As LIV Golf’s wait to be recognised by the Official World Golf Rankings (OWGR) continues, Thomas Pieters admits his days of teeing it up at The Masters could be numbered.
Players on the breakaway circuit are currently banned from the PGA Tour and were dealt another blow after a report emerged that the DP World Tour has won its panel hearing against LIV players.
That leaves limited opportunities for the likes of Pieters, the World No. 44 who joined Bubba Watson’s Range Goats ahead of the 2023 LIV Golf League, to earn ranking points.
The Belgian has played in The Masters three times, finishing in a tie for fourth on debut in 2017, and is out to savour what could be his last appearance at Augusta National for the Green Jacket showdown.
“Not really,” Pieters said, when asked is he was concerned about his world ranking plummeting. “It’s always nice to be here. Obviously family’s here, mum and dad are even here. First time for them, so that’s pretty cool.
“I took my parents here because it could be my last one. That’s just being realistic. I don’t know. Time will tell. We’ll see.”
Much has been made in the build-up of the divide that has fractured the men’s game between players on the traditional tours and those who left to join the Saudi-funded circuit. Harold Varner was one of the defectors in 2022 and hit out at what he feels has been media bias against LIV Golf, a sentiment Pieters echoed.
“I haven’t felt any tension,” he added. “It’s just nice to see them [PGA and DP World Tour players] again. Yeah, it’s nice to see them again. The media’s making it much of a bigger thing than it really is.”
Pieters is out with Shane Lowry – whom he played a practice round with – and Mackenzie Highes for rounds one and two, and gets underway at 9.36am local time (3.36pm BST) on Thursday.
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