“To play there, I disagree with that,” Woods said. “They have turned their backs on what allowed them to get to this position.” Woods considers the LIV concept, which involves three rounds and no cut, to be competitively invalid. “What these players do for guaranteed money, what’s the incentive to practice?” asked. “What’s the motivation to go out there and win it on the dirt? “You just get paid a lot of money up front and play a couple of events and play 54 holes. I can understand that 54 holes is almost like a mandate when you get to the senior tour. The kids are a little older and a little crazier. But when you’re at that young age and some of these guys — they’re really guys that have come from amateur golf to this organization — 72-hole testing is part of it.” In what will be widely seen as a point made with the benefit of insider knowledge, Woods embraced the idea of LIV golfers remaining out of the world rankings and missing important appearances as a result. The governing body of the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) will meet in St Andrews on Wednesday, with LIV’s bid to gain status the main point of discussion. All four majors are represented in this table. The Saudi-backed program appears to be lacking in several ways, including average field size and compliance with OWGR rules for at least a year. Woods’ comments sounded strong in that regard. “Who knows what is going to happen in the near future with the world ranking points, the criteria for entering major leagues,” he said. “Government bodies should understand this. “Some of these players may never get a chance to play in the big leagues. We don’t know for sure yet. It is up to all the major league bodies to make that decision. But that’s a possibility, that some players will never, ever get the chance to play in a major championship, never get the chance to experience that right here, to walk the fairways of Augusta National. “I just don’t see how this move is positive in the long term for many of these players, especially if the LIV event doesn’t get world ranking points and the major leagues change their criteria for entering the events. “It would be sad to see some of these young kids never have the opportunity to live and experience what we have the opportunity to live and walk on these hallowed grounds and play in these championships.” Norman, a two-time major winner, was not invited to St Andrews to join celebrations for past champions. Woods supported R&D’s decision. “Greg has done some things that I don’t think are in the best interest of our game,” he said. “We are returning to perhaps the most historic and traditional place in our sport. I think it’s the right thing to do.” Pressed about what elements of Norman’s behavior bothered him, Woods said: “I know what the PGA Tour stands for and what we’ve done and what the tour has given us. the ability to pursue our career and win everything we get and the trophies we were able to play for and the history that was part of that game. “I know Greg tried to do this in the early 90s. It didn’t work then and he’s trying to make it work now. I still don’t see how this is in the best interest of the game. What the European Tour is and what the PGA Tour is and what they’ve done and all the governing bodies of the game of golf and all the major leagues, how they run it. I think they see it differently than Greg sees it.” Rory McIlroy had already backed the R&A’s place for Norman before Woods took the podium. “It’s the 150th Open Championship and that’s what we have to focus on,” he said. “I think the focus would have been taken away a little bit if he was here. “With everything going on in the golf world, it was the right decision. But if things change in the future, I could see a day when he would definitely be welcomed back.”
