LIV Golf’s maiden event of 2026 concluded in Riyadh and, along with the prize money and trophies handed out, it was also the first time Official World Golf Ranking points were distributed to players.
On the eve of the tournament, the OWGR announced that rankings points will go to the top-10 finishers in each of the league’s individual tournaments for the 2026 season, with Elvis Smylie, who earned victory, picking up 22.98 points for his efforts.
Pre-event, the young Aussie, who joined the League in the off-season, was 134th in the world rankings, but has seen his position rise to 77th following victory, a career-best for the 23-year-old.
Along with Smylie, Jon Rahm finished solo second and saw his world ranking rise 30 spots, jumping from 97th to 67th.
Being a former World No.1, as well as a multiple-time Major winner, the OWGR ranking won’t be as important to the Spaniard, who has already qualified for all four Major championships.
Since joining the LIV Golf League, Rahm has seen his OWGR ranking drop from 2nd down to 97th
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Peter Uihlein, who was solo third, moved from 199th to 154th, while Abraham Ancer, Thomas Pieters and Sebastian Munoz all jumped over 100 spots following their respective finishes.
In fact, the only player to see their world ranking drop was recent 4Aces GC signing, Thomas Detry, who despite finishing seventh went from 62nd to 63rd, as certain players from the WM Phoenix Open, which possesses more OWGR points, moved above him.
Detry is one of the players to keep an eye on in terms of Majors in 2026, as his OWGR ranking will determine his eligibility for the big four championships. Currently, he is in-and-around the required numbers, as is David Puig and Byeong Hun An, who all improved their world ranking spots following good performances in Saudi Arabia.
Sebastian Munoz saw the biggest OWGR jump following his 8th place finish, moving 201 spots in the rankings
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Away from the League, Chris Gotterup, who claimed the WM Phoenix Open, moved up to a career-best World No.5 following his playoff victory at TPC Scottsdale.
He wasn’t the only one celebrating over the weekend as, following his second DP World Tour win in three starts, recent LIV Golf departer, Patrick Reed, jumped to 17th…
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