Masters chairman Fred Ridley did not rule out further special invitations into the tournament for LIV Golfers in the future.
Thirteen are playing at Augusta National this week, seven of them former winners, with Joaquin Niemann having been given an invite into the field.
There has been plenty of pushing from those around the Saudi-backed tour for more, with Talor Gooch and Dean Burmester’s omissions raising heckles for some.
But while expressing that the “best players in the world are together again”, ahead of the 88th Masters, tournament chairman Fred Ridley was asked how, going forward, they would measure LIV players without a change in criteria.
“There’s been a lot of discussion about that, and presently we do use the Official World Golf Rankings,” he said in his annual pre-tournament press conference.
“As you know, we’re on the board of the OWGR. We believe that it is a legitimate determiner of who the best players in the game are.
“There’s been communication that’s been public regarding LIV’s application, which it subsequently was withdrawn after some remedial suggestions were made regarding pathways and access to players and concern about some of the aspects of team golf.
“I think in our case, we’re an invitational, and we can adjust as necessary. A great example is this year, Joaquin Niemann was given a special invitation.
“We felt that Joaquin had not only a great record coming up to this year, but after his season, he went to Australia, played very well there, finished fourth in the Australian PGA, won the Australian Open – one of the great, great championships in the world. And we thought he was deserving of a special invitation.
“Now, historically, and as stated in our qualification criteria, we consider international players for special invitations.
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“But we do look at those every year and I will say that if we felt that there were a player or players, whether they played on the LIV Tour or any other tour, who were deserving of an invitation to the Masters, that we would exercise that discretion with regard to special invitations.”
LIV Golfers in Masters: ‘For the most part a closed shop’
Some LIV players have suggested direct routes to the majors and Ridley was also asked if there had been any direct communication on that front, or if there could be a time when it might happen – whether through LIV’s order of merit or a series of tournaments.
“I think it will be difficult to establish any type of point system that had any connection to the rest of the world of golf because they’re basically, not totally, but for the most part, a closed shop,” he said.
“There is some relegation, but not very much. It all really depends on what new player they sign and those concerns were expressed by the OWGR.
“But I don’t think and, again, I’m repeating myself a little bit, that prevents us from giving subjective consideration based on talent, based on performance to those players.
“Our goal is to have, to the greatest extent possible, the best field in golf, the best players in the world. Having said that, we never have had all the best players in the world because of the structure of our tournament. It’s an invitational. It’s limited field, it’s a small field.
“We’ve always honoured our past champions, some of whom, would not necessarily be in an open competition, but they add a lot to this tournament.
“They’re a part of our history. Last night [champions dinner] was one of the most magical nights I’ve ever been involved in in golf. Listening to these great champions talk about what the Masters means to them.
“We also honour amateurs. We would normally have seven amateurs in the field but for a couple of great players who decided to turn pro. So we’re a little bit different situation. But we do have that flexibility, as I mentioned earlier, and I would not foreclose that we would consider that in the future.”
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