Tiger Woods’ Hero World Challenge will draw all the attention this week, but an event on the other side of the globe boasts a higher field rating in the Official World Golf Rankings (OWGR).
Saudi International boasts stronger field than Hero; LIV stars Cameron Smith, Joaquin Niemann lead
The PIF Saudi International marks the final event on the Asian Tour, it also has a stronger field rating than the Hero World Challenge.
Jack Milko has been playing golf since he was five years old. He has yet to record a hole-in-one, but he did secure an M.A. in Sports Journalism from St. Bonaventure University.
Ironically enough, that would be the PIF Saudi International, the final event of the Asian Tour season held at Riyadh Golf Club in Saudi Arabia. This week’s field in Riyadh features numerous LIV Golf stars, including Tyrrell Hatton, currently the 16th-ranked player in the world. Other notables who are playing are Cameron Smith, Joaquin Niemann, and Peter Uihlein.
Smith, Nimann, and Uihlein hold a share of the 36-hole lead at 11-under par with Logan McAllister. Hatton sits one stroke back at the midway point.
David Puig, Adrian Meronk, and Patrick Reed are also playing this week, along with major champions Sergio Garcia, Dustin Johnson, Louis Oosthuizen, and Bubba Watson. But unlike LIV events, the PIF Saudi International has a 36-hole cut, and Puig, Reed, Garcia, Johnson, and Watson all failed to make the weekend.
Of course, the OWGR does not award points at LIV Golf events, which has led many LIV players to plunge down the rankings. Team play is the primary reason as to why. But having 54-hole, no-cut events that utilize a shotgun start did not help LIV’s pursuit of securing OWGR points either. Hence, dozens of LIV golfers are playing this week, hoping to secure valuable OWGR points before the calendar flips to 2025. International Series points are on the line, too, as whoever finishes atop these rankings secures a spot in the LIV Golf League in 2025. Uihlein currently leads the way with 1,071.10 points, as the American holds a 143-point lead over the next closest pursuer, John Catlin, his fellow countryman.
Over the past few years, the Asian Tour has received substantial subsidies from LIV Golf and the Saudi Public Investment Fund, thus increasing its footing within the pro golf lexicon and creating more pathways for players from Asia, Oceania, and the Far East. One could call the Asian Tour a ‘feeder tour’ that allows players to work their way onto LIV.
The International Series has also grown in notoriety since its unveiling in February 2022, staging events across the Middle East and Asia. Ten International Series events took place this year, with Uihlien winning two, including the most recent edition in Qatar at the end of November. Next year’s International Series will begin in India, where Bryson DeChambeau will reportedly tee it up.
Jack Milko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. Be sure to check out @_PlayingThrough for more golf coverage. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko as well.
