It would be a bit of a stretch to suggest LIV Golf has emerged as an existential threat to the sport’s biggest events, but that’s exactly what Phil Mickelson did when he tweeted (and deleted) a warning to the major tournaments he seems to think are on borrowed time due to the policies that are currently in place.
LIV Golf became impossible to overlook once the emerging league successfully recruited Phil Mickelson from the PGA Tour, aiming to challenge golf’s dominant competitive monopoly. However, considering that Lefty was already in the later stages of his career, it could be debated whether this move had a devastating impact.
LIV’s presence became even more impossible to overlook as it added more prominent figures to its roster, including Brooks Koepka, Cameron Smith, and Jon Rahm. It’s worth noting that Rahm was ranked third in the Official World Golf Rankings when he joined LIV last year.
The OWGR points system has become a major source of debate for LIV due to its influence in deciding the automatic qualifiers for prestigious tournaments like The U.S. Open, The British Open, and The PGA Championship. Although The Masters is technically invitation-only, these rankings can still play a role in the selection process.
In 2023, LIV Golf made the decision to abandon its pursuit of recognition from the OWGR. The OWGR has raised concerns about LIV Golf’s 54-hole format, but its main focus appears to be the lack of promotion and relegation within the organization. Consequently, it has become increasingly challenging for golfers affiliated with LIV Golf to qualify for major tournaments. This issue is expected to worsen as existing exemptions expire in the upcoming years.
Given these circumstances, one might assume that players who have pledged their loyalty to LIV Golf would be apprehensive about their chances of participating in future majors. However, Mickelson took a different approach when responding to a post by Flushing It that highlighted this potential problem. Although his response has since been deleted, it seems that Mickelson entered a state of spin, attempting to downplay the concerns raised.
Maybe some LIV players won’t be missed. But what if NONE of the LIV players played? Would they be missed? What about next year when more great players join? Or the following year? At some point they will care and will have to answer to sponsors and television. FAAFO
If you’re not familiar with internet acronyms, FAAFO stands for “F— Around And Find Out.” This suggests that Mickelson is quite certain that majors will have to do some serious introspection in the upcoming years.
It’s important to mention that the television ratings for The Masters in 2024 experienced a significant decline compared to the previous year. It will be intriguing to observe if this trend persists as we anticipate the remaining trio of majors on the calendar.
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