his ranking. However, next year, finishing 18th will result in no points awarded.
In match play tournaments, players eliminated early in the first round or group stages will not receive points. However, exceptions include the PGA Tour Playoffs (PO) and the DP World Tour Championship. In these events, even the last-place finisher receives ranking points.
Another new change is awarding bonus points to players who win more than twice within 52 weeks. Winning twice grants a 60% bonus, and winning three times grants a 70% bonus. Multiple winners such as Scottie Scheffler (USA), who won 4 times in 2022 and 2 times this year, are guaranteed more points.
However, LIV Golf tournaments still do not award ranking points. The ranking committee emphasized that the new criteria apply only to 'eligible tour' events. LIV Golf is not recognized as an 'eligible tour' by the ranking committee.
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