The Hero World Challenge is quickly approaching, and its long-running fan controversy has resurfaced. As the event begins on the 5th of December, golf enthusiasts can’t help but wonder why Tiger Woods’s event has OWGR points despite having a limited 20-player field. Among the mixed reactions, many have pointed out how other events that considerably have more players don’t get categorized under the OWGR’s list.

Take the ISPS Handa Australian Open and the Investec South African Open Championship, for example. These tournaments have huge fields containing 156 players. But still, the winners get less than half of the available ranking points. Seems unfair? Well, there ought to be something that the Hero World Challenge must be doing, right?

It actually is the event’s elite golfer’s list every year. According to the Official World Golf Ranking system, ranking points can be awarded to events with a powerful field and a history of attracting top golfers, regardless of their official status. And this is exactly where the Tiger Woods event hits the ball. With its traditional 72-hole stroke play format with the “best players in the world,” this Bahamas event meets the OWGR’s ranking criteria.

Just look at Scottie Scheffler, who won the 2023 version of the event with a spectacular three-shot victory. The pro earned a total of 30.0999 OWGR ultimately becoming the world no. 1 golfer. You see how important is the OWGR point in a golfer’s professional life! A similar case took place with Viktor Hovland, the champion who successfully grabbed the 2022 Hero World Challenge winner title under his name.

For Hovland, a total of 69 points was enough to win and bounce back to the top ten in the global rankings with his winning points. With a million-dollar prize fund and significant OWGR rating points, the Hero World Challenge has truly changed the game for its champions. However, not everyone is a fan of the OWGR points for the tournament, including a prominent club, the LIV Golf Club.

LIV Golf Club criticizes the OWGR ranking system

The Saudi-backed club, with a 48-player team play format, has been vocal about the OWGR’s criteria for awarding points. Last year, LIV Golf took it to X, stating, “Professional golf is now without a true or global scoring and ranking system,” criticizing OWGR’s organization. It also expressed that OWGR is robbing some traditional tournaments in the best fields possible and it’s not hard to see why LIV Golf feels this way.

LIV Golf has been trying to get recognized by the OWGR for a while now, but so far, no luck. In July last year, they appealed to the OWGR to grant points to their players, but the answer was a resounding no. The reason? According to the OWGR officials, LIV Golf’s 12-team format just didn’t match up with the other 24 tours that are currently recognized.

Now, this is where the Hero World Challenge has an edge over LIV Golf. Despite being a limited-field event, it follows a traditional 72-hole stroke play format. And that’s exactly what the OWGR is looking for. Even though the Hero World Challenge doesn’t offer FedEx Cup points, it still provides players with a chance to climb up the global rankings.

In fact, the Hero World Challenge has been known to be a game-changer for some players. Just ask Collin Morikawa, who was on the verge of reaching the number one spot in 2021 at the event. He ultimately blew his chances on the final hole, but it just goes to show how much is at stake at the Hero World Challenge.