John Rahm in action in the first round of the acciona Open de España at the Club de Campo, Madrid. Picture: Getty Images

LIV Golf players will not receive world ranking points for their next two events after failing to give the Official World Golf Ranking enough time to study their new strategic alliance with the MENA Tour.

But the MENA Tour has reacted and insisted it gave the OWGR plenty of notice and this week’s LIV Golf Invitational Thailand should be included in the latest list of events eligible for OWGR points.

LIV players joined the MENA Tour en masse this week, hoping they could use the developmental tour to get world ranking points immediately, simply by incorporating their invitation-only events into the MENA Tour's schedule.

But the OWGR insisted in a statement they need time to review the changes to the MENA Tour before awarding points to LIV Invitationals.

"Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) received a communication from the MENA Tour on October 5th, 2022, at 13:05 BST. The communication detailed significant changes to the MENA Tour’s membership structure along with an outline of the initial series of tournaments in the 2022/23 MENA Tour season.

“OWGR notes that the first two tournaments in this series appeared to be the same as the LIV Golf Invitational Series tournaments in Bangkok and Jeddah. The communication from the MENA Tour included a starting field data file for the Bangkok tournament, confirming that to be the case.

“A review of the changes to the MENA Tour is now underway by the OWGR.

“Notice of these changes given by the MENA Tour is insufficient to allow OWGR to conduct the customary necessary review ahead of the LIV Golf Invitational Bangkok (7-9 October) and LIV Golf Invitational Jeddah (14-16 October).

“Only after the review is complete will a decision be made on awarding points to the MENA Tour’s new “Limited Field Tournaments”, defined by the MENA Tour in its Regulations as “any MENA Tour-approved tournament, which comprises of a player field of less than 80 players.

“Regular official MENA Tour events conducted over 54 or 72 holes with a cut after 36 holes, and its Tour Championship, typically conducted over 54 holes with no cut, remain eligible for inclusion in the OWGR.”

David Spencer, Commissioner of the MENA Tour, responded earlier today to the OWGR decision and said the forthcoming world rankings will be inaccurate because LIV’s MENA branded event will not be included.

In a statement, he said: “We have had various communications with OWGR since submitting our 2022/23 schedule, MENA Tour handbook, exemption criteria and our field ahead of our opening event of our new season which tees off today. None of this communication pointed towards any technical reason for the LIV Golf Invitational Bangkok to be treated any differently to any MENA Tour event, every one of which has received OWGR since we were accepted into the OWGR framework in 2016.

“We have followed the OWGR Guidelines for our 2022/23 Season. Recently, there has been much talk in the golf world about limited field tournaments and 54-hole tournaments. For absolute clarity, the OWGR itself defines a limited field tournament as a tournament which has less than 30 qualified players. Furthermore, the MENA Tour has always had the OWGR’s blessing to stage 54-hole tournaments.

“The OWGR states: ‘The primary objective of the Ranking is to maintain, review, update, administer and promote the recognition of a system that fairly ranks the relative performance of golfers participating in the leading men’s professional tournaments throughout the world.’

SOMIS, CALIFORNIA - OCTOBER 06: Jodi Ewart Shadoff of England plays her shot on the seventh tee during the first round of the LPGA MEDIHEAL Championship at The Saticoy Club on October 06, 2022 in Somis, California. (Photo by Meg Oliphant/Getty Images)

“Clearly, the MENA Tour’s first event of the 2022/23 season, the LIV Golf Invitational Bangkok, is one of those tournaments and accordingly should be included in this week’s OWGR events. Not including our event in this week’s OWGR render the results and subsequent player movements inaccurate.

“As per the OWGR Guidelines, we will be lodging our field for the LIV Golf Invitational Jeddah prior to the deadline of October 12th.

“I also want to wish our 48 MENA Tour Members who are teeing off in Bangkok this morning all the very best for our first tournament of the 2022/23 season and assure all of our Members that we will continue to work tirelessly to resolve this situation with the OWGR.

“The MENA Tour’s guiding principle of maximising playing opportunities and pathways for our Members and growing the great game of golf remains unchanged.”

Power fades in Las Vegas

Séamus Power has no intention of going to LIV, but he failed to build on a great start to the Shriners Children's Open in Las Vegas, where a two-under 69 left him six shots behind Tom Hoge.

Power birdied the 10th, 11th, 14th and 16th to race into an early share of the lead, but he double-bogeyed the third and while he got a shot back at the sixth, he bogeyed the short eighth to finish the day tied for 55th when play was suspended due to darkness.

Meadow chasing CME Tour Championship spot after good start in California

At the LPGA MEDIHEAL Championship in California, Stephanie Meadow made five birdies in a four-under 68 to share seventh place behind Jodi Ewart Shadoff.

She's 79th in the standings and with her card secure, she will play in Korea, Japan and Florida over the next three weeks so she makes the top 60 who qualify for the $7 million, season-ending CME Group Tour Championship.

"Yeah, definitely going to play both Korea and Japan and Pelican and hopefully CME,” Meadow said after making five birdies and a bogey at The Saticoy Club in Somis. “And I'm excited to go to Asia. First time over there, so it'll be nice to play in those. Hopefully, make enough points to get in.”

WIth $1.5 million going to the winner of the CME Group Tour Championship at Tiburón Golf Club’s Black Course from November 17-20, she has plenty of motivation.

“Oh, yeah, it's what we all play for. It's bonus money, right? That's our year-end, that is our reward for playing good all year. Especially CME being my sponsor, for Terry I would love to make it and represent him there.

“He always does a great job. And obviously purse is huge, so it's what we play for and we play to win out here too, but making Tour Championship is still special.”

Kearney, Caldwell and Purcell start well

Meanwhile, Jonathan Caldwell and Niall Kearney lead the Irish in the acciona Open de España at Madrid's Club de Campo, where two-under 69s left them tied 31st, six shots behind Wu Ashun, Kiradech Aphibarnrat and Darius van Driel.

“It’s a good old fashioned tight track, tiny greens,” said Kearney, who is 171st in the DP World Tour Rankings and desperate to make the top 117 who will be fully exempt in 2023. “Didn’t hole much coming in but will have fresh greens in the morning!”

Home favourite Jon Rahm was tied fourth after a 64 with Paul Dunne and Gavin Moynihan 69th after 71s as Cormac Sharvin shot 74 and David Carey a 76.

Like Kearney, Dunne, Moynihan, Sharvin and Carey will be facing a trip to Q-School in the coming weeks should they fail to make the top 117.

On the Challenge Tour, local professional Tyler Hogarty shot a four-under 68 to lead the Irish challenge in the British Challenge at St. Mellion.

He's one behind England's Steven Tiley and Sweden's Simon Forsstrom with Portmarnock's Conor Purcell tied for eighth after a 69.

Tom McKibbin's 74 left him outside the projected cut mark with John Murphy 70th after a 75 and Ruaidhri McGee tied 96th after a 78.